Scottish Labour campaign in care home that was rated ‘weak’ or only ‘adequate’ pre-deadly pandemic
‘Family-run‘, of course, means private and for-profit. I’m guessing the Sarwar’s know the owners but their wee researchers should have checked them out first. The Applecross Nursing Home in Glasgow was inspected twice, unannounced in January and then in June 2019, only 8 months before the Covid pandemic scythed tragically through the population of care homes. On the first occasion, care in key areas was ‘weak‘ and even by the second they were just ‘adequate.‘ 8 died there from Covid, during the pandemic. Clearly a good model for what Labour could do. Sources: https://www.careinspectorate.com/index.php/site-search https://www.copfs.gov.uk/media/2evhqgai/cdit-care-home-deaths-foi-18-11-22.xlsx Continue reading Scottish Labour campaign in care home that was rated ‘weak’ or only ‘adequate’ pre-deadly pandemic
Attacks on ambulance staff far less common in Scotland
Scotland’s media are making much of this line today: Ambulance workers in Scotland suffered almost 800 [773] attacks in the line of duty over the last five years, according to the GMB. That’s the BBC Scotland wording, using that well-worn technique of adding figures up over several years to get a big headline number. I’m surprised they didn’t keep going to get ‘Over One Thousand….’ We hear that the number went up last year but just what it was before that, is not reported. Might the trend be down, like the Alex Cole-Hamilton/Reporting Scotland alcohol baby deaths one a few … Continue reading Attacks on ambulance staff far less common in Scotland
Schools: Most disadvantaged attainment level more than doubles in only 12 years
I’ve been mulling this one over for some time, as you can see from the above. Prof Lindsay Paterson, a mere statistician with no meaningful experience in school-level education in Scotland, but the regular Union ‘rentagob‘ to talk it down for English audiences, has latched onto the simple figures on ‘international comparison’ and ‘education inequality’ as his selling points to attract MSM editors. Both are meaningless. Critics, especially opposition politicians on the make and academics keen to impress them, rather than struggle with the more difficult task of impressing their peers with deeper understanding of how learning takes place, have … Continue reading Schools: Most disadvantaged attainment level more than doubles in only 12 years
Keeping the ferries foetid fact-free fourth-estate feeding frenzy narrative going forever folks
The ‘Green minister spent our money wastefully‘ theme is being thoroughly milked as BBC Scotland keeps it going for another day, today. Well down the page after the Tories have had their platformed rant, they do tell some of the facts but by then the damage is done. The facts, clarified here THREE WEEKS AGO: BBC Scotland is reporting this today [May 13] as: Green minister Lorna Slater criticised for using private ferry The report leads off with an extended set of 12 statements from the Tories and Labour before the locals in the form of a representative of the … Continue reading Keeping the ferries foetid fact-free fourth-estate feeding frenzy narrative going forever folks
‘The slipperiness of Labour that we in Scotland know so well’
stewartb I understand that the present Welsh Government wishes to have police and justice devolved to Wales. I also understand that the two main parties in Westminster – those that take turns to rule over all of us – will NOT agree to this. On 5 December 2022, the BBC News website had this headline: ‘Westminster to keep Welsh police and justice powers under Labour plans.’ The BBC reported on the recommendations of Gordon Brown’s ‘commission’ on reforming the UK constitution: it ‘recommended youth justice and probation be handed to ministers in Cardiff’. The (no doubt selective) reporting in the … Continue reading ‘The slipperiness of Labour that we in Scotland know so well’
New Research finds BBC Scotland is twice as likely to politicise negative reporting, to platform opposition voices and to ‘accuse’ the devolved government.
A comparative study of state media reporting in two small, devolved nations – Wales and Scotland Dr John W Robertson Retired Professor & Chair of Faculty Research Ethics 2nd June 2023 Abstract A four-week survey [8 May – 2 June 2023] of reporting by BBC Scotland and BBC Wales gathered objective data on fifteen measures, including references to the devolved government within reports and reports of ministers or their party being causally linked to the content. Twenty episodes and 140 reports from both BBC Scotland and BBC Wales, at around 06:30am, Monday to Friday inclusive, were transcribed and items codified, … Continue reading New Research finds BBC Scotland is twice as likely to politicise negative reporting, to platform opposition voices and to ‘accuse’ the devolved government.
Russia invaded Ukraine and my next door neighbour’s dog died ‘as I was waiting for treatment!’
I didn’t think it was possible for the Scotsman to get under yesterday’s report on waiting times, focusing on those waiting two years with non-life-threatening conditions and ignoring Scotland’s far superior performance in treating, within 18 weeks, those at real risk of death. They have, with the above, done it. You can read the full data at: https://democratonline.net/2023/06/01/120444/ There are more people dying while still on waiting lists for treatment. Once more, this would be a good one for a P7 class project. There is no evidence that any of them died because they are still on a waiting list. … Continue reading Russia invaded Ukraine and my next door neighbour’s dog died ‘as I was waiting for treatment!’
Why are we telling you about rail strikes not affecting you now?
Reporting Scotland first thing this morning acting like a public service broadcaster paid for by its viewers. I’d say it’s a first after a long time not telling us that nurse or rail strikes were England-only. On Wednesday 31 May, as the strikes were announced, they didn’t tell us and I did this: I doubt they follow TuS or would be affected by it, so what’s going on? On February 2023, on the much more serious matter of not informing the elderly and vulnerable that health strikes would not affect Scots, I wrote to BBC Complaints with: Since the beginning … Continue reading Why are we telling you about rail strikes not affecting you now?
How many more difficult days were there for SNP’s Humza Yousaf?
On the 6th April, BBC Scotland had this: How many more difficult days for SNP’s Humza Yousaf? over a picture of the new FM looking troubled. Reports of his inability to lead were everywhere in a media feeding frenzy. Nearly two months later, it’s all quiet. In polls, support for independence has climbed back to a range from around 44% to over 50% as it was in early January and support for the SNP has climbed back to the low 40s, as it was before he was elected. In April, he was characterised by the Times as ‘incompetent and weak’ … Continue reading How many more difficult days were there for SNP’s Humza Yousaf?
SNP policies prevent thousands of abortions.
BBC Scotland is reporting today: A record number of abortions in Scotland last year may have been driven by cost of living worries, a charity has said. Figures released by Public Health Scotland showed there were 16,584 terminations in 2022, a 19% increase. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-65766795 The 2022 abortion rate for England & Wales will not be published by the ONS until January 2024, but in 2021 there were 214,256 cases. In Scotland in 2021, the figure was 13 758. With 11 times the population and all other things being equal, you might expect England & Wales to have around 151 000 cases … Continue reading SNP policies prevent thousands of abortions.
