By sam: The research, as it makes clear, has not yet been peer reviewed.These are the conclusions it makes. https://virological.org/t/preliminary-analysis-of-sars-cov-2-importation-establishment-of-uk-transmission-lineages/507 “The key conclusions of our analysis are as follows: The UK epidemic comprises a very large number of importations due to inbound international travel2. We detect 1356 independently-introduced transmission lineages, however, we expect this number to be an under-estimate. The speed of detection of UK transmission lineages via genome sequencing has increased through time. Many UK transmission lineages now appear to be very rare or extinct, as they have not been detected by genome sequencing for >4 weeks. The rate … Continue reading The Conservative Government’s failure to control airport arrivals caused 100% of Scotland’s covid-19 deaths

In the Aberdeen Evening Express, this morning (?), we read: Mistakes were made by the Scottish Government from the start of the coronavirus outbreak, the leader of the Scottish Tories has said. Jackson Carlaw’s comments come in the same week as a report from academics at Glasgow, Edinburgh and St Andrews universities suggests that “a lack of robust measures” to stop travellers from other countries entering Scotland may have “accelerated the course of the outbreak”. Those of you already wide awake when you read this will have spotted at least two things. First, Carlaw is correct in that the Scottish … Continue reading SHOCK: Jackson Carlaw ‘correct!’

This drawn to my attention by Brenda Steele. Maurice Smith, editor of the supposed pro-Independence Newsnet.scot, wrote in The New European, on the 12th, to regurgitate the same theory we’ve seen from Sarah Smith, Macwhirter, Maclelland, the FT, the Guardian and others, that the Scottish Government’s superior handling of the Covid-19 crisis is a con job. The story opens with: The Scottish first minister is considered to have had a ‘good crisis’ yet is facing many of the same criticisms as Boris Johnson. She is, but only from opposition politicians and media sympathisers. Experts like professors Sridhar and Bauld and … Continue reading Why is Newsnet.scot editor peddling discredited anti-Sturgeon stories

Deficient understanding, lack of communication, ‘excluded’ and an ‘afterthought’ By stewartb: The Institute for Government is “the leading think tank working to make government more effective”. It has a board consisting of 11 members: two lords, two baronesses, five knights and two other members without ‘gongs’ (yet) but who play senior roles in the civil service. It is a think tank that may be politically neutral but it is tightly wedded to the British Establishment. This makes the conclusions in its recent report on the workings of Westminster government during the Brexit process all the more revealing and notable. Source: Jack … Continue reading New revelations – Westminster’s attitude to devolution laid bare

Last night on BBC 1 Sarah Smith joined the campaign to suggest that all is not well under the alleged veneer of the Scottish Government’s competence. Studiously ignoring the facts: Deaths three times higher in England in last week: https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2020/06/11/calls-for-border-controls-as-the-r-number-falls-again-in-scotland-but-potentially-infected-hordes-are-crossing-from-worst-infected-areas/ Infection rate 42% higher in England: https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2020/06/11/calls-for-border-controls-as-the-r-number-falls-again-in-scotland-but-potentially-infected-hordes-are-crossing-from-worst-infected-areas/ Care home deaths 30% higher in England: https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2020/06/13/good-morning-scotland-still-lets-alister-jack-lie-bare-faced-to-its-shrinking-audience-about-care-home-deaths-being-double-in-scotland/ R number lower in Scotland than all parts of England: https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2020/06/11/calls-for-border-controls-as-the-r-number-falls-again-in-scotland-but-potentially-infected-hordes-are-crossing-from-worst-infected-areas/ Smith manages to find some care home owners to report anxiety about lack of staff testing. In this campaign based on testing, Smith and those feeding her such as Carlaw are deliberately ignoring the … Continue reading With their Nike scare story now debunked BBC Scotland push the Tory care home testing myth

After three full polls from YouGov and Opinium with the SNP support at 54%, this smaller (103) Ipsos MORI sub-poll, for 5th to 10th June, gives them 58% with both Labour and Cons at 19%. Support for the the performance of the PM, at 27% in Scotland, is just over half that of other parts and for Keir Starmer at 38%, is still the lowest by 10%. https://www.ipsos.com/ipsos-mori/en-uk/starmer-achieves-best-satisfaction-ratings-leader-opposition-blair Continue reading New sub-poll puts SNP at 58%

BBC Scotland had nothing to say about this momentous vote. It was left to the Independent (paper sales zero in Scotland) to tell us: Scottish Parliament votes for immediate suspension of tear gas, rubber bullet and riot shield exports to US A successful motion, which was backed by 52 votes to 0 with 11 abstentions, says the parliament “stands in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and considers that the UK government must immediately suspend all export licences for tear gas, rubber bullets and riot gear to the US”. Oooh, I wonder who the 11 abstentions were? There are … Continue reading Scottish Parliament acts to make us all proud but Scotland’s NoMedia say nah black lives don’t matter THAT much!

The Scottish MSM are all over this story which, of course, may actually refer to good news. Perhaps, more people are feeling confident enough to come forward and report hate crimes. Perhaps police are improving their identification and recording of hate crime offences. Also, the figures will include historic cases where, again, victims have become empowered by recent cultural shifts to come forward. See this from galop: What do police data mean?There are many factors that prevent reporting statistics from giving a ‘true’ picture of hate crime. One of the biggest is under-reporting. To give some context, an estimated 278,000 … Continue reading Hate crime in Scotland remains far lower than in non-Scottish parts

Only 8% of Scots would use Radio Scotland as a source for news: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0027/157914/uk-news-consumption-2019-report.pdf In the light of that you might wonder why I’m bothering with this. I do too. Anyhow, yesterday, BBC Good Morning Scotland let the Governor General for the Scotland colony to say: In care homes where there’s been a disaster in Scotland at double the death rate of anywhere else in the UK. A bare-faced lie but they didn’t challenge it at all so it’s simply propaganda rather than the news. Here’s the truth about care home deaths: Data from research by LSE, reported on May … Continue reading Good Morning Scotland still lets Alister Jack lie bare-faced to it’s shrinking audience about care home deaths being DOUBLE in Scotland

In a BBC Devon report yesterday: A woman who said goodbye to her dying father through a care home window is suing the government over his death. Dr Cathy Gardner’s father, Michael Gibson, 88, died of probable Covid-19 related causes on 3 April. Her case, which accuses the government of unlawfully exposing thousands of care home residents to serious harm, will be filed at the High Court today. The Department for Health and Social Care said it could not comment on ongoing legal proceedings…..The government has faced criticism for policies allowing patients to be discharged from hospitals into care homes … Continue reading Why is one woman suing the English Government and not the care home owners?