By Jaunty Jock: Our contacts in BBC Scotland HQ at Passive Queue in Glasgow, the Herald and Scotsman offices tell us that three health correspondents have had to take sick leave, due to stress caused by the SNP Government’s massive reduction in Scotland’s infection rate (above). It is feared, across Scotland’s MSM, that Scotland will have the lowest infection rate in the UK in the next day or two, having falling below a surging Wales and having caught the stalled Northern Ireland. All eyes are on England as they too surge again and Scotland drops like a stone toward their … Continue reading Are BBC Scotland, Herald AND Scotsman health correspondents all off sick due to stress?

On Brighton’s seafront, has the Labour Party ever been so remote, geographically and ideologically, from Scotland? Who advised him to use this analogy? Will this Brown-inspired blood and soil notion help fuel a Labour revival in Scotland? See this from 29th August 2021: He’s not looking that popular ‘up here.’ In April 2017, Corbyn was ever so slightly more popular at 24 to 57: https://d25d2506sfb94s.cloudfront.net/cumulus_uploads/document/ny1kfo8x0u/InternalResults_170420_Favourability_W.pdf In Holyrood polls after Starmer’s appointment in April 2020 and Sarwar’s in February 2021, Scottish Labour still stuck in 3rd behind the weak Conservative leaders Carlaw and Ross. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_2021_Scottish_Parliament_election To return to the question, that’ll … Continue reading Will Scotland give more blood for this odd Labour leader whining nasally from the distant shores of England?

Not for the first time, I report an area where I have no expertise and, this time, no strong hunch other than that this might be another insensitive use of tragedy, by our MSM, to bash the SNP Government. When I read that this inquiry has been ‘delayed’ for 13 years by both Labour and SNP administrations, I wonder if that is because there was legitimate debate about the value of holding one. BBC Scotland’s reporting is simple, it was wrong to do so. I had a look around and found this quickly: Inquiries fail abused children: Inquiries are mostly … Continue reading Were there legitimate reasons for questioning the setting up of a Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry?

Ignoring all the epidemiologists and psychologists, BBC Scotland rely on the expertise of ‘senior political communications specialist’, UK Hospitality guy and Neil Oliver lookalike, Leon Thompson: He told BBC Radio’s Good Morning Scotland programme: “One of the critical factors that has not really been talked about is just how ready the public is for the introduction of these passports. I would say they are not ready at all. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-58733492 But, but senior political communications specialist, in February 2021, 7 months ago: The Serco Institute’s discussion paper, Public Opinion & Vaccine Passports, outlines findings that show the public back vaccine passports being used in a … Continue reading BBC Scotland’s hospitality bosses ‘not ready’ to admit they know ‘little’

I have a Google alert for reports on Scotland. Today the above story in the Denbigh Free Press and the Evening Standard were in 2nd and 3rd place. BBC Scotland seems strangely disinterested. The Herald does have a wee piece on it but don’t seem to see it as headline worthy. The Denbigh Free Press report: The proportion of people suffering from the worst forms of homelessness in Scotland is about half as high as in England, campaigners have claimed. Almost one in 100 households in England (0.94%) were experiencing what the charity Crisis called “forms of core homelessness” – … Continue reading LATEST: Homeless rate in Scotland about half that of England

In the New Statesman yesterday, we read without their expected incredulity: North Sea oil companies receive more money from the government than they pay in taxes The UK has given firms including Exxon and Shell hundreds of millions of pounds in rebates. https://www.newstatesman.com/energy-climate-tech/2021/09/north-sea-oil-companies-receive-more-money-from-the-government-than-they-pay-in-taxes Why should we not be surprised to hear this? Well back in 2019, we could read this: And even further back, we could see this: Only the UK does not apparently make a profit from oil extraction. Over the longer period the UK has stopped making a profit quite recently: So, oil stops becoming profitable after 2015? … Continue reading Scotland’s oil wealth was not stolen it was given away

This just won’t do. An SNP MSP, Audrey Nicoll, has just welcomed the latest report on recorded crime with these comments: It is very encouraging to see the statistics today that recorded crime remains at one of the lowest levels in nearly 50 years and my thanks go out to all in Police Scotland for their hard-work and dedication.   The downward trend we see is a reflection of a police force who are backed by an SNP Scottish Government, providing them with the support and guidance they need to do their jobs effectively.   Under an SNP Scottish Government we have … Continue reading Crime in Scotland lowest in nearly 50 years but BBC Scotland’s cycle of despair continues

Things are looking bad for BBC Scotland staff as they rush to construct a defence against evidence suggesting the SNP Government is coping better with Covid infection rates again. Tempting fate I know, but better to be prepared? If the trends continue, Scotland becomes the least infected part of the UK again in the next few days. What can they say? Nothing? Use the two-week old ONS estimates? Crop the graph at September 10th? Turn the graph upside down and hope no one notices? Accuse the SNP of wasting money on training unneeded new staff? Get Prof Pennington to predict … Continue reading Reporting Scotland convene Covid emergency group

From Public Health Scotland in September 2021: Uptake rates [of the MMR vaccine] remained high in Scotland; over 96% of children had received each routine immunisation by the time they were 12 months old, with the exception of rotavirus vaccine, which had 94.5% uptake. 95.0% of children had the first dose of MMR vaccine by 24 months of age. This rose to 96.8% for children who reached age five. Uptake of the second dose of MMR vaccine by five years was 93.2%, rising to 94.5% by age six years. https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/childhood-immunisation-statistics-scotland/childhood-immunisation-statistics-scotland-quarter-and-year-ending-30-june-2021/ From the Nuffield Trust in August 2021: Between 1994 and … Continue reading Scotland at risk of measles epidemic spreading from south?

According to Public Health Scotland today, for the period 1 April to 30 June 2021, despite a 9.2% increase in referrals, 98.1% waited no more than 31 days from decision to treat to first cancer treatment against a target of 95% and up from 96.2% in the same period of 2020. This target was met by all 15 health boards in Scotland and has now been met since records began in 2012. There was also a 10.1% increase in referrals for assessment, taking that up to just above the level observed before the pandemic. 84.1% began treatment within the 62-day … Continue reading NHS Scotland smashes one cancer waiting time target despite increased demand and treats 17% more, on time, than NHS England