The UK 7 day average infection level is 677, so around 625 for England but climbing. The 7 day average for Scotland is 14.6 and falling to 3 in the last 24 hours. England, population is 10 times larger than Scotland so, all things being equal would have 30 cases but has, today 616! Professor Sridhar explains what we must do now to preserve this achievement Continue reading Covid infection level in England more than 200 times higher than Scotland and 20 times higher per head of population

In marked contrast with Professor Sridhar helping to shape and to disseminate Scotland’s zero tolerance approach to the virus, Professor Bobby Duffy and PA Director, Kelly Beaver of King’s College London are conspicuously silent on the diverging strategies in the four parts of the ‘UK’ that for them is just England. My attention was drawn to this in an email today: Bill makes the points clearly and has promised to share any response with us. When you see the latest data, you feel sure Prof Duffy must know of this: Continue reading Are King’s College researchers uncomfortable with Scotland’s covid-19 success?

On tonight at 10.45pm, BBC Scotland’s troubled Disclosure series investigates the deaths in Scottish care homes. Based on this quite extensive (1 400 words) taster on the website it seems there will be several fundamental flaws. First, the methodology is a big problem. Only 3 out of Scotland’s more than 1 100 care homes feature in a study based heavily on anecdotal evidence from only 3 relatives. We are not told how these 3 were selected. The shadow of Labour’s Monica Lennon is there in the background as a likely source. Second, all 3 care homes were privately owned yet … Continue reading ALERT: BBC Scotland Disclosure tonight on care homes likely to miss the point

I wrote yesterday, to Donalda MacKinnon, outgoing but still in Director of BBC Scotland, to complain about the Good Morning Scotland [GMS] broadcasts of 25th and 26th July 2020: Tuesday 27th July 2020 I write directly, to make three complaints of serious breaches of the BBC editorial guidelines, in two broadcasts. The BBC online complaints system allows neither the capacity nor the speed of response required by these serious and extensive matters. a) GMS 25th July The programme on 25th July featured an interview with Ben Nimmo of ‘Graphica’ at approximately 9.40am presented as an authority on Russian “interference” in … Continue reading From Russia with Leask: Good Morning Scotland and Interference after 2014

As Scotland’s 7 day average for new covid infections per day falls to 14.6 and England’s sits stubbornly at more than 700 [5 times higher per head of population], Professor Sridhar has drawn our attention to the appalling official acceptance, on 20th May, of a figure of 1 000, approved by the UK Government’s Joint Biosecurity Centre. She tweeted today: The willingness to accept this level of infection with the death, trauma and longer-term suffering it brings, reveals the callous indifference of a ruling elite confident that the poor, the weak, and the disabled will suffer most. The contrast with … Continue reading SHOCK: UK Government comfortable with 1 000 new covid cases per day

Reporting Scotland staff will be drooling as they watch their big pals get into this topic as the risk of covid death is shown to be correlated with obesity. Watch their space. Fatter together! Scotland is not mentioned in the above report but in a linked one, the ever unreliable Nick Triggle writes: England is not alone: It goes without saying that obesity is not an England-only problem. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have almost identical levels. It’s not true. Research from London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine says otherwise and credits the Scottish Government for some of the improvements. … Continue reading Fatter Together: How long before Reporting Scotland just have to remind us ‘we are overweight too?’

In February, Mark Smith told us: ‘I call up some teachers and parents and ask them if they’ve seen the new report on the Higher results. Yes, they’ve seen it, and no, they’re not surprised. They tell me about class sizes, and staff shortages, and the effect it’s all having on the kids. But they also tell me something interesting about how it might impact on the Scottish elections. My advice to the Government would be: sit up and pay attention because this is definitely going to affect you.’ https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/18256399.mark-smith-scotlands-parents-teachers-tell-us-snps-chances-2021/ ‘I call up some teachers and parents’ You have to … Continue reading Scotland: Mark Smith’s reaction to the Johnson visit tells what he is really like

Brenda Steele regularly sends me far more links to stuff than I can actually use as posts but it’s all of interest to any who follow the blog. Here’s today’s stuff:  typical Tories  – like WM they don’t do their homework. If we ever let them into Government, they will be exactly like BoJo&Co.I see a few Tories have messaged me asking me to release the data behind quarantine decisions. I’d love to, it is UK Govt data so I can’t release it but I wrote to the UK Govt urging them to the publish the data. Still awaiting a … Continue reading The Truffle Hound sniffs out tasty morsels for Indy-supporters!

From the BBC today: In the UK, lobby reporters currently receive twice daily briefings from No 10, but they are not broadcast. Instead, Downing Street is planning to pilot daily televised press briefings from October, modelled on US briefings from the White House. The daily coronavirus briefings – which took place for three months up until the end of June – attracted large TV audiences. No 10 hopes a more permanent arrangement would help the government get its message across, while increasing engagement with the public. The Commons Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Labour (:-)), is concerned about this threat to … Continue reading Scottish Tories silent on threat to UK democracy

In the Herald today, Tom Gordon writes of the Lib Dem leader’s call that the Electoral Commission should deny the new Alliance for Independence (AFI) party a place in the next Holyrood election: Former SNP MSP Dave Thompson explained the strategy: Every regional list vote for the SNP will have no impact – it will achieve nothing. Whereas, if a lot of these votes came to AFI, we can garner a lot of MSPs. We are looking at anything between eight and 24 MSPs. I’m not sure how former members of a party can still be a ‘faction’ within it and … Continue reading Lib Dems in full panic mode?