Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
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As 1 in 7 English bathing spots is not recommended for swimming it’s only 1 in 30 in Scotland, 87% Excellent!

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Professor John Robertson OBA From the Guardian today, the above and: One in seven (13%) of England’s bathing waters are rated as polluted, and one in 14 so polluted they are not recommended for swimming. Famous beaches including Bognor Regis, Scarborough’s South Bay and Littlehaven Beach in South Shields were all rated “poor” in the latest classifications from the Environment Agency, which means they are not recommended for swimming. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/nov/25/one-in-seven-english-bathing-spots-rated-as-polluted-in-latest-testing From SEPA in November 2025: Record number of Excellent Bathing Waters in Scotland for 2025 – In 2025 the highest number of Scotland’s bathing waters on record will meet the best environmental … Continue reading As 1 in 7 English bathing spots is not recommended for swimming it’s only 1 in 30 in Scotland, 87% Excellent!

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3.5 MILLION children could be lifted out of poverty if the Labour Party in England and Wales copied the Scottish Child Payment unique in Europe and in the long-term really costing nothing

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Professor John Robertson OBA From the Scottish Government yesterday: More than 300,000 children supported by Scottish Child Payment Social Security Scotland’s Scottish Child Payment is supporting 322,230 children across the country, newly published figures show.  Launched in February 2021, the Scotland-only benefit gives families with low incomes crucial financial support to help with the cost of raising children. The weekly payment of £27.15 is paid every four weeks for every eligible child under the age of 16 within a household.  https://www.gov.scot/news/more-than-300-000-children-supported-by-scottish-child-payment/ If Labour in England and Wales did the same, they’d lift around 3.5 million children out of poverty. Why … Continue reading 3.5 MILLION children could be lifted out of poverty if the Labour Party in England and Wales copied the Scottish Child Payment unique in Europe and in the long-term really costing nothing

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SNP Government initiatives leading to plummeting waiting lists with overall list now 5% shorter than NHS England

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Professor John Robertson OBA From NHS waiting times – stage of treatment published yesterday, the above impressive signs of progress. with increasing numbers treated yet plummeting longer waits. https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/nhs-waiting-times-stage-of-treatment/stage-of-treatment-waiting-times-inpatients-day-cases-and-new-outpatients-25-november-2025/ Important note – These latest statistics up to 31 October 2025 cover all patients waiting for a new outpatient appointment or treatment as an inpatient or day case, as well as those seen and removed from a waiting list covered by the national standards. Individual patients are counted more than once if they are waiting to attend more than one scheduled hospital appointment or admission, so the official statistics shown here … Continue reading SNP Government initiatives leading to plummeting waiting lists with overall list now 5% shorter than NHS England

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Nearly three times as many more in England waiting for a social care assessment and care at home services than in Scotland

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Professor John Robertson OBA From People requiring a social care assessment and care at home services, published yesterday: The number of people estimated to be waiting on a social care assessment for a package of care was 7,806 on 3 November 2025. This is an increase of 30% from the estimated number of people waiting this time last year (4 November 2024). https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/people-requiring-a-social-care-assessment-and-care-at-home-services/people-requiring-a-social-care-assessment-and-care-at-home-services-25-november-2025/ All things being equal, you might expect the figure for England would be around 10 times as much or 78 000. It was 195 788: https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publication/performance-tracker-2025/local-services/adult-social-care Continue reading Nearly three times as many more in England waiting for a social care assessment and care at home services than in Scotland

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Scotland’s universal and generous IVF system costs nothing in the longer term, reduces psychological distress and increases child-wellbeing

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Professor John Robertson OBA From IVF waiting times in Scotland Quarter ending 30 September 2025 published yesterday: During the quarter ending 30 September 2025, 362 patients were screened. The 90% standard was met, with all patients attending a screening appointment within 52 weeks of referral. All patients were screened within 26 weeks at the Aberdeen IVF Centre, and most patients at the Dundee and Glasgow IVF Centres also experienced a wait of this length (88.7% and 80.7% respectively). https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/ivf-waiting-times-in-scotland/ivf-waiting-times-in-scotland-quarter-ending-30-september-2025/ How does IVF treatment in Scotland compare with that in England? Scotland has a nationally standardized policy, offering more generous and … Continue reading Scotland’s universal and generous IVF system costs nothing in the longer term, reduces psychological distress and increases child-wellbeing

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NHS Scotland has 3 000 more beds, 30% more per head, than NHS England, to enable coping with winter surges

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Professor John Robertson OBA From Acute hospital activity and NHS beds information (quarterly) Quarter ending 30 June 2025, published yesterday: There were on average 13,681 available staffed beds per day for all acute specialties in the quarter ending 30 June 2025 – a 0.3% decrease compared to the same quarter in the previous year. An available staffed bed is a bed which is resourced for inpatient or day case care. Of these, 9,720 (71%) were for medical specialties and 3,962 (29%) were for surgical specialties. For all acute specialties in the quarter ending 30 June 2025, the percentage occupancy was … Continue reading NHS Scotland has 3 000 more beds, 30% more per head, than NHS England, to enable coping with winter surges

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Shocking contrast as nearly twice as many Scots have access to an NHS dentist as those in England

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Professor John Robertson OBA The above table from Public Health Scotland today, reveals a very high level of access to free NHS dental treatment in Scotland – 90% of children and 97% of adults with 100% access for some age groups. Source: https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/nhs-dental-data-monitoring-report/nhs-dental-data-monitoring-report-quarter-ending-september-2025/ When I searched for equivalent data for England, what I found shocked me. From the ONS in September 2024: Overall, 52.1% of adults reported having an NHS dentist, 34.2% have a private dentist, 13.5% did not have a dentist and 0.2% used a dental hospital. Females were more likely (54.1%) than males (50.0%) to have an NHS … Continue reading Shocking contrast as nearly twice as many Scots have access to an NHS dentist as those in England

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Community owned assets surge in Scotland up to 14% higher than in England

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Professor John Robertson OBA From Community Ownership in Scotland 2024, published today, the above and: This publication reports the number of assets in community ownership which are recorded by the Scottish Government. There are several initiatives which have been put in place to enable community ownership.  There are several initiatives which have been put in place to enable community ownership. The Scottish Land Fund, as it is now known, was founded in 2001. It now supports both rural and urban communities to become more resilient and sustainable through the ownership and management of assets. Legislation concerning land reform commencing in 2004 (Land … Continue reading Community owned assets surge in Scotland up to 14% higher than in England

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Number of properties for private rent in Scotland increases for second month in a row to reach 99.7% of April 2025 figure, 64% more than under Labour in 2007 and cast doubt on crisis narrative

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Professor John Robertson OBA From Housing statistics: Scottish Landlord Register data published today, the above data reveal an increase in the number of private properties for rent in Scotland by around 700 in October 2025, on top of around 900 in August 2025: https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-landlord-register-data/ The total of 349 817 has now returned to 99.7% of the April 2025 figure. How are the Scottish media covering this? That’s 64% more than 213 000 under Labour: https://www.gov.scot/publications/private-sector-rent-statistics-scotland-2010-to-2023/pages/trends-in-the-size-of-the-private-rented-sector-in-scotland/ Continue reading Number of properties for private rent in Scotland increases for second month in a row to reach 99.7% of April 2025 figure, 64% more than under Labour in 2007 and cast doubt on crisis narrative

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Scotland sees major falls in violent crime, housebreaking and drug possession but the Herald only sees the dark side

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Professor John Robertson OBA The Herald has an agenda and it’s so clear above – Crime is rising and the SNP is to blame. I have an agenda too but unlike the MSM I’ve never sought to hide it – some things are improving and we need media balance so that people can correctly assess the quality of their lives under the SNP. They’re selective to paint a dark picture. I’m selective to try and balance that. They are correct about sexual crimes though there is research suggesting the increase is at least in part about a greater willingness to … Continue reading Scotland sees major falls in violent crime, housebreaking and drug possession but the Herald only sees the dark side