Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
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Prison Inspectors reveal that 80% of Barlinnie is not in a ‘wretchedly poor state’ and should know that the first phase of the early release programme was never meant to be the long-term solution

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helped ease the pressure on Scotland’s biggest jail but has done nothing to solve the long-term issue of overcrowding. Professor John Robertson OBA I’ll come back the ‘long-term solution‘ but first the other most popular media extract from the Inspector’s report: BBC Scotland today – Barlinnie jail in ‘wretchedly poor state’ – inspectors The Herald today – Barlinnie in ‘wretchedly poor state’ as new prison waits mount All of the media have pounced on the Inspector’s report from 18-22 November 2024 and have been delighted to find on page 5, just as the wee souls were about to tire: Our … Continue reading Prison Inspectors reveal that 80% of Barlinnie is not in a ‘wretchedly poor state’ and should know that the first phase of the early release programme was never meant to be the long-term solution

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Five years of threats, violence and death in Perth as English County Lines drugs gangs seize homes in towns and villages across rural Scotland but BBC Scotland will not report it

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Professor John Robertson OBA Today, the Courier reports the above. Notice that word in the last line? Yes, it’s another County Lines drug from an English city (there is no other type) gang bringing ‘threats, violence and death‘ to parts of Scotland which were formerly less familiar with such trauma. The County Lines business model provides new more powerful and cheaper drugs in small towns and villages, based on children acting as mules to bring the supply in on buses and trains, backed up by heavies from the cities to suppress any local opposition. Neither BBC Scotland nor BBC Scotland … Continue reading Five years of threats, violence and death in Perth as English County Lines drugs gangs seize homes in towns and villages across rural Scotland but BBC Scotland will not report it

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STV misinterprets figures to help Labour create a “deepening crisis” around women’s safety in Glasgow

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Professor John Robertson OBA STV today has: Glasgow City is in the midst of a “deepening crisis” around women’s safety, statistics show. Instances of domestic abuse are up by 41% on the previous year, rapes increased by 41%, and sexual assault has risen by 28%, according to figures from the Safe Glasgow Partnership. Glasgow Labour deputy leader Bailie Soryia Siddique said that women and girls in Glasgow are “being let down” after the latest “shocking” statistics. The Safe Glasgow Partnership data shows 357 rape crimes were recorded during 2024-25 compared to 254 during the previous year. Domestic abuse crimes against women … Continue reading STV misinterprets figures to help Labour create a “deepening crisis” around women’s safety in Glasgow

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How death due to a cancer screening error in Scotland is different from one in England

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Professor John Robertson OBA BBC Leicestershire today has the above and: The family of a mother who died from cervical cancer after twice being wrongly told she had negative results have been awarded undisclosed damages. The misreporting of Louise Gleadell’s cervical screening results was admitted by University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust following her death aged 38 in March 2018. An internal review in 2017 found the samples, taken four years apart, were not good enough to produce reliable results but neither Ms Gleadell – a mum to three boys – nor her relatives were told about the “inadequate” samples … Continue reading How death due to a cancer screening error in Scotland is different from one in England

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BBC Scotland still struggling to say ‘County Lines’ or ‘England’ or any English city in a drugs report on the flood that is keeping our drug deaths high

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Professor John Robertson OBA From BBC Scotland South today: A woman has been charged after a police discovered heroin worth an estimated £180,000 during a car stop in Dumfries and Galloway. Officers acting on intelligence stopped the car on the M74 near Lockerbie at 20:25 on Friday. The 25-year-old was arrested and released on an undertaking to appear at Dumfries Sheriff Court at a later date. Det Supt Steven Elliott described the recovery as “significant,” adding: “Drugs cause misery in our communities and we are committed to disrupting their supply.” https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crkx0g016mmo Now I know there are limits on what can … Continue reading BBC Scotland still struggling to say ‘County Lines’ or ‘England’ or any English city in a drugs report on the flood that is keeping our drug deaths high

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14th sub-poll confirms SNP support at least double Labour

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Professor John Robertson OBA Find out Now don’t weight according to the 2014 referendum result but did to GE 2024 to make the SNP share of the sample smaller than that of Labour (284/241). That may well understate SNP support after these first months of Labour Government. From Find Out Now, for 2 April 2025, the above sub-poll suggests considerable confidence in the SNP winning well enough to form the next government with issue by issue support from the Greens. On 26 March 2025, also from Find Out Now, we saw: On 4 December 2024, Find out Now had: On 8 January 2025, it … Continue reading 14th sub-poll confirms SNP support at least double Labour

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Islanders furious as New Zealand government’s ‘dilly-dallying’ gets it into $800 million (£600 million) cancellation debt without even a contract signed for new ferries to replace the unsafe ones still being used

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Professor John Robertson OBA From NBR in March 2025, the above. What happened? From the New Zealand Herald: Within months of unceremoniously scrapping the previous Government’s iRex project, Finance Minister Nicola Willis was advised by the crack team, set up by herself, to go back to try to salvage something with the scorned shipbuilder. This new figure of $800 million is a shock after earlier reports: New documents reveal the coalition has set aside $300 million to cover broken infrastructure contracts and a break-fee with Hyundai, after the government ended a contract with the Korean company to build two new Interislander ferries. … Continue reading Islanders furious as New Zealand government’s ‘dilly-dallying’ gets it into $800 million (£600 million) cancellation debt without even a contract signed for new ferries to replace the unsafe ones still being used

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How ‘two 13-year-olds charged after Scottish primary hit by ‘sectarian arson attacks’ tells us to calm down

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Professor John Robertson OBA In the National today and no doubt all over the Scottish media with dramatic headlines, two 13 year-olds are charged with vandalism in the form of ‘anti-Catholic‘ graffiti on the wall of a primary school. I do feel for the staff, parents and the children. It will have been unsettling and it is unacceptable. I was pleased that the FM will visit the school to show support but let’s keep things in perspective. This is not evidence of surging or worsening hate crimes against Catholics. Hate crime based on religion, including against Muslims, Jews, Sikhs and … Continue reading How ‘two 13-year-olds charged after Scottish primary hit by ‘sectarian arson attacks’ tells us to calm down

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FACTCHECK – How the former Lambeth councillor and helicoptered-in Labour MP lies about NHS Scotland and NHS England

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Professor John Robertson OBA From PMQs yesterday, Imogen Walker MP, fed the PM with these demonstrably questionable statements. In Hamilton and Clyde valley my constituents are struggling to access the health care that they desperately need. In the last quarter of 2024, NHS Lanarkshire, treated 97% of cancer referrals with a decision to treat within 31 days and 96.2% of urgent referrals with a suspicion of cancer within 62 days.1 The target is 95%. The equivalent figures for England were 91.3% and a shocking 69.6%.2 In the same period, for the critical 18 week target for life-threatening conditions, NHS Lanarkshire … Continue reading FACTCHECK – How the former Lambeth councillor and helicoptered-in Labour MP lies about NHS Scotland and NHS England

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Drax the Destroyer of Worlds, Jackie Baillie, £10 exrtra on your bill and the UK’s biggest CO2 emitter

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By Professor John Robertson OBA In the Times today: British households paid around £10 each, on average, on their energy bills last year to support a controversial wood-burning power station. Drax, whose biomass facility in North Yorkshire is the UK’s largest power station, received £869 million from public subsidies in 2024, according to an analysis by campaigners. DRAX!!! From BBC North Yorkshire, 9 February 2025: A UK power station that has received billions of pounds in government subsidies has failed more than once to report it burned wood from primary forests, BBC News has found. Drax Power Station, which burns wood pellets, … Continue reading Drax the Destroyer of Worlds, Jackie Baillie, £10 exrtra on your bill and the UK’s biggest CO2 emitter