Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
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Even in death Jeanne Freeman shamefully and wrongly blamed for care home deaths during pandemic – short video

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at:https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above. Evidence at: https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2026/02/07/shamefully-even-now-bbc-scotland-still-conceal-how-jeanne-freemans-unique-in-the-uk-quick-action-on-vaccines-saved-thousands-of-lives-in-scottish-care-homes/ Continue reading Even in death Jeanne Freeman shamefully and wrongly blamed for care home deaths during pandemic – short video

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Shamefully, even now, BBC Scotland still conceal how Jeanne Freeman’s, unique in the UK, quick action on vaccines saved thousands of lives in Scottish care homes

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above. 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 … Continue reading Shamefully, even now, BBC Scotland still conceal how Jeanne Freeman’s, unique in the UK, quick action on vaccines saved thousands of lives in Scottish care homes

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No media coverage as Scottish Government allocates £20m to help young people secure homes where they live and second homes plummet by half from Labour era

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above. From the Scottish Government yesterday into complete media silence: Plans to develop a Rural and Island Housing Grant Scheme, with an indicative budget of up to £20 million over four years, have been announced by the First Minister. Designed to help with costs in rural and island communities, the scheme will enable people, including first-time buyers and families, to own affordable homes in the places they want to live. Announcing the scheme at the National Farmers Union Scotland Conference, the First Minister also confirmed a package of agricultural support including £14.25 … Continue reading No media coverage as Scottish Government allocates £20m to help young people secure homes where they live and second homes plummet by half from Labour era

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As UK Labour are told to U-turn over ‘loan shark’ stealth tax on students, why Scottish media have nothing to say

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above. From GB News yesterday: A blistering on‑air takedown of the Plan 2 student loan system by The New Statesman editor Oli Dugmore has intensified pressure on Chancellor Rachel Reeves, after she insisted the current arrangements are “fair”. Appearing on BBC Question Time, Mr Dugmore, who began university in 2012 under the Coalition’s £9,000 fee regime, laid out the personal cost of his loan in stark terms. He said a single year of his degree cost more than the entire annual tuition bill faced by students at Oxford, Cambridge or the LSE … Continue reading As UK Labour are told to U-turn over ‘loan shark’ stealth tax on students, why Scottish media have nothing to say

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Experienced researcher finds AI far more trustworthy on Scottish politics than BBC Scotland, STV, the Herald, the Scotsman or The Ferret

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above. I really had to laugh. I’ve done a lot of searching for information and sometimes analysis and evaluation using Grok, chatgpt and other general AI platforms. I do find bias against the independence movement, the SNP and the Scottish Government but only when the AI gives to much credence to the so-called Scottish media, especially those in my headline above. Mostly, however, if I’m careful with my questions, initial and follow-up, I discover that these AI tools, all owned outside the UK do not seem to have an agenda on Scotland. … Continue reading Experienced researcher finds AI far more trustworthy on Scottish politics than BBC Scotland, STV, the Herald, the Scotsman or The Ferret

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Blue tent big enough for Mandelson police inquiry located in Ayr, Scotland – Sarwar ‘sleeping’ in Pacific Quay basement, unwashed and living on pot noodles as one Peter looks like pushing the other into the shadows in time for Scottish election

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above. Readers will remember the scale of the police investigation into £600 000 given to the SNP by its own members for a campaign, and which they then, according to one complaint from a member of Sperm of the Gall, spent on something else. A blue tent had to be put on Nicola’s lawn, on advice from intelligence, just in case there was a body there too. More recently a massive Tory fraud case in Ayr required a big blue tent on the Low Green (above) but, on advice from some intelligence, … Continue reading Blue tent big enough for Mandelson police inquiry located in Ayr, Scotland – Sarwar ‘sleeping’ in Pacific Quay basement, unwashed and living on pot noodles as one Peter looks like pushing the other into the shadows in time for Scottish election

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Almost all terror-related offences in Scotland carried out by whites

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above. From a Police Scotland Freedom of Information request 25-2862 Crime stats – Terrorism inc. accused gender/ age/ ethnicity – 2025 published today, where ethnicity was recorded: Ethnicity Total White Scottish 9 White British 6 White Irish 1 White Other 1 White European 6 White North European 1 Black Scottish Other 1 Source: https://www.scotland.police.uk/access-to-information/freedom-of-information/disclosure-log/disclosure-log-2025/october/25-2862-crime-stats-terrorism-inc-accused-gender-age-ethnicity-2025/ Why is there little sign there of the Islamic terror threat typically frothed about in the popular news media in England? Some ideas I posted tentatively in 2019: I know we have lots of racists and Islamophobes in … Continue reading Almost all terror-related offences in Scotland carried out by whites

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As Mandelson case exposes the risks of using US company Palantir for health data, how Nicola Sturgeon’s government made sure it didn’t happen in Scotland two years ago

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above. In the Guardian today: Labour should halt public contracts with the US tech company Palantir, opposition politicians have said, amid growing concern at the lack of government transparency over dealings with the company and Peter Mandelson. Since 2023, Palantir has secured more than £500m in contracts with the NHS and the Ministry of Defence (MoD), while it employed Global Counsel, the lobbying firm founded by Mandelson. Emails released by the US Department of Justice show Mandelson sought help from Jeffrey Epstein to find “rich individuals” as clients. https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/feb/05/calls-to-halt-uk-palantir-contracts-grow-amid-lack-of-transparency-over-deals In August 2024, the BMJ warned: … Continue reading As Mandelson case exposes the risks of using US company Palantir for health data, how Nicola Sturgeon’s government made sure it didn’t happen in Scotland two years ago