By cuckooshoe yesterday: There are warnings of thunderstorms in parts of Scotland today. Although there have been no thunderstorms in Glasgow’s South Side, there have been several heavy downpours. Only in June STV and BBC Scotland jinxed Scotland’s summer by warning their viewers of severe water shortages. The heavy downpours today reminded me of flooding in parts of the South Side in the past. The reason why it is in the past is because of this achievement.  https://www.mgsdp.org/index.aspx?articleid=21107 Scottish Water’s flagship Shieldhall Tunnel project, in the south of Glasgow, is the biggest waste water tunnel ever to be built in … Continue reading Scottish Government-funded flood protection project 5 times longer than the Clyde saves Glasgow South Side but in Labour Wales…

From BBC Wales this morning: A man with skin cancer says “cruel” waits for biopsy results left him fearing a possible death sentence. Steve Westover, 73, from Ystalyfera, Neath Port Talbot, noticed a pimple on his head which was growing and turning black. He had the lump removed and was told it was probably cancer. But Steve waited more than two months for biopsy results, despite being told he was high priority. Swansea Bay Health Board said it was unable to comment on individual cases. Welsh Labour Government? 33 paragraphs later, only this: A Welsh Government spokesperson said it welcomed … Continue reading Despite far longer cancer wait times, Welsh Labour are not to blame it seems – NHS Scotland shocking 31% faster to treat

The Herald has just reported the rescue of 8 canoeists off Mallaig, in a storm, by the MV Coruisk, a 93* year-old CalMac ferry. A source has told TuS that the eight are part of Labour Party ‘exiles’ group led by Jeremy Corbyn and were following weather advice from Labour HQ’s meteorological division, headed up a Tony Starmer Jnr. On being put ashore, Corbyn is quoted as saying. I was wrong, just like every other nation including Pakistan that has managed to break free from the British Empire, so should Scotland. I don’t know what I was thinking back in … Continue reading Corbyn to campaign for Scottish independence after CalMac rescue

From Public Health Scotland on 22 August 2023: The number of examinations paid in the quarter ending June 2023 was 782,783; an increase of 8% compared to the previous quarter (727,751). There were 1,025,251 NHS primary dental claims paid in the quarter ending June 2023. This represents an increase of 6% from 964,449 in the previous quarter. https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/nhs-dental-treatments-report-quarterly/nhs-dental-treatment-statistics-quarter-ending-30-june-2023 A reminder on access to free NHS dentistry in Scotland: 95.4% of the Scottish population were registered with an NHS dentist as at 30 September 2022. Nearly all adults living in the most deprived areas were registered with an NHS dentist in September 2022, compared … Continue reading NHS dentistry treatment increases for fourth quarter in a row

Jackie Baillie accused me of attacking the pupils of the school where the Rutherglen by-election Labour candidate teaches, when I revealed the poor performance of his Modern Studies department. Today, she equates the criminal neglect of the Countess of Chester hospital’s senior staff and administrators in allowing a serial killer to murder more than seven babies, with an infection outbreak in a Glasgow hospital ‘linked’ to but never proven to be causal in the deaths of two babies. Nauseating? More? Here’s the fact-check I did in December 2021 which concluded that the QEUH is one of the safest in the … Continue reading Disgusting Jackie Baillie comparisons of Lucy Letsby case with Glasgow Hospital – one of safest in the UK

I’ve had to add a bit of detail to BBC Scotland’s coverage of its: PFI ‘buy back’ deals to cost taxpayer millions today. I thought readers might like to know who got us into this mess in case they think it must be the current government, that SNP one. Andrew Pickens does tell you 10 paragraphs down (Still reading? I thought not.): PFI was introduced by John Major’s Conservative government but Labour was the biggest supporter of the controversial financing model. It meant the upfront cost of building such as schools and hospitals was taken on by the private sector … Continue reading Rutherglen By-election Alert – Labour lumbered you with massive ‘buy back’ fees for hospitals like the one in Wishaw!

The Herald of Free Enterprise Media Group is making much of a letter from an Arran businessman today with: Arran is under serious threat from the SNP’s ineptitude In August 2023, CalMac has typically made between 14 and 16 crossings per day between Ardrossan and Brodick (Arran), a total of around 350. There have been only 2 cancellations in that time. The reliability of the Arran service is thus around 99.4%. The population of Arran is only around 4 600 but benefits from a massive transport subsidy. The Scottish Government’s subsidy for ferries averages £29.80 per passenger journey. In Canada … Continue reading Arran thrives with best comparable ferry service in the world

From healthandcare.scot, seven days ago: An independent evaluation of a mass media campaign on how to prevent drug deaths show it has had a positive impact on public awareness and increased the community supply of life-saving naloxone. The Scottish Government commissioned ‘How to Save a Life’ campaign led to a surge in take-home naloxone – medication which can temporarily reverse an opioid overdose – during its run time between August and October 2021. [Drug deaths began to fall by 21% in 2022, after falling by 1% in 2021 for the first time after years on climbing] Adverts on television, radio, social media … Continue reading Evidence emerges that significant drug deaths fall is largely due to Scottish Government programme first in world

On 8 August as the Scottish Higher exam results came in, BBC Scotland, in a report of 1 011 words, found room for these 88: Scottish Conservatives MSP Liam Kerr said this should be “a source of shame” for ministers. “Pupils from the most disadvantaged backgrounds have been let down year after year by the SNP,” he said. Scottish Labour education spokesperson Pam Duncan-Glancy also accused the Scottish government of failing to close the attainment gap. “The young people of Scotland deserve better than SNP failure,” she added. Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth said the gap in attainment levels between the … Continue reading Exam pass rates not weaponised by politicians in England

BBC Scotland’s casual British Nationalism on show this morning, above. In the BBC Sport full text of 900 words, we do get ‘Scot’ twice but ‘Brit’ appears nine times and ‘GB’ seven times. Kerr’s Edinburgh Athletics Club membership gets one mention but his birthplace in Edinburgh is not mentioned. In sharp contrast, 400m runner Matthew Hudson Smith needs no ‘Brit’ in the headline and gets only 4 overall. Continue reading Brit 9 GB 7 Scot 2