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Professor John Robertson OBA
BBC Scotland are telling us today:
Scotland’s prison population stood at 8,251 on Monday. About 660 of those inmates are thought to have “strong SOCG associations” and many others are linked to lower level, local gangs. In recent years, Police Scotland and prosecutors at the Crown Office have secured dozens of gangland convictions.
These have included those of top level figures like Jamie “Iceman” Stevenson and James “The Don” White, who were both involved in international drug smuggling. But tension has ramped up this year, thanks to a wave of gangland violence and the murder of two senior Scottish figures in Spain.
See the last bit there? A lie repeated. On 3 June 2025, BBC Scotland had to retract the claim earlier made by their reporter, David Cowan, that the murders in Spain would worsen things in Scotland:
There is speculation that the shootings are linked to the ongoing gangland feud in central Scotland which has resulted in dozens of incidents, including alleged attempted murders, and more than 40 arrests. Some of the people targeted in the violence are linked to the Daniels crime group – long-time rivals of another serious organised crime group, the Lyons family, of which Eddie Lyons Jnr and Ross Monaghan were members.
But their murders would represent a massive escalation in the level of violence compared to what has gone before. The killings of two senior figures from the Scottish underworld in a bar in a foreign country is unprecedented.
It’s possible that it was unrelated to the feud; that something else lies behind it. One thing’s certain; Police Scotland will be deeply concerned about revenge attacks and more bloodshed. As one former officer put it: “This won’t go unavenged forever.”
The above misinformation is still online: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckgr9r4zezro
It was changed hours later to:
Police say there is currently nothing to suggest the murders of two Scots in a Spanish bar is related to an ongoing gang war in Scotland.
Yet, today they repeat it with:
But tension has ramped up this year, thanks to a wave of gangland violence and the murder of two senior Scottish figures in Spain.
How many connected to the recent gangland feud in Scotland have been arrested? 55.
At least 55 English county lines gangs were identified as operating in Scotland in 2024, more than double the number from 2020, according to a report by the Scottish Mail on Sunday citing Assistant Chief Constable Andy Freeburn of Police Scotland.
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
”..tension has ramped up this year…”
Tension among whom ?
Me ? No !
The Public ? No !
The Police ? No !
BBC headline writers ? …..
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There was an article in the Guardian yesterday talking about how communities in Liverpool are tackling violent crime with a victim’s mother urging ““To keep our communities safest, if you know anything about criminality, please speak out.”
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/aug/18/parents-of-liverpool-gang-violence-victims-olivia-pratt-korbel-speak-out-three-years-on
BBC Scotland are too caught up in blaming the SNP for everything to highlight county lines activity and inform the public about the dangers. It’s almost as if they enjoy Scotland facing gang violence and drug deaths, surely that can’t be true?
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The Brit state would and possibly does facilitate that sort of violence and gangs in Scotland, certainly they don’t seem prticularly keen stop it happening.
See what the US are doing or planning to do, again, re the Latin American countries…sending in troops to stop the drugs gangs etc..oh aye, and who put the drugs gangs etc there I wonder…Venezuela is particularly in peril, they have masses of oil reserves. Yikes.
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The BBC is well versed at falling short of their commitment to impartiality and accuracy.
The Charter also sets out our five public purposes:
1. To provide impartial news and information to help people understand and engage with the world around them
The BBC should provide duly accurate and impartial news, current affairs and factual programming to build people’s understanding of all parts of the United Kingdom and of the wider world. Its content should be provided to the highest editorial standards. It should offer a range and depth of analysis and content not widely available from other United Kingdom news providers, using the highest calibre presenters and journalists, and championing freedom of expression, so that all audiences can engage fully with major local, regional, national, United Kingdom and global issues and participate in the democratic process, at all levels, as active and informed citizens.
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Lurid reporting of crime has always been a ‘journalistic’ trope. They love the ‘mean streets’ cliches and the myth of ‘No Mean City’. Actual objective data is of no relevance to them.
It is noteworthy that the current Reform campaign is about ‘lawless Britain’. Farage is to a great extent a creation of the BBC. He has appeared – unchallenged – on Question Time more than any other person. His comments are almost always quoted without comment.
Of course, the unionist parties use this trope, too. Fear, unfortunately, tends to make some people more likely to vote for right wing ‘law and order’ parties.
BBC is not alone in this ITN and the other media deploy fear, too. Indeed, the founder of the Daily Mail, Lord Harmsworth talked often of ‘the British people need their daily dose of fear.
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