BBC Scotland are going with the Tories on the news of the day – Humza Yousaf must apologise for refusing to sack former health secretary Michael Matheson, the Scottish Conservatives have said.
The, THE news, today, of the Junior Doctor’s next, looming, strike, is nowhere other than in the Health Service Journal:
Junior doctors have announced a further five full days of strike action this month, while their union has accused the health and social care secretary of refusing to extend their strike mandate to allow pay talks to continue.
The strike will run from 7am on Saturday 24 February to 11.59pm on Wednesday 28 February – although juniors on shifts which start on the Wednesday and continue into Thursday are being advised to work those shifts as normal.
Juniors’ leaders said in their announcement they had given government a deadline of 8 February to make a “credible offer”, and when it failed to put one forward, the BMA suggested negotiations could continue if Victoria Atkins granted a four-week extension to their current strike mandate, which expires on 29 February.
Does this matter?
From the BMJ in April 2023:
The media reported that during the first round of junior doctor strike action in England, mortality was 11.1% above the five year average.
How many health strikes have the SNP leaders averted now? 10? More? Well, all of them.
How many lives have they saved? Hundreds? Thousands?
Talking-up Scotland 
Poole Hospital patient dies after no food for nine days… BBC englandshire not one reference to mismanagement of ministers or politicians. If that was Scotland the Beeb would be all over it, salivating and intervening the tearful family… Conversely Beeb Scotland is running 8 articles today about the laptop’s roaming charge £10,000 bill.
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£30,000 hypocrisy!!!
https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/scottish-news/7995748/tory-douglas-ross-failed-declare-income/
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With HMS James Cook promoting “Humza Yousaf must apologise for backing iPad row minister – Tories” now in second place to “Why did iPad row minister Michael Matheson choose to quit now?” penned by David Wallet-Locked-Hard, https://archive.ph/yN9a4, and the only critique available to the ‘public’ over BBC Scotland reporting being limited to ” Minimum alcohol unit price in Scotland to rise to 65p ” (comments still open at 2,615), it’s fairly obvious “the news where you are” is highly orchestrated propaganda.
It really is worth reading David Wallet-Locked-Hard’s article with respect to the art of duplicity so famed of propagandists and total detachment to reality – ” he fell on his sword “, “It doesn’t get much worse than a ministerial resignation moments before FMQs”, but then the total bullshit of linkage between green investment by U-Turn-Starmer being connected – Was David sharing Michael’s Colombian marching powder at the time to come up with this arrant nonsense ?
The news where you are should be that junior doctors are being shit upon over wages by the worst UK government in living memory, and even those in Scotland know where the blame lies, London… So do the public… On planet BBC Scotland, there is a different ‘reality’, they conjure it daily…
Meantime James Cook only succeeds in giving bespoke tailors a bad name, and BBC Scotland continue to be exempt from FOI requirements revealing AJ ‘purring’ via WhatsApp over progress followed by deletion…..
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The journalists mentioned here have been ‘captured’ by their and their employer’s Unionism. There is no limit to their journalistic efforts to destroy the threat to the Union. And it’s no surprise that objectivity, balance and neutrality are all ditched in the process, including and perhaps especially by the BBC.
Let’s never forget the forces of the UK state railed against us!
From Civil Service World 21 November, 2014: ‘HM Treasury team wins special Civil Service Award – The Treasury’s Scotland Analysis Programme Team won the Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service Award in this year’s Civil Service Awards.’
‘Cabinet Secretary and civil service head Sir Jeremy Heywood (centre) presented the award to team members (from right to left) Paul Doyle, Will MacFarlane, Shannon Cochrane, and Mario Pisani.’
Pisani said: “WE ALL HAD SOMETHING IN COMMON, WE’RE TRYING TO SAVE THE UNION HERE, and it came so close. We just kept it by the skin of our teeth. I actually cried when the result came in. After 10 years in the civil service, my proudest moment is tonight and receiving this award.”
‘He added: “As civil servants you don’t get involved in politics. FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE, SUDDENLY WE’RE PART OF A POLITICAL CAMPAIGN. We were doing everything from the analysis, to the advertising, to the communications. I JUST FELT A MASSIVE SENSE OF BEING PART OF THE OPERATION. This being recognised [at the Civil Service Awards], makes me feel just incredibly proud.”
‘Cochrane said: “we’ve learned that it is POSSIBLE FOR CIVIL SERVANTS TO WORK ON THINGS THAT ARE INHERENTLY POLITICAL and quite difficult, and you’re very close to the line of what is appropriate, but it’s possible to find your way through and to make a difference.”
‘And Doyle added: “This award is not just for the Treasury, it’s for all the hard work that was done by all government departments on the Scotland agenda.
“The reality was in all my experience of the civil service, I HAVE NEVER SEEN THE CIVIL SERVICE PULL TOGETHER IN THE WAY THEY DID BEHIND SUPPORTING THE UK GOVERNMENT IN MAINTAINING THE UNITED KINGDOM. It was a very special event for all of us.”
Source: https://www.civilserviceworld.com/professions/article/hm-treasury-team-wins-special-civil-service-award
What’s the equivalent of a Civil Service Award for journalists in Scotland furthering the cause of the Union regardless of professional standards?
.
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I recall reading the civil service award story and feeling disgust as a former civil servant – They expressed pride in having found a way to bend the ‘political rules’ to defend a political construct, ‘THE UNION’, and were recognised and rewarded for doing so.
Journalism in the UK had always been nuanced and in places partisan, the transition to propaganda I first became aware of in the 1970s, but only when I went to Ireland did the sheer scale of it dawn. I cannot recall who likened the ‘Brits’ to goldfish in a bowl, living in their own little world – Those looking from the outside had a very different perspective.
The BBC Scotland operation is far removed from any pretence to nuance, a ‘Goldfish’ award should be created, perhaps presented by Peter Oborne.
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The gushing acceptance speeches implying that the civil service in general and the treasury in particular wasn’t involved politically in campaigning against Scottish independence before the referendum is of course not true, GERS and John Jappy expose that lie.
Golfnut
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With respect, I suggest there is a HUGE difference between preparing information for or taking instruction from Ministers and actively managing a political campaign – They appear to have conceived that because they were not acting on behalf of a single political party this complied, but ignored the counter they were acting against a political party democratically elected.
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Equally with respect Bob, the campaign was directed at the people of Scotland, ministers and the media undoubtedly used the information to rubbish claims by the SNP but the campaign was directed at the people of Scotland.
Golfnut
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No dispute – I was looking at it purely with regard to the CS “rules” over politics – eg You may be required to mix the mud to throw for those ‘up the tree’, but must not actively participate in the mud throwing…. – On this occasion they brought their own tree, and were awarded for it.
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Dont recall the Toadies calling for Boris to quit/apologise for his huge lawyers bill for lying to parliament (he quit before he could be flung out) or……
Liz Truss apologising/paying back the £500,000 she scammed for hiring a private plane ride to Oz when their were commercial flights available or……..
I dont recall the North Brit, Irish-run Beeb in Specific Pee EVER running a negative story about the English (“England’s thousand year old”) parliament, its government, or the endless sexual harassment/pochlin’/scams/corruption (Lady Moanin’ Face–“nuffin’ to do wiv us, Guv”). Nothing on Hi Jack, or “Noddy” Gove, or the Nukes-R-Us Minister for not-very-much Lt (failed) Bowie (who resembles the daft face on the cover of Mad magazine).
Nothing on Labour dumping its constitutional/all promises–nothing on a man who cheated on his expenses standing once more for the Toadie-lite party–nothing on the Labour/Tory/Dumb coalition (the only way Labour can rule in Holyrood).
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gavinochiltree.
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EE excessive phone charges.
Compensation £13,000. Back to square one.
Johnstone promoting the Ukraine war. Biden’s lost memory. Trump would have stopped the Ukraine conflict.
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Apologies O/T
POLITICO lists 26 (and counting) key walkbacks in Starmer’s spell as opposition leader.
Here is some of that list:
When he ran for the Labour leadership, Starmer, pledged to bring public services — name-checking rail, mail, energy and water — into “common ownership,” seen by many as a clear nod to nationalization of utilities long in private hands.
But, as early as September 2021, Starmer, ruled out nationalizing the big six energy companies.
***
One of Starmer’s other leadership pledges concerned stopping the creeping involvement of the private sector in the U.K.’s publicly-funded National Health Service. Starmer said he would “end outsourcing” in the NHS as he ran for leader.
But in an interview in the summer of 2022, he said the party will “likely have to continue with” some level of private provision in the health service if he takes office. Since then, his health spokesperson Wes Streeting has offered to “hold the door wide open” for the private sector.
***
Stand with trade unions. But not like that!
As public sector strikes hit Britain in the summer of 2022, Starmer ordered his shadow ministers not to appear alongside workers on picket lines. The Labour leader even sacked Sam Tarry, a left-wing MP and his shadow rail minister, for appearing with striking rail workers despite the order. Starmer’s team said Tarry was sacked for making up party policy in a TV interview.
All of that came despite Starmer promising that his Labour Party would “work shoulder to shoulder with trade unions to stand up for working people” as he ran for leader. ( Me: I received election campaign literature signed by Starmer & Sarwar that stated ” We have changed the Labour party so that it is back on side of working people”….that is as long as they don’t go on strike obvs LOL)
***
Starmer pushed for a second referendum on Brexit before the 2019 election. When he ran for the top Labour job, he didn’t renew that pledge …..but he did vow to “defend free movement as we leave the EU.”
Now As leader, he has sought to shed the perception that he is an EU flag-waving liberal. In a Mail on Sunday interview in 2022 he ruled out crossing the “red line” of accepting the return of freedom of movement for EU citizens.
***
If you wish to read POLITICO’s online full list of Starmer ,as leader of the Labour party, full betrayals (U-Turns) the article is under the header “All Keir Starmer’s Labour U-turns in one place”…..though they also note re that list that it is far from an exhaustive list….and thus it includes them also adding re “walkbacks”….”(and counting)” to note more have and probably will be added onto the list….
Read it there in black and white because you will not see the list of “walkbacks” that they note as being, as a political piece , as well articulated and highlighted (apart from articles on this site via Prof Robertson obvs) in the “news where you are” as currently the “news where we are” (supposedly) are more focused on #SNPBAD with the goal ultimately being to get Labour MP’s elected in Scotland in the next GE…..thus the only muck the media here want to spread is that which they assume they can do via concocting smears, exaggerating significance and spinning truth with the sole purpose of spreading all of the sh*t onto (and against) the SNP…..hoping some, if not all of it, will stick.
Pity then for the media here (and too the Labour party) that we have other sources of information from where we can establish facts and truths connected to both Starmer and the Labour party and too other political parties too …..information, facts and truths which is unfortunately missing in the “news where we are”…… via the MSM in Scotland…..for reasons all too obvious.
NMRN
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torraidh jumping ship to another country – Donnie Cameron to get his UK ermine piles and quitting Scotland.
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Nope. Scotland Office Minister…
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Unelected Scottish Office ministers will soon be out.
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It was cringeworthy watching Ed Milligan being interviewed on Channel 4 News last night re the £28 billion a year pledge that now, like other Labour pledges, is being dropped.
When challenged on the fact that the shadow Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, had also confirmed this amount at the time of it being initially announced by Labour as a pledged amount , MIlligan then stated, that she, Reeves, had added a proviso of “if it was fiscally responsible”…..so why then quote THIS yearly exact figure at the time as being THE amount Labour were pledging ?……
Now we are told that apparently the money to fund this now greatly altered and vastly reduced investment by Labour for ‘Green’ Energy is to be funded by borrowing (more debt then for the UK)….and….wait for it….also via a “windfall tax on the oil and gas giants” so fossil fuel profits via tax to pay for a Labour GREEN policy ???? ……same oil of course that Labour told Scotland in 2014 that, as a reliant profitable resource and source of income for an independent Scotland’s government, was not in fact, according to them and others, a credible source of funding for an independent Scotland…..as according to them and others ……oil was running out……the BBC tweeted at the time that according to an ‘Expert’ (Sir Ian Wood) it, Oil, would run out in 5 years which meant 2019…..yet here we are in 2024 and beyond and Labour are still RELYING on windfall tax from Oil to pay for their so called …..GREEN ????…..pledge……
Is no one now also going to ask Labour that if the amount they formerly pledged is to now be vastly reduced in their revamped ‘Green’ Energy ‘mission’ (where they now recognise that for them it was, as a pledged amount, impossible)…. then does that also mean that the thousands of jobs that THEY said it would create, especially in Scotland, will then also be GREATLY reduced as a result of their now lesser investment ?
Q’s Q’s Q’s…..not by the media in Scotland though……because they, the media, have instead another job to do……that is to convince people in Scotland to not vote for the SNP but instead vote for Labour…..well for now that is….because the party name is irrelevant to them, as for the media, it is the political party’s position upon the UK that is the real significant factor, i.e. being Pro UK….had the Tories been in ascendency in Scotland or indeed the Lib Dems then it would be they who the media would be giving the softly softly treatment that they are now giving to the Labour party while always obviously STILL attacking the SNP….
Warning to voters in Scotland…..if Labour are dropping pledges prior to being elected as the next UK government then what will they DO when/if they DO win (or rather NOT do of they win) ……and remember we in Scotland were told in 2014 that we would be Better Together with being a part of the UK (so we then had to suffer under the Tories)…..and already Labour are saying that there is NO money in the UK Treasury coffers to make things better…..in other words there will be NO “change” or “Fresh start” with a Labour UK government just more “empty promises” Labour will try to make in their campaign material that they send to us and too on our doorsteps when they canvass here in Scotland…… pretending that “Things will only get better” (Bitter more like) when realistically for us in Scotland everything will stay the same…..i.e. we in Scotland still being forced to be Bitter Together with the rest of the UK while being denied another justified vote on Scottish Independence…..Duck that for a laugh !!!!
NMRN
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Here’s a wee example (one of many) as to why Ofcom are NOT doing their job…..
Talk TV (a seemingly sister channel of GB News via their same output as GB News as a source of propaganda) have a programme called ‘Plank of the week’ hosted by Mike Graham…..where a ‘carefully’ selected (like minded) panel nominate a public figure that they think should be the ‘Plank of the week’ (reality being tis the host and panel members who are the REAL planks)………..
Anyhoo last night in an exercise to see what these planks are getting away with I heard Mike Graham, when talking about the Lib Dems, say that they are the THIRD largest party at WM…..really ?…..here was me KNOWING that was the SNP….and that the Lib Dems were the fourth largest party…..hence why Stephen Flynn at PMQ’s gets to ask a Q after Starmer has finished his Q’s to the PM…..but then Talk TV like GB News does not rely on communicating FACTS do they….when propaganda and lies is their agenda……
Also according to James Whale on the panel it is the Left who do most of the violence in the UK and he posed a question ” When was the last time you saw a Labour politician” ( his Q then trailed off….as I assume he remembered Jo Cox being MURDERED by a right wing nut job)….Mike Graham then said that the Lefties are always attacking the Tories and do they not realise that all of their antipathy could result in violence……Pot Kettle Black….as THIS programme always attacks those they say are on the ‘LEFT’ thus could they in doing so not ALSO generate antipathy via certain radicalised (by them) individuals against those on the ‘LEFT’ to attack the ones that ‘Plank of the week’ are nominating via THEIR attacks ?…and their favourite targets are NS , Humza and the SNP……
Ironically Mike Graham also said that the ‘LEFT’ always result to being ‘personal’ in their attacks……just like Mike and his panel then when they spoke about Nicola Sturgeon when she was nominated by them as ‘Plank of the week’ in an episode in 2022 (though she has been nominated many other times by their panel members) where they said “”She seems to have gone mad.” and “she’s not named after a cold fish by mistake is she” plus “you scratch below the surface and she is filled with ice” and “that horrible woman up North” and “her arrogance knows no bounds” plus re COP27 compensation for poorer countries affected by climate change prompted a comment of “this witch instantly dedicated was it 5 million pounds and I’m like where do you get this money from and who authorised this you cow “……yeh Mike let’s not get “personal” on politicians as it might prompt attacks…..unless of course it’s via a panel member on ‘Plank of the week’ obvs ……
This channel , like GB News cr*p, is what Ofcom ALLOWS to continue be broadcast where also UK politicians present programmes but Ofcom does not view this as a problem….(are we in a parallel Universe then)….same Ofcom that revoked Russia Today’s broadcast licence because they “concluded that we cannot be satisfied that RT can be a responsible broadcaster” and that “they, Ofcom, take seriously the importance of maintaining audiences’ trust and public confidence in the UK’s broadcasting regulatory regime”…..Ofcom also found that RT “breached impartiality rules”…….mind you they, Ofcom, obviously must give a wide berth to the BBC in Scotland as well as ignoring the output from GB News and Talk TV……so much for Scotland ‘Leading the way in the UK’ and other empty sentiments made in 2014……now that they have all got the result they wanted in 2014 it is very much a case of gloves off…..indeed according to Talk TV….Scotland would apparently be in dire circumstances if it was independent while England would be the opposite…….and their discussions and speculation during what is a ‘Live’ police investigation upon the SNP by both them and GB News should have warranted some action by Police Scotland…..
Of course all of the above channels exemplify the UK as it really really really is do they not….corrupt, broken and something any decent person in Scotland should want to be disassociated with and not instead some in Scotland supporting and voting for parties to uphold it as a state…..wake up people in Scotland…..they think you and your country is nothing compared to how they see England……Duck that is what I say (again)…..LOL
Sorry for length of comment…..but really is ridiculous to what exists in their UK as media channels that supposedly represent ALL of their UK…..their output proves otherwise !
NMRN
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‘Concrete farmer’ Graham ? A man so dense light bends around him ?
‘Plank of the week presented by plank of the century would not normally be seen as a winning formula in programming, but GB news is forever ‘different’, as in Mike’s case, “Where is his guardian ?”.
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Beyond Scotland’s prime media choice of what the ‘news’ must be, they are as guilty as politicians of promoting the lie which underpins such as the doctors’ strike, that the government has insufficient funds, what about the ‘national debt ?’ etc., the lies about our economic condition which have been perpetuated since Thatcher.
On this occasion, the trigger for Richard Murphy’s ire is the ‘maxing out the credit card’ spiel from Starmer and Reeves, well worth reading for clarity on the scam to which we are daily exposed https://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2024/02/10/uk-politicians-credit-card-con-trick-on-the-people-of-this-country/
It is by London’s political choices alone that railways and NHS suffer strikes, etc., etc.. – In the case of railways it would have cost less to settle than it has to prolong the strikes, yet “we can’t afford it”…. Figure that one out…
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“It is by London’s political choices alone”
Nail head etc etc…..spot on as per Bob.
NMRN
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An article in the Daily Telegraph yesterday, penned by Ruth Dudley Edwards , entitled “Ireland is fast becoming Europe’s nastiest Nation” where she, Ruth, states that “Its (Ireland’s) image is changing fast thanks to its cheap shots against countries like Israel, Britain and Taiwan”….she then goes on to criticise Sinn Fein as well as the Irish current Taoiseach…..well they do say that timing is everything….and now that Sinn Fein’s leader is the FM in Northern Ireland then surely it is no coincidence in regards to the timing of this particular Unionist’s attack….(especially via the possibility of a vote at some point on Irish reunification).
Some background on R D Edwards :
Born in Dublin and moved to England in 1965.
She describes herself as British/Irish.
A historian and writer who is also a columnist for various newspapers including The Daily Telegraph.
She describes herself as a “Hardline Brexiteer” and she called on the DUP to support Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal in October 2019 citing a Unionist friend who said that “it could put Northern Ireland in a terrific position as a gateway between the EU and the UK/world economy.”
She also declared she is a “Unionist” claiming “the awfulness of Sinn Féin and many of their weaselly fellow-travellers have succeeded in making me embrace unionism”
She declares that she is “proud revisionist” while others view her “revisionist” history as being “too biased, lacking in context, and intentionally misleading that her works classified as “nonfiction,” such as the “An Atlas of Irish History,” are better understood as partisan propaganda that would be inappropriate for use in an academic setting”.
She has also called for the Republic of Ireland to leave the EU.
So move over Nicola Sturgeon and Humza Yousaf and the SNP (temporarily) and make some room for Michelle O’Neill and Sinn Fein , as going forward, she is now nominated as yet another one , who is now very much to be yet another prime target for the likes of Ruth Dudley Edwards and also many other uber Unionists (fanatics) aka British Nationalists.
British Nationalists who will opine on the scourge of “Nationalism” while conveniently not identifying that their own fanatical British Nationalism is very much steeped in nastiness and not averse to taking “cheap shots against others” ….all on behalf of their UK…..pity Ruth Dudley Edwards fails to recognise that her ‘Britain’ is “fast becoming” one of the world’s “nastiest Nation’s” thanks to people like Ruth, the media , DUP, Boris Johnson, the Tory party and also a host of others who all represent the UGLY side of Nationalism……or as I often state they love to adopt the Pot Kettle Black position…….where they love to sit on their moral high horse judging others while ignoring their own obvious shortcomings….also known as being hypocrites !….something we in Scotland are more than aware of and too suffering from via many of the same sources as both Ireland and too NI…..as in those others in NI who also prefer not to worship at the altar of British Nationalism.
Time Ruth and many others like her started to ‘see themselves as others see them’….as in drop the delusion that they are better than those they oppose and too that they are always on the right side (though they are on the right WING side….LOL)…..
NMRN
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❤❤❤❤❤
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Find solace in prayer with https://waktusolatnow.com/ , your reliable source for accurate prayer times in Malaysia. Never miss a moment of spiritual reflection – explore now!
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I pray to my god ‘Fuckoff’ yet he doesn’t answer – What should I do ?
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https://news.sky.com/story/departure-of-3bn-royal-navy-aircraft-carrier-halted-a-week-after-cancelled-voyage-of-sister-ship-13069282
But the Ferries
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I imagined the Defence Minister would be Fuming, apparently it’s Schapps…
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Being in the service industry is not as rewarding but strikes like these put lives in jeopardy. Sad they don’t think about it enough before announcing strikes.
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