Create a podcast episode Back in November, when hospital-onset Covid infections ‘soared’ to a tenth of that in NHS England, BBC Scotland’s Health Correspondent, Lisa Summers, was all excited, tweeting and ghost-writing the above: But, since January, when levels began to fall, she decided that falling levels were not in the public interest and I’ve had to step in to cover for her. Here are this week’s figures: From NHS Scotland today: 22 (0.5%) were reported as probable hospital onset (first positive specimen on days 8 to 14 of admission to NHS board). In the previous week (week ending 21 … Continue reading I’m still standing in for Lisa Summers

The P&J, local rag for Douglas Ross, tends toward the Union most of the time, so they were careful with their headline. They do tell us: New polling suggests Scotland would only vote to become independent if it was guaranteed EU membership. Data compiled by Survation for us reveal 51% of voters would say No if asked “should Scotland be an independent country”. But if admission to the European Union was a given, then 53% of voters would agree to separation from the United Kingdom. ‘If admission to the European Union was a given?‘ I think we know the answer … Continue reading Poll from Tory Heartland puts YES at 53%* and Tory losses at more than a third!

BBC Scotland staff feeling a bit queasy with two good news stories, stick in three Salmonds, leaving no space for this one: From the Scottish Government yesterday: A commitment to ensure adult social care workers receive at least the Real Living Wage of £9.50 an hour has been agreed with COSLA. Funding of £64.5 million will be committed to ensure adult social care workers will be paid at least the Real Living Wage from May 2021, backdated to April 2021. This is an important early response to the recent Independent Review of Adult Social Care and comes as a joint … Continue reading Fair pay for social care workers in Scotland but no room at the website

When I saw the large sample poll suggesting a 56% to 44% lead for Yes, by Hanbury Strategy, it rang bells. I felt sure there was something dark about them. Our Corruption Correspondent, Annie McIndoe, was on the ball again and shared this with me: Here’s an extract: A lobbying firm run by allies of Dominic Cummings was handed a contract worth £900,000 to conduct public opinion polling on the coronavirus pandemic. The contract was awarded to Hanbury Strategy without any advertisement or competitive tender process. And it was awarded to Hanbury despite the fact that – as our sworn … Continue reading 12 point YES lead poll has Dom Cummings connections!

From Alasdair Galloway Mike Small in a piece today (“On Harry Cole, Doomsday and the new Hyper-Unionism” – https://bellacaledonia.org.uk/2021/03/23/on-harry-cole-doomsday-and-the-new-hyper-unionism/), quotes John Harris as saying “ “Shall we at last face the facts? Even if the institutions of the United Kingdom creak on unchanged or are somehow saved by a new federalism, as a meaningful political entity the UK is all but over. Independence is partly a state of mind, and for very different reasons, a large number of people in Scotland, Wales and England have got there already.” (“English politicians are waving the union jack, but its meaning is tattered … Continue reading Something not about Alex, Nicola, or even James Hamilton

The Good Friday Agreement allows for a referendum on Irish reunification, within 7 years of the previous event, if there has been a consistent majority in opinion polls and a nationalist majority in the Northern Ireland Assembly or a vote by a majority in the Assembly. These conditions for a referendum have all been more than met in Scotland since the independence referendum of 2014, 7 years ago, Today SNP MP Allan Dorans, asked the Prime Minister why, in the light of this, he would not agree to a Section 30 Order enabling the democratic will of the Scottish people … Continue reading One rule for Ireland, only sneering contempt for Scotland

Quite a few old, often paunchy, white guys seem to have a ‘thing’ about Nicola Sturgeon. I know she is the First Minister, but it’s been getting a bit creepy for a while now. Ruth Davidson revealed its dark appeal for some when she enthused, after Andrew Neil supposedly gave the FM ‘a good kicking.’ That other unreconstructed big beast, Andrew Marr, got right into giving her the sharp edge of his tongue with some carefully selected ‘facts’ back in November. Iain Macwhirter is more the determined wimp with her. He writes today, under that headline predicting damage: NICOLA Sturgeon’s … Continue reading Does he dream of Nicola?

Herald columnist Uzma Mir seems particularly uninformed. Leaving aside her puzzling notion about heads and hearts and her parroting of the usual myths of an incomparably high Scottish Covid death rate, this astounds: The internecine warfare within the party is utterly unedifying and won’t do them any favours at the polls. The Conservatives no doubt will make slight gains under Douglas Ross, slightly riding on the coat-tails of Ruth Davidson, but I don’t think there will be enough time for the new leadership of Anas Sarwar to bed in to make a difference, although I do look forward to him … Continue reading Clueless

Yes, there’s a prize for even better headlines. Yes, it’s the same prize as the last time. Continue reading Headlines that should have been as Davidson and Ross ‘get a kicking!’

Two recent sets of results from Hanbury Strategy with impressively large samples, have appeared quietly after some delay, to combine with the two most recent polls to cast into serious doubt any decline in support due to either the SNP ‘civil war‘ or any ‘vaccine boost‘ for Unionism. After discounting the flawed Savanta ComRes poll for the Scotsman, 4 out of the last 8 have an average lead of nearly 6% for Yes, compared to the less than 2% for No, in the other 4. I shouldn’t tempt fate but with the FM cleared, the Tories dumped and some emergence … Continue reading Rumours of decline in support for independence have been greatly exaggerated