Ferry death scandal as 7 dead in US state with more than twice per head Scotland’s GDP

By Professor John Robertson OBA From Forum Daily yesterday: At least 7 dead after Georgia ferry dock collapses – Eight people were taken to hospitals, at least six of them with serious injuries, and crews from the U.S. Coast Guard, McIntosh County Fire Department and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources were pulling victims and survivors from the water, said Tyler Jones, a spokesman for Natural Resources. The agency operates a marina and ferries between the island and the mainland. The jetty’s gangway collapsed, sending people into the water, Jones said. A team of engineers and construction experts arrived on the … Continue reading Ferry death scandal as 7 dead in US state with more than twice per head Scotland’s GDP

SNP’s impressive record on crime as general clear-up rate improves – homicide clear-up rate is 107%

By Professor John Robertson The ‘Scottish’ Daily Mail today, front page, has SNP’s pitiful record on crime exposed, based on clear-up rates supposedly ‘plummeting‘. Mystifying. From the Scottish Government in January 2024 (24/25 rates not out yet, obviously), the above trend graph and: In 2023-24 the clear up rate was 54.1%, up from 53.3% in 2022-23 and back to a similar level seen in 2021-22. The large decrease seen between 2020-21 and 2021-22 likely reflected the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the types of crime recorded, with the volume of those crimes that have relatively lower clear up rates falling more sharply … Continue reading SNP’s impressive record on crime as general clear-up rate improves – homicide clear-up rate is 107%

A tragic rail death in Wales is not linked to the Welsh or UK Government but 4 years ago in Stonehaven, BBC Scotland’s James Cook had other plans

By Professor John Robertson There’s not a mention of the Welsh Transport Secretary nor of the UK Transport minister in this BBC Wales account of a tragic death on the railways, they share responsibility for. But on BBC Scotland, in August 2020: On BBC Scotland’s The Nine last night, James Cook, repeatedly interrupted the Scottish Transport Secretary, Michael Matheson to say: Well, exactly! Well, that’s rather the point! Isn’t it. We hear that are these problems. In 2014, a report specifically mentioned this exact area being greatly affected by earthslips. A report last month warned that there had been over six times more … Continue reading A tragic rail death in Wales is not linked to the Welsh or UK Government but 4 years ago in Stonehaven, BBC Scotland’s James Cook had other plans

Not climate change this time – Brechin’s flood misery in 2023 and the next time can be blamed on private landowners burning grouse moors upstream

By Professor John Robertson BBC Reporting Scotland this morning and all day today are back on the October 2023 Storm Babet and the flood damage to Brechin, with locals complaining of a ‘ghost town‘ and an implied accusation of the Scottish Government not having done enough to prevent the floods in the first place or to help locals in the subsequent year. There is only a simple acceptance here of climate change and the need for more flood defences, to stay in the same place. There is no mention of research suggesting another, more scientific and forensic explanation and an identifying … Continue reading Not climate change this time – Brechin’s flood misery in 2023 and the next time can be blamed on private landowners burning grouse moors upstream

Attacks on emergency workers must be zero-level but we need to know the facts

By Professor John Robertson BBC Reporting Scotland is today, all day, reporting of attacks against emergency services staff. The only acceptable level is, of course, zero and campaigns to get there are important but so are trend data to enable us to see if we’re getting there or getting worse. They’re easily got but they don’t fit the agenda. First, for firefighters, from 2015/16 to 2023/24, incidents of physical abuse have fallen from 13 to 1 (!), verbal abuse from 37 to 16. Incidents resulting in injuries have fallen to 1 in 2023/24 and were as high as 5 and 7 … Continue reading Attacks on emergency workers must be zero-level but we need to know the facts

Glasgow hospital deaths inquiry – research says most bacteria are already present in patients and are common in visitors, statistics do not reveal a death spike, these hospitals are cleaner and have the same infection rates as others in Scotland

By Professor John Robertson BBC Reporting Scotland’s Lisa Summers is today, all day, milking the Glasgow hospital deaths being investigated by an inquiry, but then relying heavily on the concerns of relatives who understandably looking for answers they’d be more comfortable with and, dare I say, opportunities to take legal action against the NHS. As always, and across ‘our’ MSM, there is only personalised, sensationalised and tragically simplified comment, no hard evidence such as: First, infections after surgery are more likely due to bacteria already on your skin than from microbes in the hospital  Most health care-associated infections are caused by previously harmless … Continue reading Glasgow hospital deaths inquiry – research says most bacteria are already present in patients and are common in visitors, statistics do not reveal a death spike, these hospitals are cleaner and have the same infection rates as others in Scotland

SNP critic in the Times hides the fact that she is on the Scottish Labour executive committee to mislead on pay settlements

In the Times today: Health workers ‘driven out by SNP’s financial incompetence’ – The Scottish government has left the NHS under severe strain by budgeting for unrealistically low pay settlements, says Louise Gilmour of the GMB union Not revealed, this: What has the SNP Scottish Government settled on? The Scottish Government’s pay settlement for NHS staff on Agenda for Change contracts for 2024-25 is a 5.5% pay increase, effective from April 1, 2024. What has the Labour UK Government settled on? The Labour government has agreed to a 5.5% pay increase for NHS staff in England, effective from April 1, 2024. Sources: … Continue reading SNP critic in the Times hides the fact that she is on the Scottish Labour executive committee to mislead on pay settlements

Aberfan – a warning from history of how the Labour betrayal of working communities in 1966 will be repeated by Starmer before 2026 when you can be sure to never vote for them

By Professor John Robertson Today, on the 58th anniversary of the Aberfan Disaster when 144 died in a mining tip landslide, Richie Venton of the Scottish Socialist Party has written: Starmer last week declared to the assembled profiteers at his Investment Conference that the Labour government will “rip up red tape” to “unleash growth”. As I’ve written elsewhere, so-called ‘red tape’ is better than red bandages. But in the South Wales pit village of ABERFAN, the man-made disaster didn’t mean injuries, but mass death. In writing the above, Venton directs us to his 2016 extensive account of the disaster which includes … Continue reading Aberfan – a warning from history of how the Labour betrayal of working communities in 1966 will be repeated by Starmer before 2026 when you can be sure to never vote for them

£1.3 million in police funding to fight drug gangs frittered away on investigating SNP’s vired finances

From millsjames1949 today: Just a thought , but perhaps some of the many , many hours devoted to the SNP Financegate investigation could have been better spent on serious criminal activity. Just so. As of February 2024, Police Scotland had spent over an estimated £1.3 million on the investigation into SNP finances, according to a Freedom of Information release.1 Police Scotland serves a population of 5.4 million. The Met in London serves 9 million and has just invested £9 million to tackle the plague of County Lines drug gangs.2 So, pro rata, Police Scotland might need to spend around £5 million to … Continue reading £1.3 million in police funding to fight drug gangs frittered away on investigating SNP’s vired finances

Ferries cannot be seen coping with high seas for immense £66 billion high pile of HS2 waste on BBC Scotland

By Anonymous Breaking news from a broken media aka the BBC Website reporting on the Storm where they could just not stop themselves from including Ferries in the equation of impacted services cancelled because of the Storm. “Ferry operator CalMac cancelled almost all of its Sunday sailings, cutting off services to the islands including Arran, Bute, Lewis and Harris” This obsession via the BBC in Scotland with the ferries in Scotland aka ‘the worst Ferries in the world’, allegedly , and all from Scotland only , apparently. (according to the BBC that is). A wee storm was it ( amber and yellow weather warnings) and still they cancel their Ferry services in Scotland (would … Continue reading Ferries cannot be seen coping with high seas for immense £66 billion high pile of HS2 waste on BBC Scotland