By Professor John Robertson
After decades of improving life expectancies across the UK, the improvement stalled under Tory-rule and, largely due to Covid, fell, but only in Scotland and despite more than a decade of UK austerity, have they increased significantly.
In 2010/2012, just into the Conservative/Lib Dem coalition, then in 2021/2023, 11 years later, life expectancy was:
I know, life expectancy remains the lowest in the UK, in Scotland, but it’s the direction, the trend that matters.
The data. from official sources listed below, are clear – life expectancy from 2010/12 to 2021/23 has only increased significantly in Scotland, by 4.8 months for men and 2.52 months for women.
In sharp contrast, life expectancy for men in England, men and women in Wales has stalled or even fallen. Women in England have gained 2.04 months.
This is not the story the MSM is telling you today.
Sources:
Support Scots Independent, Scotland’s oldest pro-independence newspaper and host of the OBA (Oliver Brown Award) at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/shop/
The Oliver Brown Award for advancing the cause of Scotland’s self respect, previously awarded to Dr Philippa Whitford, Alex Salmond and Sean Connery: https://scotsindependent.scot/?page_id=116
About Oliver Brown, the first Scottish National Party candidate to save his deposit in a Parliamentary election: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Brown_(Scottish_activist)
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
Life expectancy is largely dependent on the data relating to infant mortality. Once people get through the first year of life most live for more than 70 years.
If infant mortality is reduced , then the very small amounts of time children who have died live are removed from the calculation, the ‘expectancy’figure rises.
with child poverty lower than the rest of the UK, with higher rates of infancy vaccination and support, like baby boxes, the chances of children surviving their first year improves.
Thereafter, ‘lifestyle’ plays a significant role. Poorer people cannot afford good levels of nutrition, exercise, home heating, clothing and these increase susceptibility to illness. Smoking, consumption of alcohol and narcotic drugs also impact on this.
This latter is the bit the unionist media love to deride us for drinking, smoking and drug taking and eating deep fried Mars Bars.
AlasdairMacdonald.
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Scotland has always been lower than the rUK. The facts show that since the SNP took government the gap is actually shortening.
https://x.com/NatRecordsScot/status/1849015534295081022
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Yes but the NRS say – ‘This gap has remained fairly consistent over the years.’
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This London School of Economics article from June 2024 includes a link to their 54-page report with references to all parts of the UK.
Interesting reasons are given for the fall in life expectancy.
https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/inequalities/2024/06/19/the-cost-of-austerity-how-spending-cuts-led-to-190000-excess-deaths/
“The austerity measures introduced by the UK government in 2010 had severe consequences for the British population. Yonatan Berman and Tora Hovland find that these spending cuts cost the average person nearly half a year in life expectancy between 2010 and 2019. Regional disparities in life expectancy across the UK also widened. Overall, austerity measures resulted in about 190,000 excess deaths, or a 3% increase in mortality rates, from 2010 to 2019, including many “deaths of despair”.
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