The Jay Report on the criminal exploitation of children mentions Scotland 106 times but BBC Scotland ignore it and this is why

By Professor John Robertson OBA

In August 2024, BBC South Yorkshire had:

Rotherham child abuse: What was the Jay Report?

I thought: ‘Yes what was the Jay Report?’

I don’t remember my taxpayer-funded, public service broadcaster, with an official policy to inform and educate me, telling me about it .

I tried ‘BBC Scotland Jay Report’ but got only the comedian Jay Lafferty.

I found it myself.

It begins:

The facts of criminal exploitation paint a stark picture: tens of thousands of children and young people across the country are controlled and manipulated by criminal gangs, while countless more are at risk. The toll on these young lives is immeasurable, leading to serious physical harm, long-term trauma and criminalisation. Children are paying with their freedom, their childhoods and their lives.1

Maybe BBC Scotland have ignored it because it’s not about Scotland?

It mentions Scotland 106 times.

Who is doing all this terrible exploitation of children?

The link between serious youth violence and forms of criminal exploitation has been made with increasing evidence over the past 10 years3, with the National Crime Agency stating that violence at street level is often linked to drugs supply and county lines, a form of criminal exploitation where gangs send a child away from their local area to sell drugs [Page 6]

County Lines gangs are mentioned 57 times in the report.

The report is clear:

The majority of lines originate from areas covered by the Metropolitan, West Midlands and Merseyside police forces. Lines run from these areas to the whole country, with the majority of county lines in Scotland originating from one of those three areas.[Page 9]

The gang, whose eviction by locals in Auchinleck in November 2023, was characterised by BBC Scotland as a just an anti-police riot, were from Bradford.

By October 2023, Police Scotland had identified 373 addresses2 from which County Lines gangs were dealing cheaper, stronger drugs and exploiting local children and vulnerable adults to do so, in at least 55 towns and villages.3

Have BBC Scotland informed us about this risk in accordance with their own editorial guidance?

BBC Scotland has only ever mentioned the term ‘County Lines’, in the headline to a story, twice, in 2019 and 2021 and never mentions that the flow of drugs is from English cities into Scotland. A BBC UK report in March 2024, mentions Scottish towns but does not use the term nor does it locate the gangs in English cities, as is the case, exclusively.

Why?

You know. Not Better Together. Stop and search on the trains as they cross the border? The same on the M74 and M1.

Sources:

  1. https://www.actionforchildren.org.uk/our-work-and-impact/policy-work-campaigns-and-research/policy-reports/the-jay-review-of-criminally-exploited-children/
  2. https://www.scotland.police.uk/what-s-happening/news/2023/october/police-scotland-acts-to-protect-young-people-from-county-lines-drug-dealers-during-week-of-activity/
  3. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13041893/Rise-county-lines-gangs-exploiting-vulnerable-Scots.html

The OBA – https://scotsindependent.scot/?page_id=116

12 thoughts on “The Jay Report on the criminal exploitation of children mentions Scotland 106 times but BBC Scotland ignore it and this is why”

  2. what will we do with these BBC Scotland staff once Scotland is independent , they wont keep their jobs , their history will follow them if they try to go to a new employer in Scotland , who would employ someone who is exposed as traiterous to their own country you could never trust them , perhaps they think BBC in england will take them on but i doubt they would because once Scotland is independent they will hate Scotland more than they hate Scotland now, at present we only want a divorce the hatred will be much worse once we are divorced

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  3. Have the BBC mentioned this :

    Yesterday the official WASPI women Twitter (‘X’) account tweeted this.

    “#Tory @GuyOpperman suggested #WASPI#1950’sWomen take up apprenticeships. Now #Labour @EmmaForWycombe says affected women of 70+ should retrain. Both are complete nonsense. The reality is this is an injustice requiring swift redress – no more, no less”

    Labour’s Emma Reynolds is the new Parliamentary Secretary , HM Treasury, The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work & Pensions.

    She declared that “the new Labour government believes the best way to support people , including women who have been affected by the change to the state pension age is to help them to retrain, return to or progress in work”.

    She also added “that is why the government is reforming employment support to ensure it supports people of all ages and we will set out more details in the forthcoming White paper. For those women who are unable to work but are not eligible for pensioner benefit because of their age, financial support is still available through the welfare system”.

    So now WASPI women have organised a Demonstration on the day of the Budget in October outside WM parliament in London.

    That’s because they, the WASPI women, now know for sure that Labour are, in respect to their WASPI cause, absolutely no better than the Tories were.

    Empty words and broken promises from Labour when they were formerly in opposition to the previous Tory UK government.

    How many Labour politicians of different levels i.e. MP’s, MSP’s etc all declared their support for WASPI women when the Tories were the UK government.

    Now, jus like the Tories, Labour are also shirking their responsibility and are also suggesting a ludicrous non solution for WASPI women that is very very similar to that which the Tories suggested.

    #ToryPartyApprenticeships versus #LabourPartyRetraining-or #ReturnToWork for WASPI women.

    Is there to be no change on this matter from the Labour party then ?

    Well , if you read what Emma Reynolds has stated , that would seem to be a No, as this is looking very much like another case of no change here with Labour compared to the Tory party.

    So that begs the Q do WASPI women in Scotland, their partners and their families not care about this ?

    As in with them all seeing and hearing Labour now distancing themselves from the justified WASPI cause when previously they, Labour politicians, both stood up for and stood with WASPI women in trying to get them justice via compensation from the previous Tory UK government.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. ‘How many Labour politicians of different levels i.e. MP’s, MSP’s etc all declared their support for WASPI women when the Tories were the UK government.’ There were certainly some prominent members of the British Labour Party in Scotland!

      As one example, from April 9, 2018, Jackie Baillie MSP: “The changes to the state pension age which were made by the Tory government had have (sic) a terrible impact on thousands of women in Dumbarton and across Scotland. (my emphasis)

      “I have been working with the cross party group on WASPI in the Scottish Parliament which has support of almost all of the parties in Holyrood to pursue justice for those women affected. I am glad that we could bring this meeting to women in my constituency to raise awareness of the campaign; hear their very real concerns and learn what impact these changes have had on them and their families.

      “I would encourage women from across the area to attend the meeting if they are able. These changes are having a devastating impact and their voices need to be heard.”

      Source: https://jackiebaillie.laboursites.org/legacy/2018/04/09/waspi_women_to_hold_meeting_in_dumbarton_to_discuss_impact_of_pension_changes/

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  4. The women who cannot work will have to receive benefits. Sickness benefit or unemployment benefit. It would be better giving pensions earlier. Less administration costs. It would be cheaper. People who were born before 1950 get £8000. People who were born after 1950 get £10,000. Approx. A two tier pension system. Creating a higher benefits cost. The lowest pension in Europe.

    The average life expectancy is 79. Pension 67 years. Many people were denied pension rights, especially women who worked P/T. People will die before they get their pension rights. The Westminster politicians get massive pensions. Then deny others the basic pension rights. They only work ‘half a year’. Plenty of holidays. They cannot count or read a balance sheet. Ruining the economy. Most of them should be retired. Or voted out of office.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  5. Exploitation of children? In Scotland they get the Child payment. Extended nursery care. Allowing mothers to work. Baby boxes. Less student debt. More colleges places. Less children in care. Children in care get extra allowance, education and housing support. Grants. They do not pay Council tax. Extended foster care. Kinship payments so children can stay within the family.

    Increased apprenticeships getting young people into work, including the neurodiverse. 98% of young people go to a relevant outcome on leaving school. The highest % number of students in the world. 30% from school, 25% mature students, 7% EU students (1/2 since Brexit). Foreign students paying the full cost. The highest number of universities in the world (pro rata) 15. Colleges as well. Young people get bus passes.

    More cannabis in the UK is grow by gangs. In houses and premises. Illegal electric use. Less is smuggled in and imported. Strong stunk which has a psychotic affect on regular users. They develop serious mental health problems.

    Like

    Reply

  6. As for BBC Scotland, it is yet another example of manipulating / hiding news with the aim of running down Scotland, its people and its achievements.

    And yet, they still hope that people in Scotland will pay them for their blatant propaganda! Aye, for a lot of us, that boat sailed a long time ago.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

  7. If the BBC were to explain the role of the county line drug gangs in their news reports,

    it would surely lessen the impact of their reporting of the yearly drug death statistics.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Precisely why they don’t report the role of English County Lines gangs, after all, they are only named County Lines gangs as that is where that originate. In Scotland we don’t have Counties any longer, do we?

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

      1. Surely they shouldn’t be called County Line Gangs if they’re in Scotland anyway. We’re not a County, after all.

        How about Country Line Gangs? Border Line Gangs?

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

  8. Incidentally, does anyone know if there are any studies matching drug abuse statistics and the rise in the gangs?

    I’m assuming it’s no good looking to the B-S BC for information?

    Like

    Reply

Leave a reply to iusedtobeenglish Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.