The Herald on Sunday this morning goes with the same propaganda as the Scottish Daily Mail, ignoring the clear evidence from the BBC /ONS that Scotland is actually ahead of the curve on vaccine rollout: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-55573436 The map above is only two days old and published by the BBC based on the ONS original. They knew that but still chose a Tory minister’s lie instead. Do not buy that rag. Continue reading Herald confirms gutter press status with vaccine lies

On BBC Politics Scotland this morning, Professor Stephen Reicher was asked: Is (sic) there any data that is (sic) specific to Scotland on the self isolation figures? And do you think governments as a whole need to be doing a lot more to help people to comply with self-isolation? He didn’t know of any data that are specific to Scotland and that are evidence of greater compliance but I do: Profs Reicher, Bauld and Sridhar have been telling us for months that the Scottish Government has been better at communicating its decisions and that better communication leads to greater confidence … Continue reading Top psychologist can’t draw the obvious conclusion about better compliance in Scotland

The reality of the situation for Scottish exporters post-Brexit is clear in this tweet: BBC Reporting Scotland, formerly obsessed with trips to Peterhead to interview angry fishermen, gave us a few seconds late in the show, including a defence by Michael Gove. The BBC Scotland website offers us a classic piece of evasion and deflection to protect the UK Government from criticism. I’ve highlighted key words, phrases and omissions: The Scottish Seafood Association says exports to the EU are being hit by “red tape” delays in Scotland and France. It claims up to 25 trucks were backlogged for clearance due … Continue reading State broadcaster throws word-safety net around state

And, of course, the truth: Is there a Welsh Daily Mail? Continue reading Read oll abaht it! Get yo pwopagehndah eyah yoo ficko!

According to the Guardian, based on figures for England from the BMA, there are 46 000 NHS staff absent with Covid-19 ‘putting the health service in crisis.’ There were repeated headline warnings that the same ‘could’ happen in Scotland, only two weeks ago: Staff absence rates are an objective measure of stress within a system like the NHS: In the week to 5th January 2021, a total of 2 901 staff were absent due to Covid-19, down for a recent peak of 3 237 in the week to 17th November 2020. In the same period, the number of Covid-19 patients … Continue reading Better-staffed NHS Scotland revealing few resilience issues

According BBC Scotland, there are now 1 596 patients in Scottish hospitals with a Covid infection. BBC England and BBC UK have no updates but according to NHS England, there are 29 462 cases in English hospitals not counting those transferred from Cumbria to Dumfries in the last few days, due to resilience issues. https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2021/01/COVID-19-daily-admissions-and-beds-20210109.xlsx England has 10 times the population of Scotland but, as of today, approaching 20 times the number of Covid cases in hospitals, threatening some with becoming overwhelmed. The Prime Minister has not been accused of betraying the people of England, by Keir Starmer or by … Continue reading COVID UPDATE: Hospital numbers at new record high of half the rate in England

In the Herald today: CARE home residents are facing monthly fee rises of up to £240 this year with private providers citing Covid-related costs and “Brexit uncertainty” for inflation-busting increases. Some facts to consider when reacting to this: Outbreaks: 45.2% of the 275 privately-owned homes had an outbreak compared to 27.9% of the 41 local authority and 12.5% of the 32 voluntary homes. 90% of the largest 46 homes, with more than 90 residents, had outbreaks. That all of these are owned by large corporations is not reported in the data but given what we know about the demand for … Continue reading Pay more for less care?

In the Herald today, regular critic of all the SNP have done in education, Prof Lindsay Paterson claims: The proportion of Scottish school leavers securing at least one pass at Higher or equivalent has fallen in the vast majority of council areas, sparking warnings that decades long progress in improving attainment has “stalled”. Analysis of data covering the 10-year period to 2018/19 suggests the percentage of school leavers with at least one pass at Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework level 6 or better – which includes Highers and typically provides the standard for progression to university – has been flatlining since … Continue reading Prof Paterson is wrong again and again

From Helen McArdle this morning: MASS immunisation against Covid is underway in Indonesia. But unlike the UK, the south-east Asian republic is prioritising working age adults of 18 to 59 with the goal of achieving herd immunity faster and rebooting the economy. What follows, once more misses the bleeding obvious: This is Indonesia remember? For starters: Reports by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the United States Department of State highlighted the most common human rights issues in Indonesia, namely the situation in Western New Guinea region, the treatment of religious, gender and sexual minorities, sexual and reproductive rights, the rights of women, children, LGBT, and the … Continue reading Because they have even more insensitive leaders than the UK does?

After climbing to 2 622 new cases on the 31st December, the infection level has only once been higher at 2 649 yesterday, in the last 8 days. The 7 day average has been pretty much the same for four days. I know the death and hospitalisation rates are disturbing but the flattening of the infection rate and the vaccines mean they will fall. The infection level in England and Wales is more than two times higher. Once again, I think you can trust people. Continue reading It might be high but it’s definitley flat