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

Professor John Robertson OBA I asked the Elicit AI for scientific research which claims to help researchers be 10x more evidence-based: How dangerous is it to live 5km from a nuclear power station? After more than 5 minutes, it responded: Studies show mixed results on living within 5km of nuclear power plants, with some European research finding roughly doubled childhood leukemia risk while studies from other regions generally show no significant overall cancer risk. Which regions? This is stark. Why do 5 German research groups all find statistically significant risks to health in living within 5km of a nuclear power … Continue reading 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

It’s been a while since Andrew Bowie last sickened us. Then, it was the risk of radiation sickness

Professor John Robertson OBA The National today has the above headline and: Andrew Bowie, the MP for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine, embarked on an all expenses paid trip to Israel between August 25 and 29 this year. The trip was described as a “fact-finding political delegation” in Bowie’s MP register of interests, and was paid for by the Conservative Friends of Israel. Bowie registered air travel, accommodation and hospitality for the visit to Israel as costing £4200. He told The National that he met with senior members of the Israel Defence Force (IDF) during the trip. The shadow Scottish secretary was not … Continue reading It’s been a while since Andrew Bowie last sickened us. Then, it was the risk of radiation sickness

Local community activists in a small US state remind us why we must oppose Labour’s nuclear plans for Scotland

By Professor John Robertson, OBA Yesterday, in a report from the Sierra Club Iowa Chapter, a grassroots environmentalist group with 7 000 members, in the US state of Iowa alone: Sierra Club Iowa Chapter urges legislators and the public to oppose the restart of the Duane Arnold nuclear plant and to support Iowa’s transition to safe, clean, and renewable energy sources. On September 29, 2025, the Iowa Chapter of the Sierra Club hosted a press conference to address NextEra Energy’s proposal to restart the Duane Arnold nuclear plant, which has been in decommissioning since 2020. Experts in nuclear energy, public health, … Continue reading Local community activists in a small US state remind us why we must oppose Labour’s nuclear plans for Scotland

As the authorities approve supposed reduced risk how many childhood cancers were caused by refuelling at this Ayrshire nuclear power station?

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 Thanks to JB for researching this. 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 … Continue reading As the authorities approve supposed reduced risk how many childhood cancers were caused by refuelling at this Ayrshire nuclear power station?

Fuel poverty – in Scotland, it need not be this way.

Will it be food in the house? Professor John Robertson OBA BBC Scotland in their BBC Breakfast insert have the above story minus of course the hugely significant consideration that, in Scotland, it need not be this way. In August 2025, we had the information. As energy price rises loom, a reminder of why Michael Shanks will not protect us and why Scots would pay far less after independence As energy price rises loom, a reminder of why Scots would pay far less once independent. From stewartb in June 2025: I fear that a majority of the electorate in Scotland still have NO IDEA … Continue reading Fuel poverty – in Scotland, it need not be this way.

As US scientists call for a national cancer study near US reactors to be conducted before any new expansion of nuclear power, why Scottish Labour should be paying attention to research before another generation of women suffers excess breast cancer mortality in the future

Support Talking-up Scotland’s work to counter the lies and get you the facts, daily, at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/checkout/help-talking-up-scotland-tell-truth-about-scotland/payment/nBQxjVzq/details or by direct bank transfer method – Sort code 08-91-04, Account 12266421 Professor John Robertson OBA In the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, two days ago: The last and only national study of the health risks posed by existing US nuclear reactors was conducted in the late 1980s. But by then, many of the 62 nuclear plants had only been operating for a relatively small number of years, not enough time for the effects of radiogenic exposure to appear in workers and the nearby population. An attempt … Continue reading As US scientists call for a national cancer study near US reactors to be conducted before any new expansion of nuclear power, why Scottish Labour should be paying attention to research before another generation of women suffers excess breast cancer mortality in the future

The new Wolf of Badenoch plans to plunder all our oil and gas

Support Talking-up Scotland’s work to counter the lies and get you the facts, daily, at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/checkout/help-talking-up-scotland-tell-truth-about-scotland/payment/nBQxjVzq/details Professor John Robertson OBA Today in BBC Politics: Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has said her party will remove all net zero requirements on oil and gas companies drilling in the North Sea if elected. Badenoch is to formally announce the plan to focus solely on “maximising extraction” and to get “all our [sic] oil and gas out of the North Sea” in a speech in Aberdeen on Tuesday. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp890n51684o I’ve often wondered if Badenoch knows of her ancestor through marriage, the Wolf of Badenoch (above), a … Continue reading The new Wolf of Badenoch plans to plunder all our oil and gas

As energy price rises loom, a reminder of why Michael Shanks will not protect us and why Scots would pay far less after independence

Support Talking-up Scotland’s work to counter the lies and get you the facts, daily, at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/checkout/help-talking-up-scotland-tell-truth-about-scotland/payment/nBQxjVzq/details Professor John Robertson OBA As energy price rises loom, a reminder of why Scots would pay far less once independent. From stewartb in June 2025: I fear that a majority of the electorate in Scotland still have NO IDEA of – (perhaps even conditioned to have no interest in?) – Scotland’s indigenous energy assets and their potential significance for their own lives and those of their children and grandchildren. Little or no awareness of the scale of value of offshore oil & gas assets in the … Continue reading As energy price rises loom, a reminder of why Michael Shanks will not protect us and why Scots would pay far less after independence

‘Huge pools of mystery sludge, leaking silos’ and shocking complacency only a few miles from Stranraer and the highest cancer level in Europe – Does Scottish Labour need a ‘cancer panic’ to wake it up to the horrific risks of pursuing even more nuclear projects?

Professor John Robertson OBA In the Daily Mail today: Atomic bomb waste discovered beneath six homes in St Louis has sparked panic and renewed concern in other US cities still haunted by Manhattan Project contamination. St Louis is far from the only city still dealing with Manhattan Project fallout. Across the country, sites such as Hanford in Washington, Oak Ridge in Tennessee, and Los Alamos in New Mexico remain dangerously contaminated. A 2003 study surveyed 801 individuals who lived downwind of the Hanford plutonium production facility, finding greater-than-expected numbers of central nervous system tumors and cancers of the female reproductive system. High incidences … Continue reading ‘Huge pools of mystery sludge, leaking silos’ and shocking complacency only a few miles from Stranraer and the highest cancer level in Europe – Does Scottish Labour need a ‘cancer panic’ to wake it up to the horrific risks of pursuing even more nuclear projects?

Herald frontpages highest level nuclear leak incident but then avoids mentioning how it might ‘smash into your DNA’

Professor John Robertson OBA The Herald today does get round to sharing with us details of the recent Ferret factfinder freedom of information release, on accidents at the nuclear base on the Clyde estuary, at Faslane in the Gare Loch, but do not investigate just what the resultant leaks might mean for those living nearby or those who swim in the Gare Loch or the Clyde estuary. Here is the fuller story and it gets very disturbing if you read on to the end. From BBC Scotland in August 2025: See that ‘leaked into loch‘, that should be leaked into loch. … Continue reading Herald frontpages highest level nuclear leak incident but then avoids mentioning how it might ‘smash into your DNA’