The Herald and BBC UK celebrate the UK’s world-beating jag rollout as it reaches the milestone of doing 75% of all adults. England is not there yet, on 74.5%. BBC Scotland is saying nothing in case anyone notices that Scotland hit the 75% figure yesterday: Wales hit it on the 16th July! Will they be invited to help the UK Government or send Welsh soldiers in? Continue reading Yesterday

This morning we read from Green MSP Ross Greer: The onslaught of de-facto exams after Easter wasn’t a necessary requirement, it was the result of a near-total failure to plan for the effects of Covid disruption earlier in the school year. Greer’s melodramatic claims seem unfounded judging by the word from the classroom. Deep in a BBC Scotland report today, we read Senior pupils sat a series of assessments in May following disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Teachers then decided their grades and informed students before the end of term, and these grades were made official on Tuesday. Katie … Continue reading Ross Greer contradicted by pupils who know what actually happened in schools

By Leah Gunn Barrett: Ian Murray (Scotsman, August 5th) slavishly praises the British State broadcaster, the 2014 Project Fear cheerleader that lost any remaining trust it had in Scotland and has done nothing since to win it back. The BBC is burnishing its Unionist credentials because it fears the Tories will deprive it of the license fee, a funding model that is a highly regressive broadcasting poll tax. Pensioner poverty is exacerbated now that over-75s are required to ante up for the £157 fee. It’s no surprise that Scots are short-changed by the BBC, paying in more than they get … Continue reading The BBC has had more than 90 years to ‘get’ Scotland

I haven’t, of course, read the above. I never do. Like most, I read the headline only and, sometimes, rebut it. The conflation of the PM and the FM is a regular thing as, in desperation at her ratings, the Scottish media comically try to suggest Scotland is doing no better on outcomes in health, crime or education. I won’t revisit their sad delusions again here. So, just on the environment: Scotland has been catapulted to the top of the tables in Europe for countries who produce electricity from renewables – with latest available figures placing Scotland into the top … Continue reading Scotland’s leader denied rightful place at COP26

Note how the Herald picks out the Ross Greer’s criticism first? SNP ministers and the country’s exams body have been urged to apologise for causing school pupils needless stress and anxiety as they receive their official grades today. The Scottish Greens blamed the Government and the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) for exacerbating problems being caused by the Covid pandemic. In the current power negotiations, is Greer going rogue? Has he been denied a cabinet role? He features in the BBC Scotland report too with the hysterical: The onslaught of de-facto exams after Easter wasn’t a necessary requirement, it was the … Continue reading SNP praised for handling of school assessments during pandemic

In the Guardian today: The Institute of Economic Affairs has lost a two-year battle with LBC radio presenter James O’Brien over claims the registered charity is a politically motivated lobbying organisation funded by “dark money”. The IEA complained to media regulator Ofcom that the radio station had made a series of inaccurate and unfair suggestions that the organisation is a professional lobby group of “questionable provenance, with dubious ideas and validity” staffed by people who are not proper experts on their topic. https://www.theguardian.com/media/2021/aug/09/lbcs-james-obrien-wins-ofcom-battle-with-institute-of-economic-affairs There is no mention of the IEA’s activity with regard to the campaign for Scottish independence but they have featured many … Continue reading We know all about the Institute of Economic Affairs in Scotland

By Alasdair Galloway If we abjure violence, then there is a creative issue of what can be done by the wider community. Much of course, is already being done – blogging, various Yes organizations already exist. But do these two things not themselves point to weaknesses? How much of the former involves independence supporters talking to each other (and sometimes falling out)? With regard to the latter is a plethora of organizations a sign of strength of a sign of dispute and division? What can be done about them? First, blogging is an essential and valuable quality of the independence … Continue reading No referendum till after May 2023?

By Alasdair Galloway According to Fraser Nelson in the Telegraph (5th March) Johnson and team are gearing up for an early(ish) election – May 2023 to be specific, so not that early but before his term hits the normal five years at the end of 2024. Nelson’s evidence for this is twofold. First there is the significant, continuing and until recently expanding lead the Tories have over Labour in the polls, suggesting the same sort of majority or even more. Secondly there is Rishi Sunak’s budget, which, according to Nelson, could be summarised as “spend now, pay nothing until 2023”. … Continue reading Is Johnson planning an early election?

Based on the words of Francois Balloux of UCL in London, James Cook tells us In countries with high rates of vaccination, including the UK, the pandemic phase of the virus will be over by the spring. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-58112939 Well, only if you don’t look at the latest data: After 7 days of falling infections, the seven-day rolling averages in England and Northern Ireland are heading up again. The above graph does not reveal the detail nor today’s figures: It’s only one day but the data for Wales, on a Monday, are disturbing and for England and Northern Ireland seem stuck … Continue reading Pandemic over by Spring 2022? Maybe in Scotland as cases plummet to one-third UK level

From SNP Media New analysis from the House of Commons Library shows Brexit is costing the whisky industry £5 million per week. UK exports of whiskies to the EU were £105.7 million lower in January-May 2021 than in January – May 2019, which, on average, is £5.0 million a week lower. In the immediate aftermath of Brexit – January to March 2021 – the whisky industry saw its exports drop to £135.9 million lower than in the same period in 2019, which works out as £10.4 million a week lower on average. In 2019, Scotch Whisky accounted for 75 per cent of … Continue reading Brexit is costing the whisky industry £5 million per week