Needless to say, the Scottish Cons have pounced on the news that employment in Scotland is only 74.1% compared to the UK’s 75.5%
Leaving aside the obvious factor, how the over-resourced South-East sucks employment opportunities to it and away from the North, there is simple demography.
19.3% of Scots are over 65, compared to 18.5% in England and 18.6% across the UK.
The median age of Scots is 42.1, compared to 40.2 in England and 40.4 across the UK.
Simple.
Talking-up Scotland 
Surely the employment rate is calculated for those of working age – i.e. over 65’s excluded
LikeLike
Not sure. Many work over 65?
LikeLiked by 1 person
They do if not too TMI, I had to talk to a council guy today about a pollution problem with neighbours’ wood burning stoves (cough cough choke!) and he is 65, wasn’t any help at all mind just said how awful coal burning fires were years ago and people didn’t die of the pollution then! Ah OK.
Argh.. I can hardly breathe!!!
See you tomorrow hopefully.
LikeLike
I saw a statistic today that wood-burning stoves now produce more pollution than traffic. Did not read the article but these sort of stoves do produce a lot of pollution.
As to Coal burning. It did kill people. Think of the Smogs, particularly in London, in the 1950s and the numbers who died due to the smog. These led to the Clean Air Act and smokeless fuel. I can remember thick fog/smog when I was growing up in the 1950s. They were a regular occurrence yet now are practically unknown. Heavy industry also contributed of course but millions of coal fires and the pollution therof certainly killed people.
LikeLiked by 2 people
O/T
Thanks Legerwood. Interesting, and of course the fumes from them don’t just stay in the persons house if at all because they have filters, or in their own outside vicinity. Apparently if they are DEFRA compliant stoves there is absolutely nothing whatsoever we can do about it. The council guy said they get lots of complaints about them, more or less said research (which I said is actual science and had come from the US) is more or less bunkem and implied it’s just folks being all nimby about it. Cough, choke, cough today!
Yes I too remember the thick fog (smog) from coal fires in the 60’s it must have been terrible for peoples’ health long term. Sadly the clean air act doesn’t cover wood burning stoves and so we just have to suffer ill health as a result of usually well off folks not wanting gas or leccy bills to heat their town houses.
Can you link to the article please if you still have it?
Thanks.
Ps stay safe all…
If you want to see the wind and ongoing storm, there’s a lull now, but not for long, here is a link. click on ‘Earth’ for details and zoom in out etc, also click on map for details in your area. You can get temperatures as well.
https://classic.nullschool.net/#current/wind/surface/level/orthographic=-5.81,53.97,151
LikeLike
“Data mining” again. Select a datum which looks bad and present it out of context.
LikeLiked by 3 people
If conservatives had there way the working class would work till they drop . Its only them and the privileged that are aloud to retire and enjoy there advaning years
LikeLike
That’s kind of how it has always been Hugh…and still is for most people and the English gov are going to put up the retirement age to 70+. With no NHS, it is going to be perfect for the far right wing disaster capitalists at WM. Fabulous.
LikeLike
BREXIT is hitting Scotland harder than England. our food exports to the EU have been hammered. Food exports to the EU were a larger part of Scotland’s economy . . . . therefore Scotland’s employment rate will have been reduced. entirely due Wastemonster’s imposed BREXIT!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is a recognised fact Scotland has a more elderly population but they due on average 1 year earlier than the rest of the UK. An improvement in life expectancy. 6% more (pro rata). of the Scottish population work over pension age.
Women were denied pension rights. They are now having to work to 67 without enough warning to improve the pension deficit, More people will end up on benefits because they have been denied pension rights. On average women live 5 years longer than men, worldwide.
UK 79 years average life expectancy. Going down in the south for the first time in 40 years. Tory austerity abd welfare cuts. US average 76. Spain 84 average life expectancy. Healthy lifestyle. Highest average life expectancy Japan 85 years. Healthy diet. Fish and vegetables.
LikeLike
Thatcher. Unemployment over 3 million. UK Population 60million. Scotland 5Million.
Unemployment in NI 20%. The Troubles caused by Westminster unionists. Unemployment Scotland 15%. The only place unemployment was under 10% was London S/E. Thatcher secretly and illegally used the Oil & Gas revenues to fund unemployment. Civil war with the miners. Violent, social unrest and the Poll tax. Interest rates 17%. Inflation 15%. Prices rising. People encouraged to buy houses lost their homes because of constantly rising interest rates. Many had to travel south or migrate to get a job.
LikeLike
I don’t think you should necessarily call all people living in Scotland Scots and certainly not in the pensioner cohort.
There have been a significant number of retirees from south of the border coming to live in Scotland over the last ten years if not longer. They come to buy houses which are realatively cheaper than they have sold. and they like having more spacem better health care, free proesciptions etc.
Unfortunately they also price out the locals (especially young families), require higher than average health care due to age, and are never going to vote for Scottish Independence!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Devolution has helped Scotland so much. The population only increased after 2000. Increased from 5million (since 1900) to 5.4million. Scotland needs people. The population could decline because of Brexit. Essential workers are being denied the right to come because of Brexit. Affecting fishing, farming, healthcare, food and drink sector etc. Renewable EU grants and loans lost. Scotland in surplus in fuel and energy pays more pro rata. Despite being nearer the source. Scotland should pay less for parity.
Independence will be even better to grow the economy. No taxation without representation. Westminster poor, bad economic decisions have held Scotland back. Economic, foreign and social policies decided unequally by Westminster. Tax evasion, illegal wars, austerity, Brexit etc. The UK the most unequal place in the world. Scottish resources and revenues going south to fund London S/E, unequal and unfair. The Barnett Formula.
LikeLike
I don’t know if this is of interest to anyone but is it another Brexit bonus not but it will not please a lot of people.
https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/how-brexit-damaged-pigeon-racing/
LikeLike