I offer this update, not to gloat, but to compensate for Scotland’s media reluctance to inform the public, lest they think that they, their NHS and their government are handling the pandemic better than other parts of the UK, or Rumpuk, as it is increasingly known, in my circles.
The infection rate continues to be twice as high in England and three times as high in Northern Ireland. Try asking those of your neighbours or relatives who do not read this blog, MSM Monitor or a few other social media sites offering accuracy, which nation has the highest rate. Many I have asked, guess – ‘Scotland?’
In recent days, Labour run Wales has seen an increase putting the rate their now clearly higher than in Scotland.
On July 12th, a whole month ago, Scotland surpassed Wales to have given more first doses of the vaccine than Rumpuk. In the last few days, the gap with Wales show signs of further widening.
On second doses, Scotland is in second place behind Wales but the gap there too is closing. No part of England, even the more affluent, has delivered more doses than Scotland, other than the South West, by 0.7%, on second doses only.
On recent performance, Scotland is ahead, having surpassed Northern Ireland two days ago, even as they push hard to respond to the horrific surge in cases there. Scotland passed Wales on August 2nd and has been vaccinating more than Johnson’s ‘world-breaking programme’ in England since June 2nd, 10 weeks ago.
As a result of all the hard work, Scotland is the only part of the UK where the R Number range is less than 1 suggesting the virus is in retreat.
Again, thanks to all of the above, Scotland’s hospitals have fewer Covid patients pro rata than all but Wales. With less than half the population, Northern Ireland has more and with 10 times the population, England has 14 times as many patients.
BBC Scotland with the BMA and the royal colleges, would of course, have you think our hospitals are bursting at the seams. It’s an agenda.
The picture is made more clear with the above map. Only Scotland has no local authority infected at the highest level (over 300, black). Almost all of England is infected at the higher levels and Northern Ireland looks quite scary.
Finally, making all of the effort worthwhile, Scotland has had, over the pandemic, a far lower death rate than all other parts of the UK. Had we followed the Johnson regime’s strategy, 2 to 3 000 more might have died.
Think what we might have achieved had we been independent. Norway had only 15.1 deaths per 100K.
If you get the time, show this to those of your neighbours and relatives who might be surprised.
If RumpUk
Had performed in vaccinating at the same rate as Scotland
Then their total given to date would be
4.76 million higher
Chronlogically and currently that equates to Rump Uk being 19 days behind
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I bet that Andrew Marr was all over this on Sunday . Damn- another bet lost !
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Despite this, Good Morning Scotland is trying to raise fears about young people returning to school. Sleeki Wormtongue interrupted Shirley Anne Somerville several times as she explained the measures that have been put in place and the cooperation with local authorities.
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I note in conjunction with their “Covid in Scotland: Back to school – back to normality?” piece on the Scotland webpage this morning.
Despite trying yet again to recycle their old “‘I’m going into S6 and have never done a proper exam’ ” pastiche (in reality most pupils will take it all in their stride), the objective is to clearly to worry parents and leave the door open for DRoss and Sarwar to pontificate on how this “chaos” would never have happened were they in charge.
Good Moaning Scotland, “servicing” the public… 🙄
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The question mark said it all – you folk should be SCARED! Then, on the website we read that the measures being taken in schools are NOT required in cafes and restaurants so, are they really required? The usual BBC ‘lack of clarity ruse’. It has been made unclear because the BBC obfuscated the message.
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And by way of postscript I note said article opened for comments fully 7 hours later based on earliest comment 1530 local my own observation 0801.
HMS Sarah Smith must be getting desperate….
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Scotland 7 day average cases on a rising trajectory – in spite of vaccination.
Vaccination does not prevent infection or transmission – although for most the infection will be mild (not for Andrew Marr tho but at least he didn’t get hospitalised) .
Good there are still face covering rules in place but while the vaccines are not reducing cases some of us although double vaxed are still at risk of serious disease.
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Alex, I think Professor Robertson and those of us who read this site are aware of the current rising trend and that double vaccination does not prevent further infection. His main focus has always been to highlight the increasingly blatant anti SG slant in the BBC Scotland and press reporting. At the peak of recent infections, BBC Scotland was trumpeting that Scotland was the ‘worst in the world’ and the bombastic Kirsty Wark and the baleful bool-in-the-mooth editor of the Sectator magazine, Fraser Nelson, were despatched to do a Newsnight special.
However, as, first, England and now, NI, reached their peaks to become, briefly, the worst, the BBC, Herod, and Scotsman make no mention, nor the fact that the current key indicators of pandemic management in Scotland are the most optimistic in the UK.
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No denying we’re the best just now.
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And my Calvinist upbringing forbids me to gloat about that in case a vengeful God smites me!!!!!!
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Alasdair
Ah but Boris the Terrible
Has the Queen and the Archbishop of Canterbury
And should the latter ever step seriously out of line
Then Boris only has to repeat the words of Henry the 8th
To his inner circle
” Who shall rid me of this man”
And then consider the job done and normal service resumed
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Well said Alasdair.
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Might there be a correlation with staycationers holidaying in Scotland, the timing would be about right, end of school hols in England, why stay local, just look at Scotland’s amazing countryside. The numbers are probably going to keep rising unfortunately. Like NZ, Scotland, in a parallel universe,
would keep their borders closed to all non essential travel until the new year. Yes tourists spend money but if another lockdown is required because of tourism, any benefits will be cancelled out and long term effects much worse. If Scotland was in another universe, they’d have plenty of safety nets for businesses etc, and they wouldn’t have been dragged out of a trade etc union with 27 other countries, against their will.
Tragic.
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Have we lost our crown as “Europe’s Covid Capital”, then?
Dratted SNP, eh?
I see our colonial media carrying the Labour “research” on tenants struggling to meet their rents.
If only they hadn’t sold off most of the social housing in Scotland, with their Thatcherite copy-catting.
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gavinochiltree: But Labour did built 3 or was it 5 Council Houses while in power.
Sorry I cant be more accurate, I am hopeless with big numbers..
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At your dire peril ignore long covid especially with overall infection numbers.
England on current trends can expect overall infection numbers to hit 8 million by Christmass
Which in turn means
1.almost 3 million long covid
Which in turn means and more importantly
2.Serious complicated long term debilitatiinterestsl for over a million cases
Which in turn means
3.Serious fiscal long term impact on EHNS & Fiscal deficits through decreased tax receipts and increased health expenditure
Not taking into account the ever growing waiting lists for treatment and ops
Boris the Terrible without any doubt has been informed of such, but once more chases the money again only to pour more monies needlessly down the cess pits he has dug fastidiously for the nation
As the Nett fiscal consequencies results evolve and enlarge his already huge deficit
Ah but is such not the result of such a elite but throughly useless education
That concentrates solely on self interests
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The media will never report that had the ScotGov totally gone along with the incompetents at WM, many more lives would have been lost in Scotland. If a BritNat party had been at the helm the past 16 months, the consequences just do not bear thinking about, going on their disastrous record in government in Scotland. Running down the SNHS, sending £billions back to Westminster, plunging Scotland’s councils into £billions of debt via their PFI scams, and no investment in transport or real infrastructure like new bridges when the old ones are no longer fit for purpose, etc.
Labours’ legacy is appalling, councils having huge debts still to pay to private companies, money which could be much better spent on things like social care, recycling facilities, infrastructure etc.
Labour must never be allowed near the reins of power in Scotland again, that goes for all Britnat parties HQ’d in London. The damage they imposed on Scotland is going to take a lot longer to repair.
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