Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
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‘The BBC suffers from ideological conformity’ – Scotland’s ‘top media academic’ in the Herald on BBC Bias correctly explains as Chomsky might have

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In the Herald today: Scotland’s top media academic: ‘BBC Scotland is biased branch office.’ Professor Catherine Happer leads Glasgow University’s acclaimed Media Group. She talks to our Writer at Large about why the national broadcaster is haemorrhaging public trust When I saw her explanation of how this comes about, I fully agree with what is essentially a version of Hermann & Chomsky’s in Manufacturing Consent, forty years ago and one which I have largely embraced since then. Many activists, I know, reject its subtlety and see, certainly in the reporting of the likes of Glen Campbell or Sarah Smith, a … Continue reading ‘The BBC suffers from ideological conformity’ – Scotland’s ‘top media academic’ in the Herald on BBC Bias correctly explains as Chomsky might have

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‘Will party manifestos meet Scotland’s child poverty targets?’ Has this fragmented think tank left out the obvious factor, based on their track record in Scotland or in the other parts of the UK so far, is there much chance they will deliver anywhere near the level the SNP has achieved?

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The Joseph Rowntree Foundation today asks: Will party manifestos meet Scotland’s child poverty targets? and opines straight-off: All parties have published their manifestos for the 7 May Holyrood elections, but they fall well short of the action needed to meet child poverty targets, leaving the next Scottish Government to match rhetoric with action. The researchers, above, base this largely on reading the manifestos and giving all the benefit of the doubt as to whether they might deliver them. This is hugely naive or predisposed to not consider what the SNP has done in Scotland with Labour in Wales and in … Continue reading ‘Will party manifestos meet Scotland’s child poverty targets?’ Has this fragmented think tank left out the obvious factor, based on their track record in Scotland or in the other parts of the UK so far, is there much chance they will deliver anywhere near the level the SNP has achieved?

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Sky News reports on maternity ‘horror stories in this country’ but it’s not THIS country

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Thanks to Dottie once more for alerting me to this. This Sky News special on maternity services, ‘in this country’, is of course about England. They go on quickly to relate their special to the report by Baroness Amos and remind us that it made ‘pretty horrific reading.’ I watched no further. Why? Baroness Amos looked only at England. Is the Sky News special likely to be informative on Scotland? No, because: Thousands of babies and mothers avoidably dead in maternity trusts, twelve trusts under investigation and two trusts face police investigations into potential corporate manslaughter and gross negligence manslaughter … Continue reading Sky News reports on maternity ‘horror stories in this country’ but it’s not THIS country

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Replacing migrant care workers with better paid locals – Scottish Labour can only offer a review that might pay more in 2028 (!) while SNP has already delivered a 7% increase now!

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In the Guardian today: Britain [sic] risks undermining the care workers it depends on. A new Fair Pay Agreement [FPA] is promised, with the government overseeing pioneering sector-wide negotiations aimed at improving the lot of these undervalued workers. The deal is intended to come into force from April 2028. Yet by singling out this group for the longest wait before they belong in the UK – with high-paid workers on a faster track – the Home Office seems to be validating the deprecation of this essential work that helps explain why it’s under-rewarded in the first place. The hope is that … Continue reading Replacing migrant care workers with better paid locals – Scottish Labour can only offer a review that might pay more in 2028 (!) while SNP has already delivered a 7% increase now!

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Health Secretary for England, Wes Streeting wants to decide what NHS Scotland pays for drugs

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In the Guardian today: Dozens of MPs are opposing Wes Streeting’s decision to award himself power to dictate what the NHS pays for drugs amid growing concern the move may be illegal. Thirty-one MPs have signed a House of Commons motion voicing their disapproval of the health secretary being handed the power to override the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (Nice) judgment on how much the NHS should spend on individual medicines. https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/apr/26/mps-oppose-wes-streeting-power-to-say-what-nhs-pays-for-drugs-nice Is my headline just another tabloid attention-seeking scare? Only partly. The UK government (Streeting) negotiates overall pharmaceutical pricing schemes (like rebate deals with drug companies) … Continue reading Health Secretary for England, Wes Streeting wants to decide what NHS Scotland pays for drugs

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There is no reliable evidence that patients die in A&E units ‘due’ to care shortages in Scotland only this Prof’s anecdotes again

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On the front page of the Sunday Post, the above, aimed at its elderly audience to provoke another ‘That SNP!’ reaction, days before an election is from Geriatrician, Professor Andrew Elder (sic) of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. You see those ‘reports’? Indeed, no figures, no sources. These ‘reports‘ are associations, not direct proof of causation. The “excess deaths” method from the Royal College is a modelled estimate, not a count of individually verified deaths caused by delays. Patients waiting long times are often already very ill, which complicates attribution. Sicker patients both wait longer (due to needing … Continue reading There is no reliable evidence that patients die in A&E units ‘due’ to care shortages in Scotland only this Prof’s anecdotes again

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On the 40th Anniversary of Chernobyl, how a Labour First Minister’s ‘day one’ plans for nuclear power will ‘present an existential challenge for local policing’ and expose our children to thyroid cancer

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On the 40th anniversary of Chernobyl, today, BBC Breakfast visit the site and remind us that while the official death toll was just 31, according to ‘studies’, the wider health impact was likely to be much wider. Studies? Well, here’s just one. According to the UN Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation The most significant wider impact was a sharp rise in thyroid cancer among children and adolescents exposed in 1986 in Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia. By 2005, more than 6,000 cases had been diagnosed in this age group. Later data (up to ~2015) put the total closer … Continue reading On the 40th Anniversary of Chernobyl, how a Labour First Minister’s ‘day one’ plans for nuclear power will ‘present an existential challenge for local policing’ and expose our children to thyroid cancer

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Scots visiting Canada this summer can expect to pay nearly three times comparable CalMac prices

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Some time ago, a Mull ferry-user rep urged CalMac to get out in the world and learn from other ferry services. This summer travellers to Arran from Ardrossan (19nm) can expect to pay £10.60 return on foot and, in a car, £53, regardless of the time of day or day of the week. Islanders can plan ahead knowing they will not be hit by sharp hikes if they must travel at peak times. Travellers to Canada this summer, on the similar Tsawwassen–Southern Gulf Islands route (18-25nm depending on stops) will pay the equivalent of £30 and £140. There’s a wee … Continue reading Scots visiting Canada this summer can expect to pay nearly three times comparable CalMac prices