Diane Goodwin is one of Scotland's most experienced homeopathic practitioners and firmly believes that the thousands of satisfied patients she has dealt with over the past 20 years bears testament to the validity of her work.

Ms Goodwin runs the Abercromby Place Homeopathic Practice in Edinburgh and rejects claims that homeopathic practitioners mislead anybody. "I was a surgery nurse trained in Inverness who then worked at the Royal Infirmary in Edinburgh before I trained in homeopathy," said Ms Goodwin.

"Homeopathy helps people with lots of different types of illnesses and the proof is in the fact that people say it helps them with their conditions.

"People come to me for treatment for allergies like hay fever, while others look for help with asthma and eczema - while some women want help with menopausal problems.

"I would say what we do is a science and an art. You do get bully boys who try to discredit the work that we do, but homeopathy is very safe when practised by trained professionals.

"Universities and colleges are right to offer courses in homeopathy and complementary medicine as they are academic courses run by professionals."