Labour’s price freeze being trumpeted merely keeps rail travellers paying far more in England than in Scotland
Professor John Robertson OBA From BBC Business today: Rail fares in England next year are to be frozen for the first time in 30 years, the government has announced. The freeze until March 2027 will apply to regulated fares, which includes season tickets and off-peak returns. Scotland only gets a mention to remind us that the freeze only applies in England but there’s no mention that the Scottish Government scrapped peak rail fares in September 2025. Travellers will save 30-40% on peak-time travel only in Scotland. For example, London to Manchester (163 miles) peak return will still cost £150 to … Continue reading Labour’s price freeze being trumpeted merely keeps rail travellers paying far more in England than in Scotland
Scottish teachers have enjoyed by far the best pupil/teacher ratio and consequent workload in the UK for at least 15 years now
stewartb No less an authority(!) than the UK government on November 13 published this: ‘Reporting year 2025: Education and training statistics for the UK.’ Among the statistics given for the four constituent nations are pupil:teacher ratios for publicly-funded primary and secondary schools. See https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-and-training-statistics-for-the-uk/2025 The ‘Headline facts and figures – 2025’ section has this on overall ratios for publicly-funded/maintained schools: ‘Pupil to teacher ratios were lowest in Scotland (13.3), and similar in Northern Ireland (17.1), England (18.0), and Wales (18.9).‘ Specifically for primary schools, the latest statistics on pupil-teacher ratios in for example Labour-run Wales and in Scotland are: Wales = 18.9 and Scotland = 16.1. Time … Continue reading Scottish teachers have enjoyed by far the best pupil/teacher ratio and consequent workload in the UK for at least 15 years now
The devolved nations governments were not responsible for delays and mistakes in the early pandemic strategy – clear evidence that Johnson’s chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, on behalf of the UK Government, obstructed them at every turn
Professor John Robertson OBA Under pressure to have a bit of time off, I’ve relied on AI for this. If you see any flaws in the report, please let me know. Is there evidence of Dominic Cummings trying to limit the influence of devolved nations at Covid Cobra meetings? Evidence from the UK COVID-19 InquiryYes, there is direct evidence from Dominic Cummings’ testimony to the UK COVID-19 Inquiry (Module 2, October 2023) indicating efforts to limit the involvement of devolved nations’ leaders (from Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland) in key COBRA meetings during the early COVID-19 response. This was framed … Continue reading The devolved nations governments were not responsible for delays and mistakes in the early pandemic strategy – clear evidence that Johnson’s chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, on behalf of the UK Government, obstructed them at every turn
How dare SNP ministers responsible for already giving us the best pay and conditions in the UK, offer us even better working conditions before we can claim credit for negotiating it?
Professor John Robertson OBA The Herald and the Scotsman and Scottish Labour just love the EIS. I was in education for nearly 4 decades. I never did a proper survey but it seemed like there was a lot of moaning going on. I’ve worked in chemical works, a power station, a psychiatric hospital laundry, sawmills and a parks department. It was often difficult – too cold, too hot, smelly, disgusting, too hard, scary – but in everyone of them, moaning all the time would just get you teased, sometimes cruelly, in often wickedly funny ways. In education, far too many … Continue reading How dare SNP ministers responsible for already giving us the best pay and conditions in the UK, offer us even better working conditions before we can claim credit for negotiating it?
As with Google and now AI, did Victorians suspect that encyclopaedias would lead to fake news and affect children?
Professor John Robertson OBA Watching BBC ‘s ‘Have I Got News for You’, last night, there was panel unanimity that, as Ian Hislop put it – ‘AI is strawndnry unreliable.‘ Readers will know that I’ve begun to use it more as a short-cut to finding evidence but that I do worry about the absence of media studies in the core curriculum in schools, to prepare younger, less-experienced, less sceptical minds, to understand the commonly market-oriented, pro-USA, pro-NATO and times pro-Christian ideological underpinning in the algorithms directing answers, to ask good questions and to push for better answers at times. Earlier … Continue reading As with Google and now AI, did Victorians suspect that encyclopaedias would lead to fake news and affect children?
It was only in Scotland that opposition parties were regularly invited on to critique the Scottish Government’s pandemic decisions
By brendarobb I see only the BBC Scotland web page headline names a politician within a negative framing, in Wales & N Ireland headlines are negative but no names initially, the England page has no story and the UK page headline has already moved on to how things could have been handled differently, letting them balance out the criticism of Boris Johnston’s government with the message that all 4 governments messed up. I’m sure when I muster the energy to read the full report there will be more nuance but a glance at the key findings summary (covid19.public-inquiry.uk/documents/module-2-in-brief-report/) it appears … Continue reading It was only in Scotland that opposition parties were regularly invited on to critique the Scottish Government’s pandemic decisions
Scottish Government launches major initiative to improve winter care and only STV with a few online-only agencies report
Professor John Robertson OBA Today the Scottish Government announces: Almost £1 million is being allocated to help reduce pressures on A&E departments and improve patient flow over the winter months. The Scottish Ambulance Service will receive £995,000 to increase staffing for a clinical hub model, which uses GPs to triage patients as calls come in to prevent unnecessary ambulance dispatches and ensure everyone gets the treatment they need. The system was trialled successfully over a weekend in September this year and it is estimated that it could save 12,000 ambulance journeys over winter as well as safely preventing an additional … Continue reading Scottish Government launches major initiative to improve winter care and only STV with a few online-only agencies report
The evidence that UK Government ‘suspicion of the Scots’ led to inferior Covid-19 pandemic measures and the unnecessary deaths of thousands in England and Wales
Professor John Robertson OBA In the National 24 January 2025: Mark Drakeford: Tories’ ‘suspicion of the Scots’ hindered UK in Covid THERE was an “inherent suspicion” in the way the UK government dealt with its devolved counterparts during the Covid pandemic because they were “worried about the Scots,” the former first minister of Wales has said. The above table is summarised by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation on page 101 of UK Poverty 2023 published on 26 January 2023, as: Scotland has the lowest mortality rate per 100,000 people for every degree of deprivation across the UK [p100] https://www.jrf.org.uk/uk-poverty-2023-the-essential-guide-to-understanding-poverty-in-the-uk That the above variation was due … Continue reading The evidence that UK Government ‘suspicion of the Scots’ led to inferior Covid-19 pandemic measures and the unnecessary deaths of thousands in England and Wales
Why has STV forgotten their own report – ‘World Health Organisation tells Scotland ‘you are doing well’’ as the Covid inquiry and try to blame Scotland’s FM?
Professor John Robertson OBA Thanks to https://x.com/G4ilM for reminding me of this: From STV, the above and: A special envoy to the World Health Organisation has said he is impressed with how Scotland is handling the Covid-19 pandemic. Dr David Nabarro said Nicola Sturgeon’s prudent approach to easing lockdown restrictions was a good policy. He said he admired the approach by the Scottish Government and the public health authorities. Nabarro, the World Health Organisation’s special envoy for Covid-19, told the BBC: “Comparing Scotland with other parts of Europe, other parts of the world, I’d say you’re doing good because you are tackling … Continue reading Why has STV forgotten their own report – ‘World Health Organisation tells Scotland ‘you are doing well’’ as the Covid inquiry and try to blame Scotland’s FM?
How good is STV’s new former Spectator writer, Westminster Correspondent? Well she’ll need to learn to read Scottish opinion polls
Professor John Robertson OBA Lucy Dunn, above – I’m getting that artist to do me a lovely caricature of me for the blog. A Reform surge in Scotland? In January 2025, between 9% and 13% in the last 10 Holyrood polls but between 22% and 25% in the last 10 Westminster polls. At best, only half as popular in Scotland. Today, between 14% and 22% in the last 10 Holyrood polls, currently 17 points behind SNP but between 26% and 33% in the last 10 Westminster polls, currently 14 points ahead of Labour. At best, only two thirds as popular … Continue reading How good is STV’s new former Spectator writer, Westminster Correspondent? Well she’ll need to learn to read Scottish opinion polls
Talking-up Scotland 