Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
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CalMac has one of the youngest ferry fleets in the developed world

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From the Herald (SoS) today, the above and: This is a new low for Maritime Williams, the Herald’s Captain Hogwash. ’15 of 33 vessels now at least 30 or over?’ There 37 CalMac ferries in service and there are 15 in that age range. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caledonian_MacBrayne_fleet Who to compare with? Washington State Ferries, operating out of Seattle to a comparable island archipelago in the USA and British Columbia Ferries, operating out of Vancouver to a comparable island archipelago in Canada, but both areas with a GDP far higher than in Scotland. Isle of Wight and Channel Island ferries are far too … Continue reading CalMac has one of the youngest ferry fleets in the developed world

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UK Government ‘regeneration’ schemes slammed as ‘against spirit of devolution’, ‘not new money’ and ‘a drop in the ocean’

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In the Express today, the above. It’s about two Westminster schemes that bypassed Holyrood and gave money directly to councils. It describes this as the Scottish Government “sulking.” The two schemes are: Local Growth Fund: £140m over three years (from 2026/27) to five areas — Glasgow City (£60.9m), Edinburgh & South East (£37.8m), Tay Cities (£19.5m), Ayrshire (£11.8m), and Forth Valley (£9.8m). Pride in Place: Up to £280m over 10 years to 14 neighbourhoods in 12 Scottish local authorities (£20m each), for targeted regeneration. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/140m-scottish-local-growth-fund-to-drive-economic-growth The Scottish Government’s position is that the programmes themselves were imposed without proper engagement and … Continue reading UK Government ‘regeneration’ schemes slammed as ‘against spirit of devolution’, ‘not new money’ and ‘a drop in the ocean’

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Scotland’s schools still get 20% more per pupil than those in the rest of the UK and the P1 school bags came from a different budget

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You have to say, why is this never reported in MSM? The Daily Record today, above. How many pennies do Scottish School get per pupil, then? From The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) for 2025/2026Key report: Public service spending and performance in Wales (March 2026).This gives the directly comparable figures: Wales ≈ £8,700 England ≈ £8,600 Scotland ≈ £10,400 (about 19% higher than Wales)Related IFS work on Scotland and England (including annual education spending reports and public-service comparisons) supports the same ranking and magnitudes. These aim for consistency by including early years and sixth-form elements where relevant. https://ifs.org.uk/publications/public-service-spending-and-performance-wales Nearly 20% … Continue reading Scotland’s schools still get 20% more per pupil than those in the rest of the UK and the P1 school bags came from a different budget

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When the protests outside Holyrood begin the same media will report upon them conveniently ignoring the fact that energy policies are all the responsibility of the UK government

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By Lis S BBC website headline 29 October after FM’s Q’s : “John Swinney bats away ‘yes or no’ answer on Rosebank oil field future” . So what about Andy Burnham the UK PM giving a “yes or no” answer to Rosebank oil field’s future, as it is he and his Labour UK government who will get to decide upon that , yes ? Surely it is the UK government who have been swithering on this and so then refusing to say what they will do ? So that being the case it is actually Burnham and his UK government … Continue reading When the protests outside Holyrood begin the same media will report upon them conveniently ignoring the fact that energy policies are all the responsibility of the UK government

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Trying to light a two-year-old damp squib as police officer injuries fall annually from 62 to 1 to zero last year and assaults more generally plummet way below those in England

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The Express today has the above: From BBC Scotland, today, the above and: Scotland’s biggest police operation since the visit of President Donald Trump last year is to take place on Bonfire Night, in the face of a “unique” combination of safety concerns. As many as 1,700 officers could be deployed on and around 5 November to deal with fireworks-related disorder, a European football match involving Celtic and potential protests in Glasgow. Additional public order vehicles and drivers are being brought in from 18 English and Welsh police forces under mutual aid arrangements. The force has already vowed that anyone … Continue reading Trying to light a two-year-old damp squib as police officer injuries fall annually from 62 to 1 to zero last year and assaults more generally plummet way below those in England

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How Big Oil lobbied Big Ed, Wee Michael and then said ‘Gillian Martin? Who?’

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Before going any further, what is that image doing there in The National? How are decisions made about oil and gas exploration, development and extraction in the North Sea off the coast of Scotland? Decisions on oil and gas exploration, development, and extraction in the North Sea off Scotland are made primarily under UK (reserved) powers, through a system of licences and activity-specific consents regulated by the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), with environmental oversight by the Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning (OPRED) and key agreements from the Secretary of State. Offshore licensing is not devolved to the … Continue reading How Big Oil lobbied Big Ed, Wee Michael and then said ‘Gillian Martin? Who?’

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Nicola Sturgeon pressed the UK Government to shut down money-laundering firms in 2018 but the Ferret won’t tell you that

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I’ll explain the above after this: In the Ferret today, the above, and: Hey there, Jamie here, along with financial crime investigator Diogo Augusto. It’s great when a government decides to tackle abuses made possible by its own legislation – less so when, more than a year after promising reform, it still can’t give a firm date for implementing it. In this case, the reforms are compulsory ID-checks for the owners of a type of Scottish entity that’s become notorious for abuse by money launderers and other international criminals – individuals who certainly wouldn’t be keen to reveal themselves. Implementing … Continue reading Nicola Sturgeon pressed the UK Government to shut down money-laundering firms in 2018 but the Ferret won’t tell you that

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Take away pollsters still skewing their samples to look like it’s 2014, a Yes win by 10-12% in Referendum2 seems probable and Westminster knows that

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From Survation on 14 October 2026, with the 7% Yes lead above, see how they have weighted their sample to take account of how respondents remember voting in 2014 and how they would vote in another referendum: Note how the sample has been changed from a small Yes lead to a larger No lead in both cases. The percentage changes are, however, single digit. The result, despite this skewing of the sample is still a 7% Yes lead, the biggest Yes lead since January. Looking now at the Norstat/Sunday Mail poll which found only a 3% Yes lead, on 23 … Continue reading Take away pollsters still skewing their samples to look like it’s 2014, a Yes win by 10-12% in Referendum2 seems probable and Westminster knows that

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As the Express feeds again on ferry delays, here’s Clyde-based Ferguson Marine’s long track record of delivering them on-time and often commended in Parliament

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Just one of the smelly collection of the latest ‘SNP ferry fiasco’ stories in the bowels of of the media world, from the Express, above. The MV Glen Rosa is a cutting-edge hybrid, much delayed but the MV Islay and her two sisters are simple things by comparisons but delayed too in Turkey Has Ferguson Marine had to delay any simple diesel ferry completions in the last 50 years Simple Diesel Ferry Projects (1975–2015)Ferguson Marine (and its predecessors) delivered multiple diesel-powered Ro-Ro ferries without reported delays. Below is a table of notable examples, focusing on those within the 50-year window. … Continue reading As the Express feeds again on ferry delays, here’s Clyde-based Ferguson Marine’s long track record of delivering them on-time and often commended in Parliament

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Three men jailed for trafficking women FROM England and Wales INTO Scotland just like every other part of this invasive flow from high crime pressure areas into low crime area vacuums

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From STV in Scotland, yesterday, the above, and: Three men have been jailed for a combined 13 years for crimes including trafficking vulnerable women between Scotland, England and Wales. George Filip, 45, Alexandru Moco, 26, and Leonard Banica, 41, targeted 16 vulnerable women, bringing them into the UK to work as sex workers. A fourth man, Ionela Filip, 34, also worked with the three men to run the prostitution ring and various brothels, exploiting the women for their own gain. The group evaded detection by transporting the vulnerable women across the border between Newport, Birmingham and Scotland. https://news.stv.tv/scotland/three-men-jailed-for-operating-prostitution-ring-and-trafficking-women-between-scotland-england-and-wales Between? Between? … Continue reading Three men jailed for trafficking women FROM England and Wales INTO Scotland just like every other part of this invasive flow from high crime pressure areas into low crime area vacuums