Author: johnrobertson834

Retired Professor of Media Politics Not-for-profit independent political analysis
Leave a comment

Interfering with democratic principles just before an election – BBC Scotland repeats ‘too-soon’ evaluation of new GP walk-in clinics just to let opposition, with no evidence on these presented, campaign free-of-charge

johnrobertson834

BBC Scotland’s Andrew Picken, yesterday, had: One of the new flagship GP walk-in clinics has seen just 183 patients in its first five weeks, latest figures shows. The facility at Lochee Health Centre in Dundee is part of a network of clinics planned by the Scottish government where patients have access to GP-led care without an appointment. Data released to the BBC under freedom of information laws shows that in the five weeks to 30 April, the Dundee clinic – which is open every day between 12:00 and 20:00 – had 183 people attend. then only 5 paragraphs later: But the walk-in … Continue reading Interfering with democratic principles just before an election – BBC Scotland repeats ‘too-soon’ evaluation of new GP walk-in clinics just to let opposition, with no evidence on these presented, campaign free-of-charge

8 Comments

In the days before an election, BBC Scotland’s comparison only of tax bills deliberately hides the reasons things are so much better here for almost everyone

johnrobertson834

BBC UK yesterday has a report clearly meant to influence voters, with an analysis of the tax burden in Scotland and England, using two highly paid tax advisers and ignoring, until a wee bit at the very end for ‘balance’, every other factor, financial and other, in their lives. It allows them to start with – Senior tax manager Scott McIver (above), who lives in Dumfries, pays more tax than his colleague working in a similar role in Carlisle Why is this unfair and, in effect, mere propaganda and interference in democratic processes? When you compare financial situations between places … Continue reading In the days before an election, BBC Scotland’s comparison only of tax bills deliberately hides the reasons things are so much better here for almost everyone

3 Comments

Latest polls says immigration 2nd in concerns for UK voters but only 7th for Scots voters yet BBC Scotland keep pushing it here in a dirty tactic to help Reform UK

johnrobertson834

BBC Scotland again telling us that immigration is one of those issues that most concern voters. It’s not true. In September 2025: Immigration & asylum climbing from March to June 2025 as an issue in Scotland after a summer of media frenzy amplifying a handful of tiny peaceful protests here had pushed it into poll respondents’ minds. Less than two weeks earlier one poll by the David Hume Institute was fuelling a media frenzy suggesting Scots too were prioritising immigration as one of the top three issues concerning voters. That the issue was at only at 21% compared to 48% … Continue reading Latest polls says immigration 2nd in concerns for UK voters but only 7th for Scots voters yet BBC Scotland keep pushing it here in a dirty tactic to help Reform UK

5 Comments

A Song for Holyrood 26 – please share

johnrobertson834

Lyrics: We’ll be singing, we’ll be singing If we get out and vote for our own We’ll be singing, we’ll be singing When we remember all we’ve sown Pulling thousands out of poverty Sending the same to learn for free Offering a hand to the weak and the sick We begin the path to the Scotland we want We’ll be singing, we’ll be singing If we get out and vote for our own We’ll be singing, we’ll be singing When we remember all we’ve sown To each according to their need From each according to our abilities Paying that wee … Continue reading A Song for Holyrood 26 – please share

4 Comments

John Swinney is most popular leader in Europe – not just fewer murders than Denmark but a more popular leader too

johnrobertson834

Above from YouGov (https://x.com/YouGov/status/2051609021153415554/photo/1) with John Swinney added by me in top position, based on this from Ipsos Source: https://www.ipsos.com/en-uk/scots-unimpressed-holyrood-campaigns-give-snp-edge Continue reading John Swinney is most popular leader in Europe – not just fewer murders than Denmark but a more popular leader too

Leave a comment

Delayed discharges – steady fall in beds ‘blocked’ for third month in a row, in NHS Scotland, much fewer proportionally than in Labour Wales

johnrobertson834

From Delayed discharges in NHS Scotland monthly Figures for March 2026, published today: The average number of beds occupied per day due to people delayed in hospital was 1,923 in March 2026. Compared to the previous three months, this is less than in February 2026 (1,984), January 2026 (1,973) and December 2025 (1,967). Source: https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/delayed-discharges-in-nhsscotland-monthly/delayed-discharges-in-nhs-scotland-monthly-figures-for-march-2026/main-points/ Comparisons are not straightforward but NHS Wales reported ‘cumulative days delayed around 57,500′ in March 2026. https://www.gov.wales/nhs-activity-and-performance-summary-february-and-march-2026-html Almost 2 000 per day so just higher than in Scotland, despite Wales only having around three fifths of the population. Continue reading Delayed discharges – steady fall in beds ‘blocked’ for third month in a row, in NHS Scotland, much fewer proportionally than in Labour Wales

Leave a comment

Scottish hospital operations climb almost to pre-pandemic levels with 98% efficiency and only 4 years after ‘the most extreme combined health and economic crisis in the last century’

johnrobertson834

From Cancelled planned operations Month ending 31 March 2026 published today, the above and: There were 28,454 operations planned to take place across NHS Scotland. This is 12.8% higher (+3,228) than the number planned in March 2025 (25,226). Over the course of the last 12 months, from April 2025 to March 2026 (307,272), there was a 7.2% increase (+20,756) compared to the previous 12 months (286,516). This reflects the post-Covid pandemic trend of generally increasing planned operations. The latest figure is the highest number of operations planned to take place in the post-pandemic period and [only] 3.3% lower (-961) than … Continue reading Scottish hospital operations climb almost to pre-pandemic levels with 98% efficiency and only 4 years after ‘the most extreme combined health and economic crisis in the last century’

1 Comment

By any measure (four of them) crime really is way down under the SNP yet they maintain 200 more police officers than the last Labour Government in 2007

johnrobertson834

From Police officer quarterly strength statistics: 31 March 2026 published tody: Scotland’s Chief Statistician has published statistics on Police Officer Quarterly Strength, which gives the number of full-time equivalent police officers employed by Police Scotland. The key findings of the statistics are: there were 16,430 full-time equivalent (FTE) police officers in Scotland on 31 March 2026 and this is an increase of 196 FTE police officers (+1.2%) from the 16,234 FTE police officers recorded at 31 March 2007. https://www.gov.scot/publications/police-officer-quarterly-strength-statistics-31-march-2026/ You can see in the graph above how overall crime in Scotland has plummeted since 2002 but, crucially, has continued to … Continue reading By any measure (four of them) crime really is way down under the SNP yet they maintain 200 more police officers than the last Labour Government in 2007