Three Bishops from Africa and Asia arrived at Edinburgh Aiport this afternoon - their mission - to urge Scots to help make poverty history. Sir Bob Geldof is playing a major part in the same campaign and yesterday he met the churchmen in London to tell them of his plans. Scotland's Cardinal Keith O'Brien said the Irishman is going to stage a series of concerts worldwide on 2nd July .

Cardinal Keith O'Brien, Archbishop of St Andrews & Edinburgh explained:"Sir Bob said he'd love to have concerts in the great centres of the world, in London, in Hyde Park, in Paris at the Eiffel Tower, in Germany, in the USA and so on. At the end of the concerts he'll call a pilgrimage to Edinburgh, asking all of those involved in the concerts to come to Edinburgh again. And he said he was going to see the Pope about the possibility of the Pope coming as well to this large gathering at the end of all the concerts."

Yesterday Sir Bob received an award for the remake of Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas". They will announce their full plans on Tuesday but they did confirm that the concerts will take place.

Sir Bob Geldof,Anti-Poverty Campaigner, stated: "Once more unto the breach. What started 20 years ago is coming to a fine political point within the next few weeks and Midge and Sting and I need you there again."

The plans may culminate with a concert at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh. Talks are underway about staging a major event there on the opening day of the summit at Gleneagles.

Today Edinburgh Council granted permission for a series of massive protests against the G8.

On Saturday 2nd July the Make Poverty History campaign will hold a march and rally in the city centre involving up to 100,000 people. That evening the Stop the War Coalition will hold a rally, attended by up to 10,000 people. The next day, Stop the War will hold a march on Princes Street and then a ceremony on Calton Hill.

If Pope Benedict does agree to come to Britain, it will be his first foreign visit since he was elected. Bob Geldof is in Rome today with Tony Blair. If if his plans come to fruition, they will exert unprecedented pressure on the G8, the most powerful men in the world.