Tag: climate-change

1 Comment

Why ‘the English Left’ including Gordon Brown will happily let Northern Ireland go but hypocritically and desperately insist on keeping Scotland

johnrobertson834

Help Talking-up Scotland keep going Crowdfunder at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-talking-up-scotland-keep-going Or by direct bank transfer to: JOHN WATSON ROBERTSON Sort Code – 08-91-04 Account – 12266421 In terms of GDP, energy, food and drink exports, number of graduates, universities, water and other resources, would Scotland be a far greater loss for the rest of the UK? Yes. On those real-economy measures, Scotland would be a far larger loss to the remaining UK than Northern Ireland. Scotland is about 8 per cent of UK GDP; Northern Ireland is about 2 per cent. Scotland’s sales to the rest of the UK are on the order of £50 billion-plus a year and around … Continue reading Why ‘the English Left’ including Gordon Brown will happily let Northern Ireland go but hypocritically and desperately insist on keeping Scotland

1 Comment

Grenfell – England is letting companies pass the buck

johnrobertson834

In the Guardian today, the above and: There is something profoundly wrong when the company behind Grenfell Tower’s flammable cladding paid more compensation to its shareholders than to victims of the disaster. Of Arconic’s £86m in Grenfell-related settlements, all but £1.5m was covered by insurers. Hardly enough to make a multinational think again. The company whose product the inquiry found was the “primary cause” of the fire’s rapid spread has ended up paying only a fraction of the wider social cost, while the multibillion-pound bill for making hundreds of buildings safe falls largely on the state. In June 2017, 72 people – … Continue reading Grenfell – England is letting companies pass the buck

3 Comments

Scotland producing ‘only’ FIVE times as much gas as it consumes – how could we survive on our own?

johnrobertson834

From the Guardian today: The penny is dropping in government. Britain, even in rapid energy transition mode, will still need a lot of gas in the years ahead – and needs to know how the gas will arrive. It could hardly be otherwise when there are 24m households with a gas connection, largely for heating, and the pace of heat pumps adoption is miserable. Last year gas comprised about a third of the UK’s overall energy needs. Though annual consumption is in decline, the days of peak use during a bleak midwinter can still be as high as ever. The … Continue reading Scotland producing ‘only’ FIVE times as much gas as it consumes – how could we survive on our own?

7 Comments

Burnham seems ‘Mad for it’

johnrobertson834

By Liz S “The Pennsylvania Department of Health will be distributing free potassium iodide (KI) tablets to those York County residents that live, learn or work within 10 miles of the Peach Bottom power plant“ “Has the UK Government, responsible for nuclear power regulation in Scotland ever shown such concern for Scots living near nuclear facilities in Scotland ?” Nope. Indeed as far as UK governments are concerned, both the Tories & also the Labour party , all they seek to do is to impose more Nuclear power Stations within Scotland. Potential various dire consequences and fallout (pun intended) be damned. However it seems that they, UK … Continue reading Burnham seems ‘Mad for it’

2 Comments

Labour’s nuclear energy is being shut down right across Europe

johnrobertson834

Thanks again to Frances for alerting us to this. From DW IN FOCUS, two days ago: Romania has shut down its only nuclear plant in a rare move prompted by the lack of cooling water from the Danube River. Hungary, meanwhile, is racing to dam the Danube, trying to keep its Paks plant online. Romania shut down its lone nuclear power plant on Thursday, a rare move amid the drought that has caused record lows on the Danube River and other major waterways in Europe.  The Danube is the sole source of cooling water for the Cernavoda plant, which usually generates around … Continue reading Labour’s nuclear energy is being shut down right across Europe

34 Comments

Glasgow’s ‘super-hospital directly downwind of another massive waste treatment plant approved by Scottish Labour in 2012

johnrobertson834

The new South Clyde Energy Centre due west of the QEUH to get the very most of the pollution into the wards. No comparable hospital in the World faces such threat. With this massive incinerator, approved by the Labour-run council in 2012, the QEUH will be exposed to even greater threat than it already faces. By Joe Murray The South Clyde Energy Centre (SCWC) an Energy from Waste (EfW) Incinerator being built at North Cardonald in Glasgow is sited around 500 metres and directly upwind of the Queen Elizabeth University and Sick Children’s Hospitals (or the Southern General as locals … Continue reading Glasgow’s ‘super-hospital directly downwind of another massive waste treatment plant approved by Scottish Labour in 2012

7 Comments

Most of the heavier crude oil from Rosebank will be sent to the Netherlands because only Grangemouth could refine it

johnrobertson834

By Liz S “The new and upgraded high-voltage transmission infrastructure in Scotland (new pylons, higher-capacity overhead lines, substations, and related works) is primarily required to transmit surplus electricity across the border into England and the wider Great Britain system” Yes indeed, but it’s not just electricity as the BBC website has this article, dated 11 August 2026, on their website on the Scottish Politics page: “What is happening with the Rosebank and Jackdaw oil and gas fields”? Included within this BBC article are the below statements of how, once again , the UK/Britain are again reliant on assets/resources sourced from Scotland , that are … Continue reading Most of the heavier crude oil from Rosebank will be sent to the Netherlands because only Grangemouth could refine it

4 Comments

Three more French nuclear power stations shut down as jellyfish swarm cooling pipes will any Scottish reporter ask Scottish Labour how they plan to deal with this?

johnrobertson834

Thanks, once more, to Frances McKie for alerting us to this and who comments: It keeps coming back to basic things like plumbing, blockages and corrosion…..at Dounreay, they never found a way to stop seaweed blocking their intake pipes…Here it’s jellyfish. From Reuters yesterday: Three reactors at ‌France’s Gravelines nuclear power plant were shut down late on Monday due to a massive swarm of jellyfish, triggering preventative measures put in place last year after the entire plant went offline, operator EDF said. The plant in northern France is one of the ​largest in the country and is cooled from a canal … Continue reading Three more French nuclear power stations shut down as jellyfish swarm cooling pipes will any Scottish reporter ask Scottish Labour how they plan to deal with this?

3 Comments

New transmission infrastructure in Scotland is primarily required to transmit surplus electricity across the border into England and the wider Great Britain system

johnrobertson834

to where it is consumed, mainly Central Scotland and England. BBC Scotland’s insert into BBC Breakfast makes the above explicit claim that new pylons and infrastructure are needed to ‘shift’ energy from the north to central Scotland. Notably the full BBC Scotland report online does not make the above claim. Another Reporting Scotland special? https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c8rn42jp7d6o Is the claim, additional to their full online report, true? No. Why? In Scotland: Electricity consumption has declined substantially over the past two decades. Total consumption in Scotland was 21.7 TWh in 2024 — down 26.6% from the 2005–2007 baseline average of 29.3 TWh. Domestic … Continue reading New transmission infrastructure in Scotland is primarily required to transmit surplus electricity across the border into England and the wider Great Britain system

1 Comment

Scotland has already begun to tackle wasted medicine problem

johnrobertson834

In the Guardian today, the above and: The amount of wasted medicines thrown away in England in one year could fill 75 swimming pools, according to a pharmacy group. The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) estimated that 3,400 tonnes of partly used medicines were disposed of in England in 2024-25. The organisation, which analysed data from regional health bodies, also estimated that the problem costs the NHS at least £480m annually. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/aug/08/wasted-medicine-in-england-could-fill-75-swimming-pools-a-year-pharmacy-group-says Has the Scottish Government done anything to prevent or reduce this? Yes, the Scottish Government and NHS Scotland have taken multiple steps focused on preventing and reducing medicines waste, through policy guidance, medication … Continue reading Scotland has already begun to tackle wasted medicine problem