With so many indicators of superior performance by Scotland’s public services, BBC Scotland and the newspapers have clung to this issue like a dark comfort blanket.
Something’s up.
Yesterday the Tories were warning the SNP not to spin today’s data as a success if the numbers are still ‘high.’
This morning Reporting Scotland told us the news, that the figures are coming, and gave us a heavy dose of ‘worst in the UK and in the EU’ in case we had forgotten. We also got the sister of an older (60 plus) drug user who had just passed away to tell us that this should not be happening in Scotland today. That he was one of the many victims of Thatcherite de-industrialisation and community abandonment, in the 1980s was not discussed. That NHS Scotland’s drug treatment programme beats its target every year was also not mentioned.
Let’s see what they have to say when the figures are published.
Talking-up Scotland 
I note this morning they are promoting “Council leader quits amid sexual harassment claims”, ie the Jordan Linden “Sunday Mail” smear, on the Scotland page, with “Hundreds of schools in Scotland could shut over pay dispute” on the Politics page with Comments open for the NAMH brigade..
Hold the press….
They just switched the Scotland lead to “Addict saved from overdoses nine times in one year”… I’m certain I read that story quite a few days back….
Presumably this is the feed in to a report when the figures are published, they will already have draft quotes with hyperbole from Tsunami Baillie and Disaster Gulhane ready to roll in, presumably with an Analysis by Mzz Winters…
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OT, why has this from 2 years ago had 190 hits this morning?
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Strange, it might have appeared below this article as ‘more in TuS’?
BBC and BritNats trolling?
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It is always a tragedy when anyone dies from drug or alcohol misuse but the BBC are determined to keep the image of Scotland as a drugs and drink sodden desert.
The 1,300 figure has been repeated three times this morning, apparently determined to hold on to it although they were struggling to find time to keep it in their time slot.
The first time they interviewed a woman said that she drugs hit home when it wasn’t happening to someone else and she lost her brother recently who had died aged 63 after being addicted for 40 years, the second time they dropped the 40 years and the third time they dropped both the length and age.
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Yep because of course an addict of 40 years, is the result of the various English governments’ legacy of utter neglect to implement measures to support people in Scotland, and in allowing drugs to be shipped into Scotland and distributed into communities especially where there was poverty, and a sense of hopelessness among the young. Classic tactics, control the young men in particular, making it easier to remove their country’s resources without any protest from them.
SNP have a huge job to try to repair the damage of decades of English governments’ neglect and deliberately imposed poverty and hopelessness in Scotland. The daily rags’ are doing a sterling job in their attempt to blame the SNP for the United kingdom’s terrible legacy of creating the façade that Scotland is too poor both economically and mentally.
Keep up the good work John. 🙂
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I meant John R…
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THEY WILL TWIST ANY FIGURES TO SUIT THEIR TORY AGENDA
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”Scotland Drug Deaths worsened by ambulance problems as delayed ferries exacerbate problems at major hospital hit by pigeon dropping scandal while Nicola Sturgeon ignores Day Job to push extreme Independence agenda . ”
Later on Misreporting Scotland , the good news : we celebrate the Lionesses reaching the Euro Final !
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J. M. You should write for the Herod or the ScotsMAN doing a grand job of repeating their lies on here, in prose.
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The Scotsman grudgingly reported that the number had shown a small decrease. Must have hurt.
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