Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
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Hiding the SNP Government’s massive funding of projects in Tory areas

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stewartb The Scotland section of the BBC News website has from time to time provided ‘good news’ stories about local initiatives in rural Scotland. You know the kind of projects – the ones that have received Levelling Up funding from the Westminster government.  As an example, back in 25 October 2023, the BBC News website made much of a local project under the headline ‘Proposals for new Moray bridge take a step forward’. This was about repairing the Cloddach Bridge in the constituency of Douglas Ross MP/MSP. The BBC told us : ‘Mr Ross said in March he had directly … Continue reading Hiding the SNP Government’s massive funding of projects in Tory areas

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Tory Minister ‘wades into’ private ferry operator betraying Scilly islanders

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By stewartb In a BBC News article dated 8 January 2024 entitled ‘Grant Shapps wades into Isles of Scilly ferry row’, in the context of the lengthy ongoing saga regarding the replacement of the ageing ferry to the Isles of Scilly, we learn this from islands’ Councillor Steve Sims: “People are quite worried, because you know, it’s quite a visceral thing this. “People would like to know what’s happening and when it’s going to happen, so they can put their minds at rest really.” He said this was a “huge, huge issue” for the Isles of Scilly.’ The incumbent service … Continue reading Tory Minister ‘wades into’ private ferry operator betraying Scilly islanders

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Crime victims in England and Wales ONLY paying thousands for court transcripts

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By Professor John Robertson The headline is correct but the report is missing something. This, from the Scottish Government in February 2024: Victims in rape and serious sexual assault cases in Scotland will be the first in the UK to have access to transcripts from their court cases free of charge. The year-long pilot, commencing this week (01/03), will see complainers whose cases are heard in the High Court be eligible to apply for transcripts of what was said in court. Justice Secretary Angela Constance said:   “We want to support victims and ensure we have a trauma-informed justice system. … Continue reading Crime victims in England and Wales ONLY paying thousands for court transcripts

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STV allow Sarwar to misuse basic statistics to lie about the best dentistry in Britain AND ignore Christmas!

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By Professor John Robertson Given a free campaign platform with no professional journalism in sight, Anas Sarwar is allowed by STV to claim Scotland faces a two-tier dentistry system, because: It comes after figures at the end of last year showed a drop in the number of people being seen by NHS dentists. Data from Public Health Scotland revealed that in December 2023 there were 245,501 patients who were seen or had contact with an NHS dentist, down from 396,084 the previous month. The number of dental treatments carried out on the NHS fell from 733,596 to 542,897 in the … Continue reading STV allow Sarwar to misuse basic statistics to lie about the best dentistry in Britain AND ignore Christmas!

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Delayed ferry deserves politicising but not in Cornwall, only in Scotland

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Yesterday, a further two-month delay for the MV Glen Sannox was a matter for comment by the Conservative opposition on BBC Scotland’s website. We got all of this: Scottish Conservative transport spokesman Graham Simpson MSP said the latest delay was “yet another huge blow to Scotland’s betrayed island communities”. He added: “It means that – after testing – another whole summer season will have gone by without desperately-needed new CalMac vessels being in operation, thanks to the SNP’s monumental incompetence. “That’s another peak holiday season for hotels, restaurants and businesses completely at the mercy of a decrepit fleet that simply … Continue reading Delayed ferry deserves politicising but not in Cornwall, only in Scotland

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For Scotland, just an additional propaganda source

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by NMRN I have stated many a time on here that the introduction of specific right wing rogue news channels being granted a licence to broadcast in the UK, was for Scotland, just an additional propaganda source….and thus surplus to requirement. The MSM, via televised news within Scotland, were already, as a media, ones that continually stated exactly the very same points, same adopted language and also opposition against independence and too against the SNP as a political party…..which these new rogue news channels have also been promoting on both of their channels via their presenters and guests. We also saw and still see … Continue reading For Scotland, just an additional propaganda source

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Sir Professor John Curtice lies barefaced about NHS Scotland and comes out as fully Labour

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By Professor John Robertson In the Telegraph today, Sir Professor John Curtice, Cornwall and Oxford, utterly evidence free, tells us: Over the last two months, polls for this year’s Westminster election have on average put the party on just 33 per cent, twelve points down on 2019, and only neck and neck with a revived Labour party. and Meanwhile, voters are seemingly taking more notice of the SNP’s much criticised record in government, not least on the health service. Really? I’ll leave the notion that Scottish Labour are in any way ‘revived’ as opposed to on life support from Pacific … Continue reading Sir Professor John Curtice lies barefaced about NHS Scotland and comes out as fully Labour

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America’s Sellafield and the near impossibility of proving a cancer is the result of life in a ‘contaminated environment’

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By Professor John Robertson I hadn’t heard of an equivalent nuclear-reprocessing plant to Sellafield – ‘the most toxic site in Europe’ – only a few miles from the Scottish border and with regular leaks of radioactive material into the air and water flows heading north, constantly. According to US writer Shannon Cram, author of the just published Unmaking the Bomb, above, most Americans are unaware that a site, like Sellafield, had produced weapons-grade plutonium and now houses the majority of the nations’ high-level nuclear waste. Hanford Nuclear Reservation is eerily placed, like Sellafield, about as far away from the Capital … Continue reading America’s Sellafield and the near impossibility of proving a cancer is the result of life in a ‘contaminated environment’

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No evidence of deliberate misreporting of overflow data by Scottish Water 

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By Professor John Robertson Typically Anglocentric or should that be Britocentric (?), the Guardian has the above headline and: Exclusive: Whistleblowers point to broader sewage scandal, with wastewater systems manipulated to divert sewage. Whistleblowers say UK water companies are knowingly failing to treat legally required amounts of sewage, and that some treatment works are manipulating wastewater systems to divert raw sewage away from the works and into rivers and seas. It is well known that water companies are dumping large volumes of raw sewage into rivers and seas from storm overflows but an investigation by the Guardian and Watershed Investigations reveals that the … Continue reading No evidence of deliberate misreporting of overflow data by Scottish Water 

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Wildlife crime falls but it’s not news for you in their media

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From the Scottish Government today: The Chief Statistician for Scotland has released figures for Wildlife Crime in Scotland 2022. The statistics show that recorded wildlife crime was down by 7% from 308 offences in 2020-21 to 286 offences in 2021-22. The report shows that there were noticeable decreases in recorded crime for fish poaching (from 110 to 49 offences) and hunting with dogs (from 44 to 13 offences). Publication of Wildlife Crime in Scotland 2022 – gov.scot (www.gov.scot) BBC Scotland have no wildlife stories other than the fascinating, I’m sure, Will technology silence the shout auction at Peterhead fish market? Continue reading Wildlife crime falls but it’s not news for you in their media