Bob Lamont
This still occupies prime spot on the BBC/Scotland and Scotland/Politics web-pages, but has been demoted on the UK page.
Curiously an article on the same subject appeared in the Times, published exactly one minute after Geissler’s “Sunday Show” had aired https://archive.ph/syHzf
None of the Geissler “personalised” framing here, instead referring to failure of SG government and SNP Ministers to progress amendments to the original Bill in 2021, yet also ignoring more pressing issues occupying ministers at the time, eg Covid.
The source seems to been a Sun interview, which could only have been conducted before the Geissler Show and the resulting hatchet job appearing on the BBC –
“He told the Scottish Sun on Sunday that although he was “hugely concerned” about the Conservatives’ record on human rights at Westminster, “the Scottish government needs to do much better as well”. ”
Contrast the headlines alone –
Times – “SNP is breaking its promises to children, says commissioner”
BBC Scotland – “Nicola Sturgeon ‘absolutely failed’ Scottish children – commissioner”
That’s BBC Scotland’s “impartial” journalism….
Anonymous
By making such a sweeping statement he is admitting that he failed TOTALLY during his 6 years in post.
However, I suspect no-one at BBC Scotland would dream of challenging him in such a way. In fact, he probably agreed to being interviewed as long as he was NOT challenged on his own performance.
Stephen McKenzie
It looks like another co-ordinated attack on the reputation of Nicola Sturgeon and to thwart her involvement or influence on the international stage going forward.
Rather bluntly, they must know this “journalist crap” is having less and less impact as people recognise what they are about and despise them for it.
Anonymous
This guy could have been reappointed for another 5 years. He wasn’t so sour grapes.
Talking-up Scotland 
Scottish children’s charities have brought out a State of Childrens Rights Report 2023
https://www.togetherscotland.org.uk/
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Thanks
Will check out.
Any quick thoughts on it vav the Adamson view?
John
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The Age of Legal Capacity (Scotland) Act 1991 sets out when a person under the age of 16 has the legal capacity to make decisions. The definition of a child varies in different legal contexts, but statutory guidance which supports the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014, includes all children and young people up to the age of 18?
England and Wales recently increased the age for marriage from 16 to 18 earlier this year and I am wondering if this is one of the pieces the Scottish Government is trying to get to grips with before the others fall into place.
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@Bruce_Adamson is definitely miffed at not being reappointed although the position was just for 6 years , he probably thought he was so magnificent he would be kept on , if fact he has achieved very very little!
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Irrespective of how “miffed” Adamson may feel, it was the different framing to the BBC in Scotland https://archive.ph/butcb where is was all about Geissler’s “gotcha” moment of blaming it personally on Nicola Sturgeon I sought to highlight.
I was surprised on opening the above archive to find the links led to other BBC archives on the challenged bills, where the same differential personalisation and anonymity were evident along with distortion by omission.
eg “Deputy First Minister John Swinney”, “Nicola Sturgeon” by name, v “UK ministers”, “UK law officers”, etc..
The mystery Minister who instructed the “UK law officers” to bring the case before the SC is never revealed, as if they did this entirely off their own bat.
Impartial journalism ?
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From 9th November 2022
https://www.togetherscotland.org.uk/news-and-events/news/2022/11/uk-ranked-174th-in-global-children-s-rights-review/
“The annual report of the KidsRights Index has ranked the UK at 174th globally in adherence to the UNCRC, and reveals no progress of children’s standard of living worldwide in the last decade with climate change being the main global threat to children’s lives.”
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I was disgusted it this attack on the SNP and Nicola Sturgeon’s work she has done more for the rights of children than any other leader in the U.K. as a grandparent bringing up two grandchildren through these time I cannot be more than grateful to the Scottish government they help my two grandchildren to achieve and go to uni
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The Martin Geissler interview with Bruce Adamson left me wondering why he couldn’t lay claim to a few of the advance that have been made only in Scotland over recent years.
He has produced state of the art papers with little in them of note other than the ratio of staff costs to spending on their Priorities No 1 and 2.
As usual Martin Geissler used his time to attack the Scottish Government instead of discussing the elephant blocking the room regarding children’s rights in Scotland – the UK Government intervention that prevented Scotland becoming the First country in the UK to incorporate the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) into law.
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We cannot honestly know what passed in that interview with the Guiser Geissler, it’s a closed set – The editing suite determines “the truth” from the editor’s perspective – Gone are the days of Nick Robinson’s infamous rewrite of Scottish history (again) with “And… he said nothing” at a SNP conference, deft editing couldn’t exclude Salmond’s reply being heard and recorded by well over 1,000 people.
Nick Robinson is still employed by the BBC.
Ultimately Adamson became the patsy
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BBC – skewed reporting maligning Nicola Sturgeon / SNP – Job Done !
Ex Children’s Commissioner on mission to cover a*se – Job Done !
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It is quite straightforward to find positive statements about contributions to meeting the needs and wants of children and young people made by SNP governments. It is abundantly clear that the ‘absolute’ negativity expressed by Mr Adamson is wholly unwarranted.
However, given the dominant nature of the corporate media and the BBC that ‘serves’ Scotland, communicating, aggregating and amplifying the unwarranted is normal practice. Journalism in Scotland in defence of the Union is where journalism to provide the best attainable version of the truth is an alien ethic!
The great Unionist hope of Tories with Ruth Davidson prominent has disappeared. The next best hope of the Union-supporting media to dent the parties supporting independence is Starmer’s Labour Party.
And what better way to get left of centre voters in Scotland questioning their support for the SNP – including voters perhaps still with the muscle memory of voting Labour – than a context and perspective-free media onslaught on the Scottish Government’s track record on social policies concerning children.
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Here are positive comments as a counter balance to Mr Adamson’s ‘absolute’ negativity – hurriedly found online with minimum effort!
From the charity Children 1st, in response to the First Minister’s decision to resign (15 February 2023)
‘Responding to the announcement that First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is resigning, Mary Glasgow, Chief Executive at Children 1st said:
“As First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon’s strong leadership paved the way for an ambitious policy programme for Scotland’s children and families. With her personal commitment, Scotland’s understanding of the impact of trauma and the need to prevent harm to children has really improved.
“The First Minister always made time for the children and families we work alongside. From celebrating the achievements of our Glasgow peer support network, Women 1st, to launching our partnership with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, her commitment has had a real impact. Her ongoing commitment to The Promise is heartening.
“We want to thank her for everything she has done to put children first as First Minister and wish her the very best for the future. We look forward to working with her successor to continue work to uphold children’s rights and keep children safe, loved and well, with their families.”
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For more context, from a blog written by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s Associate Director for Scotland (2 May 2023):
‘Fortunately, things like the Scottish Child Payment are starting to help and the Scottish Government’s commitment to introducing a Minimum Income Guarantee can start to build greater security for households and reduce that demand. The UK Government also have an important tool at their disposal via the Universal Credit system, where our Essentials Guarantee would, again, provide the security which far too many people lack.’
And: ‘ … the conditions which have made this spike in inflation a crisis have had a long period of gestation. The withering of social security support for single people and disabled people in particular has exposed people to destitution in a way that is completely unacceptable in a society as wealthy as our own.
‘More recent decisions, such as the imposition of the two-child cap, have put larger families at high risk of poverty and single parents have borne the brunt of policies such as the benefit cap.
‘But the UK Government has a large part of the solution at its fingertips. The Universal Credit system is inadequate to meet even the basic needs of most households and by providing our Essentials Guarantee the UK Government could ensure that all those in receipt of Universal Credit can at least affords life’s essentials.’
The JRF is far from satisfied with the contributions coming from the Scottish Government but it does acknowledge the good that it has delivered. It also makes explicit the negative impacts on poverty in Scotland of a Westminster-controlled social security system that the JRF describes as ‘inadequate to meet even the basic needs of most households’.
And finally, from Save the Children (29th March 2023) urging the Scottish Government to do more to tackle poverty. Notably, it did state this on the impact of the full roll out and increases to the Scottish Child Payment:
‘We’ve seen firsthand and heard directly from parents how the payment makes a big difference to them. It’s a lifeline which helps parents pay for essentials like food and heating.
‘The benefits of this expansion should begin to show up in next year’s statistics and underlines the fact that increasing incomes through social security is the key to unlocking persistently high poverty levels.’
In wanting more action by the Scottish Government, the charity states: ‘Action taken already has contributed to child poverty levels being lower in Scotland than other parts of the UK where there hasn’t been this leadership or cross-party consensus.
‘We’ve got good foundations that show how devolved powers can be used to make progress on tackling poverty – like the Child Poverty Act that sets the targets, the Scottish Child Payment, and in Best Start, Bright Futures (the Scottish Government’s action plan to tackle child poverty) a strong diagnosis of the struggle that many families face and, in many areas, the right understanding of where additional action is needed.’
All notable acknowledgements in contrast to Mr Adamson’s description of ‘absolute failure’. However, I do wonder how anti poverty campaigners envisage a government of any persuasion, with limited fiscal and zero monetary policy powers – whether in Edinburgh or Cardiff – can correct for the fundamental ‘inadequacy’ of the UK’s social security system from their own fixed budgets whilst within this Union!
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Listen to the question and response at 16 minutes in where he says putting the UNCRC into domestic law was the most important thing. The reply mentions the Children’s Minister saying last week (it was recorded in March 2023) they (the Scottish Government) would try get it back before the summer break.
“Children in Scotland’s children and young people’s advisory group, Changing our World met outgoing Children and Young People’s Commissioner, Bruce Adamson in March 2023 to ask him some questions and record an episode of the Children in Scotland Podcast.
This film is a behind the scenes of that recording.”
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This from the admirable MSM Monitor has appeared on Twitter:
‘Two months ago Bruce Adamson answered questions posed to him by young people. In the clip below he is asked “Did you get done what you wanted to achieve in your six years?”
‘Adamson answers honestly. Completely differerent from what he said on BBC Scotland. It’s worth a listen.’
And that’s an understatement! So what on earth motivated Mr Adamson in his ‘absolute’ denigration? Given what we experience every day from corporate media and BBC reporting of the SNP and the Scottish Government, it’s a tough call which party behind this news story is the lowest bad faith actor!
Source: https://twitter.com/msm_monitor/status/1658094484767268868?s=20
(Apologies if the link doesn’t work.)
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“So what on earth motivated Mr Adamson in his ‘absolute’ denigration?”
Your visa’s expired, Rwanda’s nice…
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Scottish taxpayers are paying for that nonsense. The monies would be better spent on the children. BBC £6Billion for nonsense.
Lie after lie after lie. Scottish revenues and resources spent on illegal wars, tax evasion, and financial fraud. Instead of children. Killing children. The Westminster Gov kills children. The Scottish Gov tries to save them. Without the proper power over Scotland’s resources. Control retained by Westminster corruption and lies. The BBC Westminster propaganda unit. Promoting lies and untruths, A complete and utter disgrace, The UK the unequal place in the world.
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