On September 29, Scotland’s Covid 19 infection rate fell below that of the UK (essentially the same as the rate in England) and has remained lower for two weeks now. In the period when Scotland’s rate was higher, it was big news for our MSM but, in the last two weeks, they have lost interest. Lisa Summers waits, cobra-like, for the happy day when they rise above the UK level again. Continue reading Scotland’s Covid 19 infection rate below UK for two weeks now

Why is BBC news coverage so different in Scotland? – the revealing case of A&E waiting times performance By stewartb I was in two minds about writing this. After all, the release of NHS A&E waiting time statistics is a regular occurrence – weekly in Scotland, monthly in England. And don’t we know about the weekly releases from NHS Scotland – especially those alert to BBC Scotland’s news! However, 13 October sees the release of the latest A&E performance statistics for NHS England (for the month of September) and they are record breaking – for the wrong reasons! Newsworthy? I’ll … Continue reading NHS England: “Lowest reported performance since collection began”

In September, NHS England’s A&E departments saw only 56.9% of patients in 4 hours. In Barking, Havering And Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust, only 31.8% were seen in 4 hours. This is third-world performance. The September monthly figure for NHS Scotland has not been published yet but, from the weekly data, it is 65% seen within 4 hours. No Scottish board fell below 55%. 65% is 14.23% better than 56.9%. 14% is a significant difference. Several someones are doing something better. Sources: https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/nhs-performs-weekly-update-of-emergency-department-activity-and-waiting-time-statistics/nhs-performs-weekly-update-of-emergency-department-activity-and-waiting-time-statistics-week-ending-2-october-2022/ https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ae-waiting-times-and-activity/ae-attendances-and-emergency-admissions-2022-23/ Continue reading NHS Scotland emergency services 14% better than NHS England

Today BBC Scotland, reports: Scotland generates record amount of renewable electricity https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-63229402 They tell us how much – “7,358 gigawatt hours (GWh)” – was produced in just April, May and June 2022, but don’t tell us what percentage of total demand was met by that 3 month figure. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-63229402 Back in 2020, they told us: Renewables met 97% of Scotland’s electricity demand in 2020 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-56530424 As you can see they did tell us the percentage of demand met over the whole year but didn’t mention how many GWh. For the same 2nd quarter in 2020, it was: 5 789 GWh … Continue reading Scotland meets 123% of its own demand and 32% of UK demand from renewable electricity

Back in September 2022, BBC Scotland was broadcasting on behalf of the landlords to undermine the SNP rent freeze plan. Notice the lack of inverted commas around ‘headline-grabbing ploy?’ At the time, the Guardian had a better perspective: Selling up and raising rents: how landlords are cashing in and exacerbating the cost of living crisis https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/aug/31/britain-tenants-renters-landlords-profit So how big is the sell-up? Timothy Douglas, Propertymark’s Head of Policy and Campaigns, has  given evidence to the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee of the Scottish Parliament warning of the impact of proposed legislation to limit rent increases and evictions on the … Continue reading Rent freeze is not causing the accommodation problems as landlords fail to sell

NHS England only publishes annual data on 12 hour waits in A&E. Emergency doctors in England have called for transparency on this. NHS Scotland does them weekly and the Scottish Cons love to feast on them. So, how do the Scottish 12 hour wait data compare with the same from NHS England? Well, thanks to Telegraph we can see: In March 2022, 4 128 patients spent more than 12 hours in a Scottish A&E department. https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/ae-activity-and-waiting-times/ae-activity-and-waiting-times-month-ending-31-march-2022/ England has 10 times the population so might be expected to have had 41 280 waiting for 12 hours but actually had 138 305, … Continue reading THREE TIMES as many spend more than 12 hours in English A&E departments

Remind me, which party was in government for those years? Oh, yes, it was the Conservatives with their austerity policies. From the BMJ today: Results Changes in trends were observed for both men and women, especially for those living in the 20% most deprived areas. In those areas, mortality increased between 2010/2012 and 2017/2019 among women but not men. Break points in trends occurred at similar time points. Approximately 335 000 more deaths occurred between 2012 and 2019 than was expected based on previous trends, with the excess greater among men. https://jech.bmj.com/content/early/2022/09/26/jech-2022-219645 Women are statistically significantly less likely to vote for the … Continue reading “335 000 more deaths occurred between 2012 and 2019 than was expected”

By Alasdair Galloway You might remember a couple of things I have done for Talking Up Scotland in the last few weeks and months, forecasting doom and catastrophe The most recent one was “The Dark Night Part 2”, written in August (https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2022/08/11/the-dark-night-part-2/). As my late mother used to say “it’s being so cheerful as keeps you going” (with thanks to Mona Lott from ITMA). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_That_Man_Again This was driven by a forecast by Cornwell Insight that the energy price cap come January would be £4200, and explored the consequences of this. Well of course, the price cap is now limited to … Continue reading From Mona Lott

Today the Labour First minister of Wales attacks a health board. The state of Wales’ flagship hospital is “absolutely unacceptable”, the first minister has said. An unannounced inspection of emergency and assessment units at Cardiff’s University Hospital of Wales (UHW) found dirty sinks, low morale, and people sitting on bins. Mark Drakeford said the pressure on the NHS does “not excuse” the Cardiff and Vale University Health Board. The board says it has fully accepted the report’s findings. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-63214751 Nowhere does he take any responsibility not does the anyone say he should. Is that normal? You know that kind of ‘normal’ … Continue reading Are only Scottish health secretaries responsible for anything?

From the Scottish Government today: Recruitment to Scotland’s ambulance service has hit a record high, helping to boost the service this winter.   A record 540 paramedics, ambulance drivers, call handlers, and clinicians have been employed in the last year. This is driven by a £45 million funding boost announced as part of last week’s NHS winter resilience plan, which will ensure the NHS is working as efficiently as possible. The increase in staff numbers is already having a tangible impact on response times – with 99% of all serious incidents, such as heart attacks, being dealt with in under … Continue reading 540 paramedics, ambulance drivers, call handlers, and clinicians but it’s never enough