Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
1 Comment

Scottish Government invests £55 million in restoring biodiversity and there’s a ‘staggering butterfly boom’ but they get no credit for it

johnrobertson834

Professor John Robertson OBA, Biodiversity Correspondent (Today) From Discover Wildlife today, the above and: More than 500 small blue butterflies have been spotted at a single site in Scotland – a record-breaking number for one of the UK’s most threatened butterflies. Butterfly Conservation volunteer Richard Aspinall logged 523 small blues in just 90 minutes at Balnagown Estate near Invergordon. It more than doubles last year’s total and marks a hopeful sign for the species’ future, say conservationists. https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/insects-invertebrates/small-blue-butterfly-record-numbers-scotland How did this happen? Not for the first time these UK conservationists have little to say about the role of the Scottish Government … Continue reading Scottish Government invests £55 million in restoring biodiversity and there’s a ‘staggering butterfly boom’ but they get no credit for it

11 Comments

Kevin McKenna and James Cook work together to humanise an ultra British Nationalist in Larkhall

johnrobertson834

After reading I walked by-election streets and discovered why Reform are on rise, today Bob Lamont has these serious concerns. This particular paragraph on Farage/Tice’s appeal to Scots made me wonder just how much McKenna had imbibed before writing it – The party has sensed something new running beneath Scotland’s political currents. That growing numbers of voters think that the extremists are not to be found lurking in disadvantaged communities or in conspiracy chat-rooms, but at Holyrood and in a superannuated local government executive sector populated almost entirely by people who care nothing for working class people and who actively … Continue reading Kevin McKenna and James Cook work together to humanise an ultra British Nationalist in Larkhall

5 Comments

Herald’s Kevin McKenna casts serious doubt on his pro-independence credentials as he walks with and is ‘most impressed’ by an extreme Unionist

johnrobertson834

Liz S Kevin McKenna has written an article for the Herald. He tweeted this today: “I walked the streets of Larkhall with Reform UK. What I saw and heard should trouble John Swinney and Anas Sarwar greatly: my despatch for @HerladScotland” Hmm, but what was the Reform UK candidate saying to these people in Larkhall, as that for me, is far far more ‘troubling’ to be honest. Now I remember when Kevin McKenna wrote this on 2 September 2023 in a tweet: “I spent an afternoon on the stump of Burnbank with the most impressive Conservative I’ve ever encountered. My feature on Thomas Kerr … Continue reading Herald’s Kevin McKenna casts serious doubt on his pro-independence credentials as he walks with and is ‘most impressed’ by an extreme Unionist

7 Comments

As Daily Record ignores what really matters, official figures reveal dramatic fall in murder by knives in Scotland, overall AND by young people, rubbishing the media reports that they are scared to go out

johnrobertson834

Professor John Robertson OBA Contrary to the recent media frenzy in Scotland, directed at John Swinney and the SNP, suggesting young people are scared to go out, the statistics reliably tell a different story, about Scotland, if not elsewhere in the UK. From Knife crime statistics: FOI release published in October 2024 asking: The number of knife crime offences [homicides], broken down by offence, age of suspect, and ethnic appearance of suspect, for each year for the last ten years (broken down by year), up to the most recent data. The recent trends are clear: Source: https://www.gov.scot/publications/foi-202400427434/ Continue reading As Daily Record ignores what really matters, official figures reveal dramatic fall in murder by knives in Scotland, overall AND by young people, rubbishing the media reports that they are scared to go out

17 Comments

Douglas Ross List Tory MSP……..also……..a………

johnrobertson834

Liz S Douglas Ross List Tory MSP……..also……..a……… Attention seeker and clearly a total political lost cause , who now seeks to try and make himself relevant again in pulling a stunt (not for the first time) in him trying to heckle the FM when he, the FM, was speaking in parliament. Ross has form in being reprimanded by the Presiding officer for his bad behaviour in the debating chamber at Holyrood , but he chooses to take absolutely no heed of any former warnings that he has had for ‘talking over the FM’ (heckling) and so this time , for doing … Continue reading Douglas Ross List Tory MSP……..also……..a………

3 Comments

Is Anas Sarwar so awful that he can neither be trusted nor considered competent enough to campaign?

johnrobertson834

By Liz S Angela Rayner came to Scotland to campaign for the up and coming Scottish parliament by-election in the Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse seat , where she refused to speak to any Scottish newspapers. She had to abandon her plans though due to pro Palestinian protestors holding a demonstration outside the Labour in Scotland’s office in Hamilton. What is it with these two Tory HQ parties, as in one who are actually called the Tory party and the other one that is Tory in all but party name (as in the new Starmer Labour party), who both want to avoid all media scrutiny in Scotland yet they … Continue reading Is Anas Sarwar so awful that he can neither be trusted nor considered competent enough to campaign?

5 Comments

If spend by Westminster/Whitehall on Scotland’s behalf is made in England, the economic benefit will accrue to England

johnrobertson834

stewartb ‘The multiplier effect is one of the most important concepts you can use when applying, analysing and evaluating the effects of changes in government spending and taxation.’ It’s hard to understate this! A TuS blog post (May 19, 2025) entitled How the ‘Scottish’ media have singularly failed to investigate and fully report on the true state of the ferry services’ had this: ‘on the decision taken to procure two large CalMac ferries from Ferguson’s and then to nationalise the yard, the mainstream media studiously avoids any consideration of the economic benefits derived from sustaining employment in the yard and its domestic supply chain. … Continue reading If spend by Westminster/Whitehall on Scotland’s behalf is made in England, the economic benefit will accrue to England

6 Comments

Stunning US study makes clear the enormous wider benefits of building the Glen Sannox and the Glen Rosa ferries on the Clyde

johnrobertson834

Professor John Robertson OBA From the Washington State, USA, based Lynwood Times yesterday: A new independent study by Pennsylvania-based Martin Associates confirms the economic value of building the new Washington State Ferries hybrid fleet in-state, showing that each ferry constructed in the state would generate 1,298 jobs and $31.9 million in state and local taxes. Washington State Ferries, which operates the largest ferry system in the nation, solicited bids this spring to build five new hybrid ferries over a six- to eight-year period with a budget of $1.3 billion. The new hybrid electric ferries have 160-car capacity to support growing … Continue reading Stunning US study makes clear the enormous wider benefits of building the Glen Sannox and the Glen Rosa ferries on the Clyde

3 Comments

Crime confirmed as really continuing to fall, based on three sources, to remain at roughly 1 in 10 experiencing crime directly from 1 in 5 under Labour

johnrobertson834

Professor John Robertson OBA From Safer Communities and Justice Statistics Monthly Data Report: May 2025, published today: Police recorded crime is down 1% since year ending December 2023, and remains below the position immediately prior to the pandemic. The total number of crimes recorded by the police in Scotland in the year ending December 2024 was 298,308. This was 3,768 crimes (or 1%) lower than the level recorded in the year ending December 2023. Crime has fallen by 53% since 2008-09. Results from the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS) show that around one in ten adults were victims of crime in … Continue reading Crime confirmed as really continuing to fall, based on three sources, to remain at roughly 1 in 10 experiencing crime directly from 1 in 5 under Labour

1 Comment

Farming income increases by 44% to give confidence for Scotland’s sustainability and food exports, 31% of all UK food exports with only 8% of the UK population

johnrobertson834

Professor John Robertson OBA From Total income from farming estimates: 2018-2024, published today: Initial estimates for 2024 predict a strong recovery in total income from farming from its 5-year low in 2023. Total income is estimated to reach around £1.3 billion in 2024, an increase of £0.4 billion (49%). In real terms, adjusted for inflation, this is a 44% increase.1 How is Scotland doing with food exports as farming thrives? Source: Continue reading Farming income increases by 44% to give confidence for Scotland’s sustainability and food exports, 31% of all UK food exports with only 8% of the UK population