Brought in to turn around the swelling tide of support for independence, new Scottish Conservatives leader, Douglas Ross has seen 6 polls in a row with a Yes majority and an average lead of 6.33. Jackson Carlaw, after his appointment, saw 1 No majority, 1 tie and 3 Yes majorities with an average lead for Yes of only 3.2. Carlaw achieved this against a background of 2 Yes majorities, one tie and one No majority in the weeks before his appointment. Continue reading Jackson Carlaw was more effective than Douglas Ross

Jo Swinson sat at the top table of the coalition government and voted for vicious attacks on the most vulnerable and tax cuts for the super-rich and big businesses. Austerity couldn’t have happened without Liberal Democrats. Ian Lavery, Labour, July 2019 I know, you don’t know who Christine Jardine is. She’s the MP for Edinburgh West and Lib Dem spokesperson for the treasury, Brexit and International Trade, former BBC reporter and UWS lecturer (never heard of there). They only have a handful of MPs to cover all the bases. Her Scotsman piece is on that old Willie Rennie chestnut: ‘Sturgeon … Continue reading Just as Lib Dems cannot rely on being even a wee bit less nasty than the Tories?

From Glasgow University this morning on new strategy for treatment of pancreatic cancer: Our study is a huge breakthrough in terms of what might be possible with future treatments. As part of our research, the strategy we’ve developed is extremely promising, and we’re very pleased and proud to see it now be taken into clinical trial. For us, this is a demonstration of a bench-to-bedside precision oncology approach to tackle this terrible disease. Dr David Chang, University of Glasgow Institute of Cancer Sciences: https://www.gla.ac.uk/news/headline_757592_en.html Pancreatic cancer is one of few cancers where survival rates have not improved dramatically in recent … Continue reading Glasgow University: ‘Huge Breakthrough’ in deadliest of cancers

In the Herald this morning from young Bol: A LEADING economist has labelled plans for a national care services to halt widespread strain at the height of the pandemic “a distraction” – instead calling for focus on properly funding the sector. Almost half of all Covid-19 deaths in Scotland have taken place in care homes – while the Scottish Government has been repeatedly asked to clarify why elderly patients were moved from hospitals to care homes without having negative test results for the virus at the outset of the crisis. I’ll come back to that foul-smelling long-discredited, Labour-sourced, wrong insert about the … Continue reading are prof’s criticisms really for scottish labour? is this another big fib about discharges?

In what is, of course, largely a commercially driven tactic, the Herald offers us this morning nothing to help us understand anything. Whether this is a deliberate or just lazy habitual pattern, it does, of course, contribute to the vain attempts to weaken the appeal of the SNP Government at this difficult time for the Union. There are 46 major wards in the above hospital. In the middle of a pandemic, one has, ‘the Herald understands‘ closed in a precautionary move to control the spread of a virus. The Health Board has not contacted the media with an alert, for … Continue reading Once more NHS Scotland fights on and the herald stokes fears to undermine their efforts

Today this Herald headline is such a fine piece of self-evaluation. Readers may remember these examples: Continue reading Herald puts it better than I could

With who knows how many researchers behind her, Ridge opened her session with the First Minister claiming that the virus was spreading faster in Scotland than in any other part of the UK. The FM did correct her but just in case you need the facts for someone who believes Sky: So, spreading slower in Scotland than anywhere else in the last 7 days and, as the FM pointed out, that’s because we had forced it down to a lower level than anywhere else. And the death rate in the last 7 deaths half that of England and just over … Continue reading Sophie Ridge perpetuating myths about Covid-19 Scotland

By Brenda Steele ‘So much for the 10pm pub curfew. Once again, it seems, the Tories have led by example – if it’s okay for them to break it, it’s okay for you to break it too. According to the Mail, of all papers, Matt Hancock – the Health Secretary who championed lockdown measures like the curfew – was caught breaking it after a late-evening vote: Health Secretary Matt Hancock was last night accused of breaking his own Covid curfew by drinking in a Commons bar beyond 10pm – where he made a crass joke about the Government’s test and … Continue reading Hancock’s Happy Hypocrisy Hour?

In the Guardian yesterday: Pork and poultry with “unacceptable” levels of salmonella and E coli are reaching supermarket shelves in the US, according to the preliminary findings of a study that may confirm the fears of campaigners currently fighting to ensure the UK’s agriculture bill will protect domestic food standards and consumers. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/oct/10/unacceptable-bacteria-levels-found-on-us-meat-may-fuel-fears-over-uk-trade-deal While BBC Scotland only have to hear of any kind of health problem at all and think ‘We must get Prof Pennington on‘, mention of E coli must surely have three in a row flashing. Strictly speaking, it’s all he’s known for: It’s a great read, with detail such as: Outbreaks … Continue reading For once, a good reason for bringing in Prof Pennington?

In a large-sample (2 093) for Progress Scotland (Angus Robertson) by Survation, we see further evidence of the trend since January, reported here already this morning: https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2020/10/11/no-margaret-ferrier-effect-8-yes-majorities-in-a-row/ Key points are: 32% of 2014 NO voters have changed their views and they would vote the other way, or their views have changed a bit and are now not sure how they would vote 64% of those who expressed a view think that ‘Yes’ would win a referendum if held now, this includes 45% of those who voted ‘No’ in 2014 56% say that there should be an independence referendum if the … Continue reading 32% of 2014 NO voters have changed their views