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8% of the population but nearly 16% of foreign direct investment and 10 years of leading all UK regions other than London but it’s not big news

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Professor John Robertson OBA From EY UK yesterday, the above graph, and: Scotland secures decade stretch as top UK FDI location outside London Despite 4.9% decrease in project numbers, Scotland’s share of UK projects grew to 15.8%, up from 14.4% in 2023, with a decade average of 11.5% Scotland is ranked sixth among the top ten FDI locations in Europe 25% of global investors planning to establish operations the UK next year expect to choose Scotland, second to London at 62% US remains Scotland’s top inbound with 37 projects in 2024, and 356 over the last decade Scotland secured 135 … Continue reading 8% of the population but nearly 16% of foreign direct investment and 10 years of leading all UK regions other than London but it’s not big news

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Another Orkney Saga….   62.4% identify as Scottish ONLY so expense isn’t important in deciding to stay in Scotland

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Professor John Robertson OBA From BBC Scotland today, the above and: Orkney Islands Council has accepted it must remain part of the UK – after spending two years exploring opportunities for greater autonomy. Officials looked into various models for “alternative governance”. These included changing their status in the UK or even potentially becoming a self-governing territory of Norway. A report to councillors concluded the proposals were too difficult and too expensive and members agreed to investigate a single authority model to reform how public services are delivered instead. Two years ago TuS reported on this and the following was written … Continue reading Another Orkney Saga….   62.4% identify as Scottish ONLY so expense isn’t important in deciding to stay in Scotland

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As 47 families complain about maternity care in another NHS England health trust, why Scottish media struggle to compare

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Professor John Robertson OBA From BBC Health today: Dozens more parents demand maternity care inquiry – When Tassie Weaver went into labour at full term, she thought she was hours away from holding her first child. But, by the time she was giving birth, she knew her son had died. Doctors had previously told Tassie to call her local maternity unit immediately when she went into labour, she says, because her high blood pressure and concerns about the baby’s growth meant she needed monitoring. But when she first phoned, despite being considered high risk, a midwife told her to stay … Continue reading As 47 families complain about maternity care in another NHS England health trust, why Scottish media struggle to compare

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The last word on the damaging misrepresentation of Scotland’s ferries – cheaper, safer, more inclusive and more popular than any other public service

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This first appeared in the June edition of Scots Independent Professor John Robertson OBA I’ve written on ferry services, globally, more times than I can remember in vain attempt to get the Herald and other media to stop publishing downright lies about CalMac which inevitably must be seeping into the public consciousness and, I feel sure, damaging the confidence of travellers from all over the UK and beyond with negative economic consequences for the islands. I’ve tried to put CalMac’s relatively minor problems into a global context, revealing the very real crises in affluent societies from British Columbia, through Washington … Continue reading The last word on the damaging misrepresentation of Scotland’s ferries – cheaper, safer, more inclusive and more popular than any other public service

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Starmer v Saville – As head of the Crown Prosecution Service how did Starmer avoid scrutiny on the decision not to prosecute Saville on the grounds of “insufficient evidence?”

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By JB Answer: He passed the blame onto the police and a prosecuting lawyer who was actually working for Starmer, him obviously being the lawyer’s boss at the time. Our not then Prime Minister, but head of the CPS said: “These were errors of judgement by experienced and committed police officers and a prosecuting lawyer acting in good faith and attempting to apply the correct principles.” Oh! Nearly forgot A spokesperson for the CPS said:  “in line with the established data retention policy”, none of the records for the decision not to charge Savile in 2009 were kept.” Keir Starmer … Continue reading Starmer v Saville – As head of the Crown Prosecution Service how did Starmer avoid scrutiny on the decision not to prosecute Saville on the grounds of “insufficient evidence?”

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The history of the Tories, Liberals and Labour in covering-up systematic child abuse by MPs that underlies the more recent inaction by government and by police on grooming gangs

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By JB Independent Inquiry Child Sex Abuse From the 2012 investigation  ‘Allegations of Child Sexual Abuse Linked to Westminster’. “This investigation concerns institutional responses to allegations of child sexual abuse and exploitation involving persons of public prominence who were associated with Westminster. Westminster is defined in this report as the centre of the United Kingdom’s government, government ministers and officials, as well as Parliament, its members and the political parties represented there. Seven topics were covered in evidence. These were: police misconduct, political parties, whips’ offices, the Paedophile Information Exchange, prosecutorial decisions, the honours system, and current safeguarding policies in … Continue reading The history of the Tories, Liberals and Labour in covering-up systematic child abuse by MPs that underlies the more recent inaction by government and by police on grooming gangs

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Increase in school leavers finding positive destination after school to more than 93% and far better than in England at only 79%*

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Professor John Robertson OBA From Summary statistics for follow-up leaver destinations, no. 7: 2025 edition published today: This statistical publication provides information on the follow-up destinations, nine months after the end of the school year, of 2023-24 school leavers from publicly funded secondary schools in Scotland. Key points 93.1 per cent of 2023-24 school leavers were in a positive follow-up destination. This is an increase from 92.8 per cent in 2022-23. The gap between school leavers from the most and least deprived areas of Scotland in positive destinations widened from 7.5 percentage points in 2022-23 to 8.3 percentage points in … Continue reading Increase in school leavers finding positive destination after school to more than 93% and far better than in England at only 79%*

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Child abuse – Labour and Conservative history of neglect, even sickening collusion – As ‘Scottish’ Labour MPs now attempt to help Starmer by calling for a pointless grooming inquiry here how the SNP’s Named Person Scheme which they u-turned on could have saved thousands in England

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Professor John Robertson OBA From Sky News, 11 years ago: The former head of a paedophile group said Harriet Harman “didn’t even try” to stop his organisation’s involvement with the civil liberties council she worked for. Tom O’Carroll, who was chairman of the now defunct Paedophile Information Exchange, said neither Ms Harman or her Labour colleagues wanted to “rock the boat” for fear it might damage their careers.1 Many younger readers will wonder what on earth can this be. The Paedophile Information Exchange (PIE) was a British pro-paedophile activist group, founded in October 1974 and officially disbanded in 1984. The group campaigned for the abolition … Continue reading Child abuse – Labour and Conservative history of neglect, even sickening collusion – As ‘Scottish’ Labour MPs now attempt to help Starmer by calling for a pointless grooming inquiry here how the SNP’s Named Person Scheme which they u-turned on could have saved thousands in England

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England facing the ‘Jaws of Death’ as water runs out in only 20 years now and Scotland’s 30 000 freshwater lochs replace oil, gas and renewables in the struggle for independence

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Professor John Robertson OBA Today, England’s water deficit is exciting headlines across the UK media but we saw similar warnings more than five years ago: In 2019, I wrote: From @ArchbishopStua1 (Who could he be teasing there?) today, this: Without significant action, the National Audit Office (NAO) forecasts that the total water demand will start to exceed supply in England no later than 2034. Be under no illusion English Privatised Water Companies need access to the water in Scotland. https://x.com/ArchbishopStua1/status/1846584824129298790 and from the Guardian in June 2023: Drought is on the verge of becoming the next pandemic https://www.theguardian.com/news/2023/jun/15/drought-is-on-the-verge-of-becoming-the-next-pandemic#:~:text=Without%20significant%20action%2C%20the%20National,England%20no%20later%20than%202034 In the … Continue reading England facing the ‘Jaws of Death’ as water runs out in only 20 years now and Scotland’s 30 000 freshwater lochs replace oil, gas and renewables in the struggle for independence

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BBC Scotland’s Environment Correspondent misleads or misunderstands on the relative dangers of two greenhouse gases

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Professor John Robertson OBA Thanks to Bob Lamont for alerting me to this, today Up to 100 truckloads of Scotland’s waste will be moved each day to England once a landfill ban comes in at the end of the year, the BBC’s Disclosure has been told. The Scottish government is banning “black bag” waste from being buried in landfill from 31 December but acknowledges that there are not currently enough incinerators to meet the extra demand. Such biodegradable waste breaks down to produce methane, a greenhouse gas that is around 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide. You see what … Continue reading BBC Scotland’s Environment Correspondent misleads or misunderstands on the relative dangers of two greenhouse gases