Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
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Scottish Labour laughably claim 450 ‘high paid’ airport jobs but at only £11k per year, less than one third of the average wage, in an airport with more than 3 000 jobs in the area already saved by the SNP in 2023

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The SNP saved Prestwick airport from closure just over 12 years ago, protecting around 3 200 jobs in the airport and in the surrounding area and boosting the local economy by £61 million annually. https://www.audit-scotland.gov.uk/report/the-scottish-government%E2%80%99s-purchase-of-glasgow-prestwick-airport We’re used to having a wee laugh at Scottish Labour sums but that £5 million won’t go far. 450 jobs, never mind the 60 apprentices? 5 million divided by 450 means only £11 100 for each employee, to cover not only their wages but all of the costs for the employer. The average wage in Scotland is around £39 000, the media wage is around … Continue reading Scottish Labour laughably claim 450 ‘high paid’ airport jobs but at only £11k per year, less than one third of the average wage, in an airport with more than 3 000 jobs in the area already saved by the SNP in 2023

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How Scotland’s schools have played the major role in keeping thousands of pupils safe and making sure County Lines gangs membership is an England-only phenomenon

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In the Sunday Times today, the above video, and: The UK’s county lines networks have evolved into a sophisticated business model that thrives on the exploitation of the young. David Collins, Northern Editor of The Sunday Times, and David Woode, Crime Editor of The Times, go inside a police disruption unit in North Yorkshire to witness high-stakes raids targeting the “line holders” who pull the strings from a single mobile phone. Beyond the arrests, they uncover a disturbing tactical shift where gangs use the Modern Slavery Act as a legal shield for their recruits. It is a portrait of a … Continue reading How Scotland’s schools have played the major role in keeping thousands of pupils safe and making sure County Lines gangs membership is an England-only phenomenon

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Understanding Covid deaths in care homes in Scotland 3 – Why Scotland’s higher PERCENTAGE of care home deaths was entirely expected because we had fewer overall deaths

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All the necessary data to explain the above is deep in the bowels of the 14 000 or so Talking-up Scotland archives. I could have dug it all up and posted an answer later today but then I thought, what do I keep Grok (I imagine a Raven-like familiar) for? I asked him: Compare the percentage of Covid deaths which were in care homes in England and Scotland from March 2020 to February 2022? He did and then I asked: Is this an entirely expected and not negative outcome given that England had overall a much….. before hitting <RETURN> before … Continue reading Understanding Covid deaths in care homes in Scotland 3 – Why Scotland’s higher PERCENTAGE of care home deaths was entirely expected because we had fewer overall deaths

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Understanding Covid deaths in care homes in Scotland 2 – How Jeanne Freeman’s, unique in the UK, quick action on vaccines saved thousands of lives

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In BBC Scotland’s retrospective comment on Jeanne Freeman’s time as Health Secretary, they write: Freeman stood beside Sturgeon in press conferences throughout the next year. There would be praise for their calm stewardship and she was there at the start of the vaccine roll-out. But the decision to discharge elderly hospital patients to care homes during the first few weeks of the pandemic without a requirement for a negative test was one which hung over Freeman for the rest of her time in politics and beyond. The worst mortality rates were later seen within care homes as the virus spread among … Continue reading Understanding Covid deaths in care homes in Scotland 2 – How Jeanne Freeman’s, unique in the UK, quick action on vaccines saved thousands of lives

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Understanding Covid deaths in care homes in Scotland 1 – In the murderous first phase of the pandemic, they were 21% lower than in England & Wales

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In the Guardian 19th July 2020, six months after Boris Johnson’s incompetence and callousness allowed the virus free access t the UK and just over three months since the SNP Government got devolved authority for the pandemic tactics, here is what happened to care home residents. In a piece broadly sympathetic to the First Minister and Scotland’s Covid strategy, the Guardian writers seemed to feel the need for ‘balance’ and to use anything they can find even if it’s wrong. Truth, fairness and accuracy are what readers need. You wouldn’t expect to have balance on a piece about the health … Continue reading Understanding Covid deaths in care homes in Scotland 1 – In the murderous first phase of the pandemic, they were 21% lower than in England & Wales

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SNP Council introduces dispersal zone to combat anti-social behaviour even though it has fallen by two thirds in ten years

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From Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2024-25, published in June 2025, the above figures show that anti social behaviour crimes in Glasgow have plummeted by 66%, from 28 406 ten years ago, to 9 742 last year. https://www.gov.scot/publications/recorded-crime-scotland-2024-25/documents/ Despite this BBC Scotland, yesterday, had: A dispersal zone has come into place in Glasgow city centre as part of a crackdown on crime and anti-social behaviour. From Friday officers will be able to ask groups of two or more to leave the designated area if their behaviour is “impacting on the safety and well-being” of others. Anyone directed away will be banned … Continue reading SNP Council introduces dispersal zone to combat anti-social behaviour even though it has fallen by two thirds in ten years

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Why did cancer mortality drop in the pandemic years of 2021 and 2022 if the Daily Record’s contrary claims are true?

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The Daily Record today, has: Cancelled cancer appointments during Covid led to ‘loss of life in Scotland’ – Pausing bowel cancer screening appointments in Scotland during Covid-19 led to missed and late diagnoses, longer waits for colorectal cancer treatment and ultimately loss of life, an inquiry heard. The UK Covid-19 Public Inquiry’ has heard how millions of people had non-urgent operations cancelled during the pandemic. The claim comes from, as far as I can see, no actual figures, but just the views of the Chair, Baroness Heather Hallett when she said: The lack of screening for colorectal cancer, for example, led to missed and … Continue reading Why did cancer mortality drop in the pandemic years of 2021 and 2022 if the Daily Record’s contrary claims are true?

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Guardian’s Scotland Editor platforms Holyrood’s third party as the main and only opposition to Reform UK when polls make it clear the SNP is that

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Severin Carrell, the Guardian‘s ‘Scotland Editor‘ has this today: Reform UK has suspended one of its Scottish candidates after it emerged he had been struck off as a company director, and the party faces growing attacks for fielding candidates making Islamophobic remarks. Reform confirmed on Friday morning it had suspended Stuart Niven, its candidate for Dundee City West, after the Herald revealed he had been struck off after diverting tens of thousands of pounds of Covid grants into his personal account. Several hours after that admission, claims within Reform’s Scottish manifesto that it could save billions of pounds in Holyrood spending were … Continue reading Guardian’s Scotland Editor platforms Holyrood’s third party as the main and only opposition to Reform UK when polls make it clear the SNP is that

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NINE ways Scotland handled the Covid-19 pandemic better than the rest of the UK

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The Guardian today, with no reference to Scotland of course, has: The NHS “teetered on the brink of collapse” during the Covid pandemic and only managed to survive thanks to the “superhuman” efforts of healthcare workers, an official inquiry has concluded. In a damning assessment of how the UK’s healthcare systems dealt with the unprecedented pressure of the pandemic, the Covid-19 inquiry chair, Heather Hallett, said the impact of the virus was “devastating” due to the NHS being in a “parlous state” before the outbreak. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/mar/19/superhuman-healthcare-workers-saved-nhs-from-collapse-covid-inquiry-concludes Is this true of Scotland’s experience? ‘Scotland’s’ media and opposition parties want it to be so it is, … Continue reading NINE ways Scotland handled the Covid-19 pandemic better than the rest of the UK