More than 400 000 apprenticeships funded by Scottish Government since 2008
A bit tired at end of day, I’ve just reposted this comment and must leave you to use the link at the bottom to see the sources. Thanks, John By Legerwood Apprenticeships in Scotland. Since the formation of the national skills agency in 2008, more than 400,000 apprenticeship jobs have been supported and funded by the Scottish Government. [1, 2] Annual funding targets support tens of thousands of participants across three main pathways: In total, ongoing investments of approximately £198 million support around 39,000 to 40,000+ apprentices actively in training at any given time. You can explore these statistics further on the Scottish Apprenticeships portal. … Continue reading More than 400 000 apprenticeships funded by Scottish Government since 2008
‘Vaccination rates are highest when parents regularly interact with medics’ but England has lost 45% of its health visitors
By stewartb To follow up on the vaccination topic, the BBC News article also has this: ‘… all of the public health experts who spoke to the BBC said that whilst anti-vax social media sentiment plays its part, they don’t think it’s the main reason immunisation rates have slipped. Instead, they point to something more mundane: they think that parents of young children simply have fewer face-to-face contacts with medical professionals than they did 10 or 15 years ago.’ (my emphasis) From one researcher: ‘vaccination rates are highest when parents regularly interact with medics, who can remind them to get their … Continue reading ‘Vaccination rates are highest when parents regularly interact with medics’ but England has lost 45% of its health visitors
Rupert Lowe and the NHS in a badly ‘Restored Britain’
Anonymous Talking of healthcare I saw this online from Rupert Lowe in a post on ‘X’ dated 5 August: “Under a Restore Britain Government, private healthcare costs will become tax-deductible. Care will be come far more affordable for millions of Brits. Our plans will hugely ease pressure on the NHS, and save you thousands of pounds. Private healthcare is not our enemy”. “Care will be come far more affordable” ? More affordable than now , via the NHS , which is FREE AT THE POINT OF DELIVERY ? “For millions of Brits” ? How many million ? What level of service will those “millions” get via private healthcare, that is will … Continue reading Rupert Lowe and the NHS in a badly ‘Restored Britain’
Glasgow misses Scottish Government target but still has massive, 135 times more, genuinely affordable social rent homes than Manchester
From BBC Scotland yesterday: Targets for the delivery of new affordable homes in Glasgow were missed last year, with construction hampered by rising costs. The Scottish government provided £127.75m for the city’s affordable housing supply programme but although all the money was spent, only 448 homes were recorded as complete against a target of 633. Other targets for approvals and site starts were also missed in 2025/26 for the city, which declared a housing emergency in 2023. However, a report to the council’s city administration committee said Glasgow had managed to deliver significantly more new-build affordable homes compared with other cities within … Continue reading Glasgow misses Scottish Government target but still has massive, 135 times more, genuinely affordable social rent homes than Manchester
CalMac’s future lies in restoring and growing the Clyde shipyards again
Perhaps thinking that any bad news on CalMac ferries serves the same purpose, to damage the reputation of the SNP Government, the Scotsman serves ours well – to make a case for the Cyde. From BBC Scotland 1 July 2026: CalMac’s newest ship – the Turkish-built MV Isle of Islay – is to be withdrawn from service for repairs later this month, just 15 weeks after carrying its first passengers. The roll-on roll-off ferry entered service on 31 March, but six weeks later a hinge problem with its bow doors meant it has had to operate “single ended” ever since. The issue … Continue reading CalMac’s future lies in restoring and growing the Clyde shipyards again
Inexperienced patient safety commissioner sides with tabloid’s anecdotal evidence against the reliable factual evidence of NHS Scotland’s superior maternity services
In the Herald today: Scotland’s patient safety watchdog privately urged ministers to scrap their maternity taskforce over concerns it was failing to act with sufficient urgency, The Herald can reveal. Karen Titchener, the Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland, wrote to Health Secretary Angela Constance in June recommending the Scottish Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce be discontinued and replaced with an independent, nationwide assessment of services. and these unfounded claims: https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/26431969.watchdog-urged-ministers-axe-scotland-maternity-taskforce/?ref=ebln&nid=1220&block=article_block_a&u=54f15f1382a35160f5f9fbd9de82faff&date=050826 Kitchener’s previous experience was in the US and in England. Her one peer-reviewed research paper is co-authored with 7 others in Utah and North Carolina, 10 years ago. Her claim that … Continue reading Inexperienced patient safety commissioner sides with tabloid’s anecdotal evidence against the reliable factual evidence of NHS Scotland’s superior maternity services
Even before today’s results Scotland’s schools narrowed attainment gaps across the board and ‘most deprived’ 14/15 year-olds made major strides in literacy
The gutter press today, above, with the same old un-educated claims. The facts: From Achievement of Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) Levels, 2024-25 published on 9 December 2025: The statistics also provide information on the gap in attainment between pupils from the most and least deprived areas of Scotland: For literacy, there was an increase in the proportions of primary pupils (P1, P4, P7 combined) that achieved the expected level, from both the least deprived and most deprived areas with a larger increase in the most deprived areas. As a result, the gap reached its narrowest ever level of 19.4 percentage points. For primary numeracy, … Continue reading Even before today’s results Scotland’s schools narrowed attainment gaps across the board and ‘most deprived’ 14/15 year-olds made major strides in literacy
Bias by the omission of really good news for Scotland – Record university places for Scots students and acceptances for most deprived young people at new high which also understates the true numbers
With the barest of mentions in the above report, now about to drop off the page after less than 24 hours and not a word in the press front pages, this highly significant news is being omitted because it tells the wrong story for those who cannot see Scotland thrive. From the Scottish Government, popping into the inboxes of every journalist in the country yesterday at 11am yesterday, ignored then and now, this: The total number of 18-year-olds in Scotland who have secured a place at university this year has increased to 17,920 – a record high for Scottish students … Continue reading Bias by the omission of really good news for Scotland – Record university places for Scots students and acceptances for most deprived young people at new high which also understates the true numbers
706 wildfires across England & Wales neither covered nor politicised
As of 28 July 2026, fire and rescue services in England and Wales had responded to 706 wildfires so far in the year (208 of them between 16–28 July alone), according to National Resilience data reported by the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC). https://nfcc.org.uk/fire-chiefs-warn-wildfire-risk-remains-elevated-with-more-than-200-wildfires-recorded-in-last-fortnight/ No comprehensive official total for the number of wildfires in Scotland in 2026 is publicly available yet (as of early August 2026), unlike the National Resilience/NFCC figure of 706 for England and Wales as of 28 July. For context, 2025 was a record year in Scotland with 241 wildfire incidents recorded by SFRS (including major ones … Continue reading 706 wildfires across England & Wales neither covered nor politicised
Shadowy Secretary of State for Scotland cannot read teacher numbers trend as they ‘plummet’ up the way
In the BBC Scotland analysis of today’s exam results this ridiculous claim un-moderated by the editor: Scottish Conservative MP Andrew Bowie said “plummeting teacher numbers and spiralling levels of school violence” had made it a difficult year for pupils. He added: “This has created a challenging environment for pupils to get the grades they hoped for, which is why they deserve a huge amount of credit for achieving great results. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c8xn11nv12do Here are the latest numbers with pupil teacher ratios, published in March 2026: 2025 – 53 475 teacher and 13.2/1 pupils per teacher 2024 – 53 412, 13.3/1 2023 … Continue reading Shadowy Secretary of State for Scotland cannot read teacher numbers trend as they ‘plummet’ up the way
The 'Unstoppable' Talking-up Scotland 