Scotland has the lowest difference in excess mortality between summer and winter despite consistently seeing the coldest winters
stewartb O/T Tho’ staying with the challenges of winter, a newly published research paper published by UK Parliament Post has noteworthy statistics on levels of winter mortality across the UK. It reports a statistic favourable to Scotland and therefore worthy of mention – after all, if not here, where? (We know that favourable statistics about life in Scotland are strong candidates for media bias by omission and if the same research had reported an unfavourable statistic, someone in BBC Scotland or their ilk would have noticed and amplified it.) Source: Hassan and Chapman (Sept 9, 2025) Winter mortality. UK Parliament Post. (https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/POST-PN-0752/POST-PN-0752.pdf ) Background: ’Winter mortality in … Continue reading Scotland has the lowest difference in excess mortality between summer and winter despite consistently seeing the coldest winters
How dangerous is it to live 5km from a nuclear power station like Labour’s new one proposed for Anglesey, 360km from Westminster? It depends whom you ask but EVERY German study says it doubled childhood leukaemia risk
Scotland’s flu season starts early but with TWICE as many jags done, 30% more beds and 71% more nurses, SNP better prepared
in Scotland in the past week, up 72%. The number of patients admitted to hospital has almost doubled too according to Public Health Scotland data, Experts have been warning of an early flu seasonwith a new variant that spreads more easily and may be more severe. Professor John Robertson OBA BBC Reporting Scotland last night had the above, missing key facts on vaccine uptake and the resilience of NHS Scotland. Here they are: Scottish Government significantly widened access to free flu vaccine to give more than twice as many, per capita, protection from worrying new mutation First, availability in England – … Continue reading Scotland’s flu season starts early but with TWICE as many jags done, 30% more beds and 71% more nurses, SNP better prepared
English judges in England’s Supreme Court over-rule Scotland’s research based changes to protect victims of rape like this
Professor John Robertson OBA There was little chance that the Sunday Daily Record would report this honestly as their Holyrood 2026 campaign in support of Anas Sarwar kicks on. The above victim’s mother is concerned about a recent decision by the Supreme Court in London, which though not competent in Scots Law is, in the context of the Union, superior to the highest courts in Scotland and can exert considerable pressure on them, even over-turn their verdicts, such as in the case of Nat Fraser’s murder conviction which it quashed in 2011. The Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Act … Continue reading English judges in England’s Supreme Court over-rule Scotland’s research based changes to protect victims of rape like this
German researchers reveal how radioactive emissions spike up to 500 times everyday running levels during inspection or refuelling to put unborn and younger children at great risk of cancer and further undermine Labour’s plans for new nuclear power stations in North Ayrshire and East Lothian
As the authorities approve [15 September 2025] the progress in reducing hazard at the Hunterston B nuclear site in North Ayrshire, I’m deeply suspicious and reminded of the harm that was done over 45 years. By Professor John Robertson, OBA Hunterston B Nuclear power station, in North Ayrshire, Scotland, was in operation for nearly 45 years, from February 1976 until November 2021.1 In that time, there will have been around 30 re-fuelling instances2 and up to 300 inspections.3 During these events, there are spikes of radioactive emissions. Researchers in Germany, published this in 2011: According to the International Physicians for the Prevention … Continue reading German researchers reveal how radioactive emissions spike up to 500 times everyday running levels during inspection or refuelling to put unborn and younger children at great risk of cancer and further undermine Labour’s plans for new nuclear power stations in North Ayrshire and East Lothian
Global thyroid cancer ‘surge’ – Scottish Labour policy challenged as new research reviewing more than 2 000 studies finds increased risk of thyroid cancer for those living near nuclear power plants
Professor John Robertson OBA BBC Health yesterday reported on a global surge in thyroid cancer with: It’s long been known that exposure to large amounts of ionising radiation in childhood can cause thyroid cancer. In the years following the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986, rates of the disease skyrocketed in children in Belarus, Ukraine and Russia. One study found that amongst Japanese atomic-bomb survivors, about 36% of thyroid cancer cases since 1958 could be attributed to childhood radiation exposure. From The National on 9 July 2024: SCOTTISH Secretary Ian Murray has repeatedly refused to say the new UK Labour government will not overrule its devolved counterpart to see nuclear projects built in … Continue reading Global thyroid cancer ‘surge’ – Scottish Labour policy challenged as new research reviewing more than 2 000 studies finds increased risk of thyroid cancer for those living near nuclear power plants
Potentially fatal hypothyroidism far more common in Scotland, on the prevailing sea currents from Sellafield than in England, especially London
Professor John Robertson OBA From BBC Health yesterday, the above and: Rates of thyroid cancer are increasing at a faster speed in the US than any other cancer. But what is behind this mysterious epidemic? Although most cases of thyroid cancer are curable, health experts are concerned by how quickly rates of the disease are increasing. According to the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (Seer) database – a cancer reporting system in the United States – the incidence of thyroid cancer in the US more than tripled between 1980 and 2016, rising from 2.39 to 7.54 per 100,000 in men, and 6.15 to 21.28 … Continue reading Potentially fatal hypothyroidism far more common in Scotland, on the prevailing sea currents from Sellafield than in England, especially London
As ‘worst in decade’ flu season looms SNP Scotland’s longstanding history of greater vaccine uptake than Labour Wales
Anonymous The flu season has started early this year all across the UK not just Scotland, according to the UK Health Agency (November 13) in its ‘National flu and COVID-19 surveillance report’. And on past performance, flu vaccine uptake in Scotland will compare well with other parts of the UK, again based on UKHA’s official records. For data on the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons see https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/influenza-in-the-uk-annual-epidemiological-report-winter-2024-to-2025/influenza-in-the-uk-annual-epidemiological-report-winter-2024-to-2025#vaccination It’s notable that many of the metrics show a fall in take-up of the flu vaccine across all nations of the UK between 2023-24 and subsequent season. Here are some statistics comparing recent vaccine take-up … Continue reading As ‘worst in decade’ flu season looms SNP Scotland’s longstanding history of greater vaccine uptake than Labour Wales
New radiation exposure limits ‘catastrophic’ for women and girls likely to be meekly accepted by Scottish Labour
Professor John Robertson OBA From the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists yesterday: In a May executive order, aimed at ushering in what he described as an “American nuclear renaissance,” President Donald Trump declared moot the science underpinning decades-old radiation exposure standards set by the federal government. Executive Order 14300 directed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to conduct a “wholesale revision” of half-a-century of guidance and regulations. In doing so, it considers throwing out the foundational model used by the government to determine exposure limits, and investigates the possibility of loosening the standard on what is considered a “safe” level of radiation exposure for the general public. In … Continue reading New radiation exposure limits ‘catastrophic’ for women and girls likely to be meekly accepted by Scottish Labour
Scotland’s flu season starts early but 18 years of SNP administration means we are more ready than Lisa Summers has managed to analyse with 30% more beds and 71% more nurses
Professor John Robertson OBA From BBC Scotland‘s Lisa Summers, the above graph, and: There has been a sharp increase in flu cases detected in Scotland over the last week, official figures show. Data from Public Health Scotland (PHS) shows there were 431 new positive flu cases in the week ending 9 November, a 70% increase on the previous week when 253 cases were recorded. The number of patients admitted to hospital has also almost doubled, rising from 115 to 218. There are typically around 12 000 patients in hospital beds any day of the year in Scotland so that extra … Continue reading Scotland’s flu season starts early but 18 years of SNP administration means we are more ready than Lisa Summers has managed to analyse with 30% more beds and 71% more nurses
Talking-up Scotland 