In Scot Goes Pop’s Panelbase Poll, we see once more, the young strongest in support for the SNP: 16-34 – 58% 35-54 – 47% 55+ – 34% Relatively free of the Anglocentric History teaching, TV and cinema, many of us suffered, growing up in devolved times and knowing via social media of how things are better here under the SNP, they seem to know what would be best. Then, again, when asked about another freedom to identify, less constrained by so-called experts in medicine, the church or the law, they choose to support the individual and by a factor of … Continue reading Less ‘bent out of shape from society’s pliers’ sometimes the young know best

SENIOR clinicians will quit the NHS or cut back their hours unless more is done to address “punishing” pension tax bills, a leading doctor has warned. Graeme Eunson, chair of the BMA’s Scottish consultants’ committee, said a potential exodus of the country’s most experienced doctors threatens to “seriously undermine” attempts to clear the waiting list backlog and derail training for younger medics. https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/19714354.covid-scotland-seven-10-senior-doctors-plan-retire-early-pandemic/ The Herald report does not tell us anything at all about this trade union survey. I can find no trace of the BMA, Scotland or UK publishing it. We’ve been here before with BMA ‘surveys’: I look … Continue reading Revealed: 10 out of 10 BMA ‘surveys’ are mince

Regular readers will know that the Ferret ‘Fact Checker’ is hopelessly compromised by its association with the Herald and Scottish Labour. The contrast with the Canary, which I pay for monthly, could not be sharper. See this if you need a wee, well big, résumé (face-covering recommended): Today, above, you see the accusations levelled at Scottish Water and the First Minister, based on an unspecified number of email complaints. The accusations are then backed up by comments from Monica Lennon (Labour) and Liam McArthur (LD). I don’t doubt there have been too many leaks for some butt he ‘way behind … Continue reading Scotland’s Corporate Ferret way behind UK People’s Canary as it fakes sewage story

From BBC Wales today: Paramedics fear they cannot do their job safely due to being forced to work with the armed forces on ambulances, a union has warned. More than 100 military personnel were brought in to help the Welsh Ambulance Service cope with Covid pressures. But the GMB said they provide “very little assistance”, put more pressure on the trained medics and that without action the service will collapse. However the GMB also said its members are being threatened with suspension or disciplinary action if they raise the problems and “being bullied and forced to split from their regular trained … Continue reading ‘Bringing in the military has actually increased waiting times at some Scottish hospitals’

Owen Paterson above has been a paid consultant for Randox Laboratories and Lynn’s Country Foods. He is paid £8,333 a month by Randox for 16 hours work and £2,000 every other month from Lynn’s Country Foods for four hours work. That wasn’t in itself illegal but: He was investigated by the Commissioner for Parliamentary Standards after being accused of breaking lobbying rules for MPs. The commissioner found that, on behalf of the companies, he approached and met officials at the Food Standards Agency and ministers at the Department for International Development a number of times. He also used his parliamentary … Continue reading Tory sleaze? Twas ever thus

Free of the Unionist baggage of ‘Scotland’s sel-loathing MSM, the Metro (the Times and the National too) headlines the angry reaction to the unsubstantiated slurs, offered at face-value and today ignored, in nearly every other outlet. STV make little of it but, at least, offer the link, well down the ‘page’: In the 22nd of 23 paragraphs in the BBC Scotland report yesterday: A Government of Gibraltar spokesperson said there had been “no reports of shouting or any sort of aggressive behaviour” at the airport. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-59243206 Continue reading For the facts on the ‘drunk’ SNP MPs don’t bother with the Scottish media

Headlining in the Herald today: SOCIAL care in Scotland is at “very real risk of collapse” this winter amid rocketing insurance premiums and a workforce exodus, MSPs have been told. Donald Macaskill, chief executive of Scottish Care, warned that the sector is now “haemorrhaging” staff to better-paid and less stressful jobs in retail and hospitality, and the coming months will see “more and more providers going to the wall”. https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/19711602.warning-social-care-scotland-very-real-risk-collapse/ Macaskill is one of the more trustworthy voices in this but I fear he’s not giving us the full picture on the root cause of any exodus or closures – greedy owners. … Continue reading Because of corporate greed and meanness

PEDANT ALERT! After many decades as a dominie (not that!) I twitch at the sight of a misplaced apos trophe or even just a single plural error. Thus (:-)) that should be crises not crisis unless it’s about oil workers not caring (about ecology) or care workers not oiling enough (scratching folk). PYTHON ALERT! Come up with your own explanation of the oil and care crisis. Keep it clean. AND a ? Continue reading It’s CRISES unless….

In the Herald today: NURSING leaders involved in a pay dispute with the Scottish Government are considering their next steps after a ballot of members found that almost six out of 10 could be prepared to go on strike. An indicative ballot for the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) found that as well as the 58 per cent who would be prepared to go on strike, almost nine in 10 (89.5 per cent) were prepared to take industrial action short of a strike. https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/homenews/19711768.six-10-scottish-nurses-strike-amid-pay-dispute/ When was the last time we had a laugh at an inept, deliberately misrepresented strike ballot in … Continue reading Less than 20% of Scottish nurses might, perhaps, maybe strike

By stewartb ‘Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton says the Scottish government has to stop blaming the coronavirus pandemic on its failure to run the NHS’ For perspective, from the Nuffield Trust health think tank on England (11 November 2021): ‘Health and care system stretched beyond its limits as winter approaches’ ‘Responding to the NHS monthly performance stats from NHS England and NHS Improvement, Nuffield Trust Deputy Director of Research Sarah Scobie said: “We are only at the beginning of a long and difficult winter and it is already clear the health and care system is stretched beyond its limits. … Continue reading Alex Cole-Hamilton unfamiliar with expert opinion