Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
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After Mairi McAllan given top job, Scotland still builds twice as many affordable homes as last Scottish Labour government did, beats 110 000 target by an extra 30 000 and watches on as UK Labour slashes its target for England by more than a third

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As the Daily Recortd, today, has Housing emergency ‘going from bad to worse’ after Mairi McAllan given top job, do we care who said that? Nope, we barely care enough to respond but just in case you know someone still reading it, the facts: McAllan became Cabinet Secrtetary on 11 June 2025 and on the 30th September 2025, this from Housing Statistics for Scotland Quarterly Update: New Housebuilding and Affordable Housing Supply to end June 2025: For 2025, the SNP Government funded 5 313 new affordable home starts, down from a peak of 11 158 in 2021 but above the level … Continue reading After Mairi McAllan given top job, Scotland still builds twice as many affordable homes as last Scottish Labour government did, beats 110 000 target by an extra 30 000 and watches on as UK Labour slashes its target for England by more than a third

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Scotland does TWICE the UK rate of heart transplants per capita, thanks to additional financial support from the SNP government but the UK does lag far behind rest of Europe

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From BBC Health two days ago, the above and: The UK used to be a world leader in the field – but has fallen behind major Western nations. The number of heart and lung transplants the NHS carries out each year has not increased in three decades. BBC File on 4 Investigates has found that technology is outdated, there is a lack of investment and senior surgeons are leaving – while patients point to issues with ongoing care. and: While the number of organs donated in the UK is equal to, or better than, much of other parts of Europe … Continue reading Scotland does TWICE the UK rate of heart transplants per capita, thanks to additional financial support from the SNP government but the UK does lag far behind rest of Europe

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The Health Secretary in England says the NHS is ‘on the road to recovery’ but two think tanks reveal it’s nowhere near catching NHS Scotland

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By stewartb The health think tank, the Kings Fund in collaboration the Nuffield Trust has just published a report on public satisfaction in 2025 with the NHS and social care across the UK. It is based on British Social Attitudes Survey research. The report notes: ‘The British Social Attitudes Survey (BSA) is a ‘gold standard’, nationally representative survey that uses a robust methodology to explore public views on what it is like to live in Britain and how respondents think the country is run.’ (See https://www.nuffieldtrust.org.uk/sites/default/files/2026-03/public-satisfaction-with-the-nhs-and-social-care-in-2025.pdf ) The research provides views on the NHS overall and on selected NHS services viz. general practice, … Continue reading The Health Secretary in England says the NHS is ‘on the road to recovery’ but two think tanks reveal it’s nowhere near catching NHS Scotland

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The poor have greater need and less access to hip and knee replacement surgery but inequality of access has grown at two and a half times the rate in two-tier NHS England than in Scotland

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Many thanks to NHS FOR YES! for alerting me to this. From the above research paper published online today, in the June 2026 edition of the, peer-reviewed, Health Policy journal the following key points on the relative access of the poor to hip and knee replacement. In the UK, where healthcare is a devolved matter, England and Scotland have different policies to reduce waiting lists for elective surgery. England is redirecting NHS funding to the private sector using commercial contracts, Scotland is expanding in-house capacity. The poor have greater need and less access to hip and knee replacement surgery. From 1997/98 to … Continue reading The poor have greater need and less access to hip and knee replacement surgery but inequality of access has grown at two and a half times the rate in two-tier NHS England than in Scotland

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Successive SNP health secretaries have avoided 66 days of resident doctor strikes in Scotland, saved up to 200 000 appointments and unknown numbers of avoidable deaths

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Sky News has just announced: Resident doctors in England to strike for six days after Easter bank holiday – The planned walk-out is due to start from 7 April at 7am, just after the Easter bank holiday in England, until 6.59am on 13 April. The British Medical Association said in a post on X on Wednesday: “Resident doctors have been left with no choice but to strike. “Weeks of negotiations with the Government have failed to deliver enough progress on pay, with the goalposts being moved at the last minute. “We have called six days of industrial action to make … Continue reading Successive SNP health secretaries have avoided 66 days of resident doctor strikes in Scotland, saved up to 200 000 appointments and unknown numbers of avoidable deaths

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Major survey today reveals Scots TWICE as satisfied with A&E and dentistry and 25% more satisfied with NHS overall than in other parts of UK- ‘Scottish’ media is all over this – kidding!

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Many thanks to NHS FOR YES! for alerting me to this. Today in the Guardian: Public satisfaction with the NHS has risen for the first time since 2019, but people remain deeply frustrated with stubbornly long waits to receive GP, A&E or hospital care. The proportion of voters in Britain satisfied with the way the NHS runs has increased from the record low of 21% seen last year to 26%. At the same time dissatisfaction with the health service fell 8% – the biggest drop since 1998 – although it remains high at 51%. Wes Streeting hailed the findings as proof that … Continue reading Major survey today reveals Scots TWICE as satisfied with A&E and dentistry and 25% more satisfied with NHS overall than in other parts of UK- ‘Scottish’ media is all over this – kidding!

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Citizens Theatre revamp only made possible by SNP Government’s £17.5 million and SNP Council’s £2 million

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BBC Scotland this morning reporting the Citizens Theatre revamp funds being made available last minute but with no time, it seems, to tell you who from. The Herald, also, making you work to find out, with: If YOU have the time, you can find, in the Herald report: The Scottish Government has signed off another multi-million pound bail-out for Glasgow’s 148-year-old Citizens Theatre to help meet the final costs of its long-delayed revamp. Ministers have approved another £3.5 million for the refurbishment, which reopened to the public last August after a seven-year closure, despite the project receiving an additional £8m from the government and … Continue reading Citizens Theatre revamp only made possible by SNP Government’s £17.5 million and SNP Council’s £2 million

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NHS Northern Ireland faces stark warning as it suffers cancer mortality rate falls THREE times those in Scotland

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Above, cancer survival rates improve in 22 out of 26 cancer types. In NHS Scotland, the declines from a pre-pandemic to a pandemic set of figures were in 4 cancers, including these three, selected for comparative purposes: Source: https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/cancer-survival-statistics/cancer-survival-statistics-cancers-diagnosed-2018-to-2022-followed-up-to-2023/ The pattern shown in detailed Northern Ireland data, found these same cancers had one-year survival drops comparing the pre-pandemic and pandemic figures: The NI data come from Impact of COVID-19 on cancer incidence, presentation, diagnosis, treatment and survival in Northern Ireland, published in the International Journal of Cancer (Impact Factor 7.4), in 2024: Source: https://pureadmin.qub.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/565659800/Impact_of_COVID-19.pdf The contrast is stark. Northern Ireland … Continue reading NHS Northern Ireland faces stark warning as it suffers cancer mortality rate falls THREE times those in Scotland