Talking-up Scotland seems to be taking off again after dipping in the wake of the transition from the old Thought Control Scotland image and is pushing 100 000 views in one month for the first time ever. Many thanks to readers, commentators and contributors for validating what the blog tries to do. Some have suggested that current dissatisfaction with Wings by some of its readers partly explains this. I absolutely do not want to see Wings decline after its special contribution to the cause. I hope readers of this blog will continue to favour Wings and the other excellent pro-Indy … Continue reading Talking-up Scotland recovers after shedding thought-control image

The, to my mind, embarrassed presenter told us first thing this morning: The Turnaround time for ambulances dropping patients at hospital and getting back on the road has slipped according to the Scottish Tories. A Freedom of Information request by the Party shows the number of turnarounds taking more than an hour increased this year to an average of 43 a day. This compares to an average of 36 per day in 2018 and 27 a day in 2017. The target time is 20 minutes. It’s a strange wee statistical extract which doesn’t tell us anything critical about, say, the … Continue reading Reporting Scotland and Scottish Tories share this year’s Ambulance-chasing Award after attempting to cover-up the saving of 1 182 additional lives!

From BBC wales today: Patients have been asked to stay away from A&E departments and hold off from calling an ambulance unless they have a life-threatening emergency. The Welsh Ambulance Service said Christmas and New Year is its busiest time, and asked people to know their limits while drinking alcohol on New Year’s Eve to avoid extra demand. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-50949501 This follows the recent case of a patient in Wales who died on a frozen pavement waiting for an ambulance: Deadly NHS Wales Ambulance delays not a sign of pressure ‘across the UK’ There has been no comparable call from NHS Scotland … Continue reading When Richard Leonard accused Scottish ministers of failing to plan for the future did he mean Welsh ministers?

It’s been a day for appalling headline writing and this is another as well as a clear error in prioritising as one of the greatest artists in all of Scottish or British history, equalled only by William Blake two hundred years ago, is remembered by the state broadcaster as just a ‘Scottish author’ to be listed down the page. Earlier today the news of his death was less newsworthy than a made-up scare story about attacks on teachers. Now it’s less newsworthy than another made-up scare story about speeding police officers. In a frankly pathetic and, of course, mathematically unsound … Continue reading BBC Scotland breaks rules to ‘do the ton’ and allow police to overtake one of Scotland’s greatest

In the Herald today ‘A TOTAL of 1,700 complaints relating to patients being discharged from hospitals have been made to Scottish health boards since 2014/15.’ Wow! FFS! That’s a lot! They must be really bad. I blame the SNP! That’s what they want you to think. Consider these They’ve lumped 5 years of data together to make it seem more than it is and perhaps to conceal a trend. It’s 340 per year on average. Still a lot? How many patients are treated every year? NHS Scotland admitted and later discharged 1.2 MILLION people in 2017/18 alone. https://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Hospital-Care/Publications/2018-09-25/2018-09-25-Annual-QuarterlyAcuteActivity-Report.pdf? So, only 1 in … Continue reading Why are hospital complaints 28 TIMES more common in England than in Scotland? The Herald reporter knows nothing, really, nothing

The most important writer/illustrator since William Blake is merely ‘Scots author’ and doesn’t even merit headline position because a ‘Scotland is rubbish’ story has been fabricated. Why? Oh yes, he was pro-independence. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/dec/29/alasdair-gray-a-modern-day-william-blake-who-revitalised-scottish-writing Continue reading Most important writer/illustrator since William Blake is merely ‘Scots author’

Headlined all over BBC Scotland today, on behalf of the EIS/Labour Alliance, we hear of three attacks resulting in compensation of £105 000 altogether. So, 0.0004% of 693 251 pupils were involved in attacking 0.005% of 51 959 teachers? The biggest pay-out of £140 000 was for a fall and altogether £450 00 was paid out in compensation. The figure was reportedly up from 2018 but down from 2017. With such tiny numbers these are insignificant variations indicating no evidence of any trend. So, just for context (I’ll explain, BBC Scotland staff if you send me an email), what might … Continue reading BBC Scotland headlines no trend with three attacks but compensation for teachers is running at only one-third of the level found in English schools

In the Telegraph today, The Heffer goes all John Bull, or maybe Michael Fish, with us ungrateful Scots repeating that old whopper about Scotland being subsidised by the English taxpayer. Readers will know of course that certainty is hard to come by in the world of economic judgement. The dismal science only tends to know what it’s talking about after things have crashed. That uniquely honest economics prof, Richard Murphy, has already made very clear the impossibility of knowing exactly what the situation would be after independence. See this excellent piece: The failing English elite can’t get its head around … Continue reading Telegraph’s Simon Heffer has a cow over the English Taxpayer subsidising Scotland

From Reporting Scotland Up not down in recent months: As winter bites NHS Scotland A&E is still massive 13%* better even though NHS England fiddles the figures! Health Secretary photographed as NHS Scotland Cancer Treatment 95% target is met One reason for SNP support? Scotland’s A&E departments massive 18% better than NHS England in November You are MORE THAN TWICE as likely to spend more than 12 hours waiting in A&E in NHS England than in NHS Scotland Astonishing NHS Scotland performance as cancelled operations due to capacity approach zero Has Jeanne Freeman’s letter to EU NHS Scotland staff prevented a real crisis this winter? Scottish … Continue reading Best wishes to NHS Scotland! Here’s the evidence it’s easily the best in the UK and one of the best in the World