Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
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Are Scotland’s ferries the worst or the best in the world?

johnrobertson834

Support Talking-up Scotland -In this election year in Scotland, the 90% pro-Union media and their sponsors in the opposition parties will do everything they can to undermine the pro-independence parties. Thought vastly outnumbered, we will do our very best to counter their lies and get you, every day, the true stories and the sources of evidence to prove them. Help us if you can at https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-talking-up-scotland-get-the-facts-for-you Four years ago, on BBC Scotland, I heard an island spokesperson suggest that CalMac ferries was the worst service in the world and that they should visit other countries to learn from them. Getting … Continue reading Are Scotland’s ferries the worst or the best in the world?

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NHS England pays out NINE times as much as NHS Scotland, per head, for clinical negligence

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In the Guardian today: NHS medical negligence persisting in England ‘despite 24 years of warnings’ – MPs on influential committee excoriate health department and NHS England for errors costing £3.6bn a year. Medical negligence in the NHS keeps harming and killing patients because governments and health service bosses have not acted on 24 years’ worth of warnings, MPs have said. In a scathing report published on Friday, the public accounts committee (PAC) excoriates the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England for allowing the cost of mistakes to balloon to £3.6bn a year. Between them, the two bodies have failed to … Continue reading NHS England pays out NINE times as much as NHS Scotland, per head, for clinical negligence

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The benefits for the NHS and for the wider economy of women retiring around 60 – peer-reviewed research evidence is unambiguous and the SNP knows what to do about it

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It’s been argued that women should be able to retire at 60 because by then they often have caring responsibilities for elderly vulnerable parents reducing demand on the NHS and for grandchildren, enabling parents to work and help the economy. Is there research evidence for these claims? The answer below is Grok AI-assisted ie more trustworthy than you’d get from a politician or a newspaper that supports them. There is: Caring for Elderly Parents and Potential Reduction in NHS DemandMultiple studies confirm that women in their 50s and 60s are disproportionately involved in unpaid care for older relatives, with peaks … Continue reading The benefits for the NHS and for the wider economy of women retiring around 60 – peer-reviewed research evidence is unambiguous and the SNP knows what to do about it

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‘It was Glasgow Labour Councillors on the Board who exerted pressure to get QEUH open without delay and without fully informing SNP/Scot Gov of full facts about concerns’

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That headline is quote from a Herald Facebook comments section.1 Another comment suggested – ‘Labour had more to gain from the opening of the hospital as they had 9 councillors sitting on the health board.’ There were several other comments suggesting similar views. Are these any less reliable than what we have heard from BBC or Herald reporters or from Anas Sarwar and Jackie Baillie insisting that the SNP Government is to blame for forcing the hospital to open too early? Why would the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board care when the hospital opened? It was entirely their … Continue reading ‘It was Glasgow Labour Councillors on the Board who exerted pressure to get QEUH open without delay and without fully informing SNP/Scot Gov of full facts about concerns’

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As the Times today tries again to the blame the SNP Government, it was NINE Glasgow Labour Councillors on the Board who exerted pressure to get QEUH open without delay and without fully informing them – short video

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Continue reading As the Times today tries again to the blame the SNP Government, it was NINE Glasgow Labour Councillors on the Board who exerted pressure to get QEUH open without delay and without fully informing them – short video

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Scotland’s environment agency TWICE as effective in closing illegal waste dumps

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at:https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above. Or direct bank transfer at Sort Code 08-91-04 Account – 12266421 Name – JOHN ROBERTSON According to BBC Breakfast this morning, the UK Environment Agency has been criticised for a failure to act on massive illegals waste dumps. You might not be expecting me to write this but, in Scotland, the dumping looks to be just as bad with Sepa reporting 58 dumps assessed as high-risk (posing significant environmental threats, typically larger-scale operations)1. The differences are in performance. In 2024/25, Sepa intervened and closed 167 sites.2 Ten times the population, the EA … Continue reading Scotland’s environment agency TWICE as effective in closing illegal waste dumps

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YouGov polls cannot be trusted to claim ‘SNP vote falls’

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The Herald today has: Reform UK has surged ahead of Scottish Labour while the SNP’s regional vote share falls to its lowest level in 23 years, according to a bombshell poll. The latest polling from YouGov suggests the SNP will remain the largest party in Holyrood by a substantial margin despite a fall in support. YouGov polls have proven themselves regularly unreliable and with a bias against both the SNP and Yes vote. The last two YouGov polls above, uniquely, did not satisfy Wikipedia‘s verification test: In the English Wikipedia, verifiability means that people can check that facts or claims correspond to reliable sources. The last FIVE YouGov polls on … Continue reading YouGov polls cannot be trusted to claim ‘SNP vote falls’