Tag: news

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Scotland need not be ashamed as colonialism explains world cup success

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Thanks to Kath for prompting this. There is a correlation between national football team success and countries with imperial/colonial pasts, especially those involved in the transatlantic slave trade and exploitation of West Africa. Recent research directly quantifies this. A University of Zurich AI study in 2026 simulated the 2026 FIFA World Cup, 1,500 times and found that colonial history continues to shape outcomes on the pitch. Former European colonial powers benefit significantly from players with family roots in former colonies, especially in Africa and in the Caribbean. Source: https://www.news.uzh.ch/en/articles/media/2026/colonial-legacies-soccer.html Top FIFA-ranked teams as of June 2026, often align with this … Continue reading Scotland need not be ashamed as colonialism explains world cup success

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Add the DUP to the history of the Tories, Liberals and Labour in covering-up systematic child abuse by MPs that underlies the more recent inaction by government and by police on grooming gangs

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The astonishing apathy of the MSM in reacting to the above sexual abuse of children contrasts with their frothing pile-on of a man clearly with a mental health problem relating to spending but it’s part of wider historical pattern. By JB Independent Inquiry Child Sex Abuse From the 2012 investigation  ‘Allegations of Child Sexual Abuse Linked to Westminster’. “This investigation concerns institutional responses to allegations of child sexual abuse and exploitation involving persons of public prominence who were associated with Westminster. Westminster is defined in this report as the centre of the United Kingdom’s government, government ministers and officials, as … Continue reading Add the DUP to the history of the Tories, Liberals and Labour in covering-up systematic child abuse by MPs that underlies the more recent inaction by government and by police on grooming gangs

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Multiple academic research studies suggest sexual crimes in Scotland are far less common than in 1971 and half the current level in England & Wales so BBC Scotland report today is tasteless, uneducated, dishonest and frankly wrong

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No tasteless, titillating for some, exploitative Getty images of tearful young women victims of sexual violence here, unlike in BBC Scotland reporting. From BBC Scotland today: Sexual crimes in Scotland hit record high levels. Sexual crimes recorded by Police Scotland increased by 10% last year and are now at their highest level since 1971, official figures show. The message here is wrong, so wrong. Why? The weight of evidence (stable survey prevalence despite exploding recorded figures, increased reporting, societal improvements in women’s rights/consent norms, and parallel declines in other violence) strongly suggests actual rates for many equivalent traditional/contact sexual crimes … Continue reading Multiple academic research studies suggest sexual crimes in Scotland are far less common than in 1971 and half the current level in England & Wales so BBC Scotland report today is tasteless, uneducated, dishonest and frankly wrong

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England’s first full investigation into maternity service failures publishing today will reveal such horror that their police investigation being labelled ‘Operation Perth’ shocks investigation-free NHS Scotland

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Absent entirely from UK newspaper front pages today but featured in TV news broadcasts, the above story anticipates a report into maternity services in Nottingham which will be frankly horrific and which police locally have strangely labelled their investigation into criminality, ‘Operation Perth’: The largest maternity review in the history of the NHS – which is expected to detail widespread failings that led to the deaths of babies and avoidable harm – will be published later. About 2,500 families and more than 800 staff members have contributed to the review into Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust, which began in … Continue reading England’s first full investigation into maternity service failures publishing today will reveal such horror that their police investigation being labelled ‘Operation Perth’ shocks investigation-free NHS Scotland

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Reconviction Rates in Scotland fall to tiny percentage per head of those in England and Wales due to twice as many ‘probation officers’

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From Reconviction Rates in Scotland: 2022 to 2023 Offender Cohort, published today: Source: https://www.gov.scot/publications/reconviction-rates-in-scotland-2022-2023-cohort/ What might account for this? There are currently 5 576 ‘band 4’ probation officers in England.2 Scotland does not have “probation officers” as a distinct role. The equivalent is Justice Social Workers (also called criminal justice social workers), who are qualified social workers employed mainly by the 32 local authorities. Per head of population, you might expect that Scotland would have around 560 of these but has 1 174 up from 950 the year before.3 Scotland has twice as many! How does this play out in terms of … Continue reading Reconviction Rates in Scotland fall to tiny percentage per head of those in England and Wales due to twice as many ‘probation officers’

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Did the media get Murrell 5 years in jail? In 2019 a Labour councillor stole from a charity which then collapsed, causing great harm to locals, and did not plead guilty yet she still avoided jail

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From BBC Scotland in 2019: A former [Labour] councillor has been convicted of taking more than £8,000 from a local charity where she worked. Yvonne Kucuk, 52, was the company secretary for the People’s Development Trust in Dalmarnock, Glasgow. The trust ran the £3.5m Commonwealth Games legacy hub in the area, which was launched by football legend Sir Kenny Dalglish in 2015. But, later financial concerns led to auditors looking over the organisation’s books. Kucuk – ex-Labour councillor for the city’s Calton area – and the trust’s project manager William Faulds, 55, were eventually held by police. A trial heard … Continue reading Did the media get Murrell 5 years in jail? In 2019 a Labour councillor stole from a charity which then collapsed, causing great harm to locals, and did not plead guilty yet she still avoided jail

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Scotland in top ten for foreign direct investment out of more than one thousand European ‘regions’, first per head in UK and well ahead of Burnhamland

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The above table is from this report published today: The EY UK Attractiveness Survey 2026, the latest in our series of annual reports exploring the performance and perceptions of the UK as a destination for foreign direct investment (FDI). It’s now been 25 years since EY first published this study. Over that time, it has become an eagerly awaited and indispensable reference point for business leaders, investors and policymakers as they seek to understand the drivers of inward investment and the UK’s relative performance against other European FDI locations in a constantly changing global landscape.1 EY’s database does not give … Continue reading Scotland in top ten for foreign direct investment out of more than one thousand European ‘regions’, first per head in UK and well ahead of Burnhamland

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‘Alleged anti-Muslim attacks are ‘intolerance wake-up call’ but there are positives to be noted in Scotland

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From BBC Scotland yesterday: The first minister has said a series of alleged anti-Muslim attacks in Edinburgh should be a “wake-up call” to Scotland over intolerance towards others. John Swinney said he was “terrified” the incidents, which left five men injured in the north and west of the city on Friday, were the product of intolerance being “legitimised”. He accused Reform MSPs at the Scottish Parliament of using language which had caused “division” among communities. Reform said the attacks should not be “conflated” with a “genuine debate around mass migration”. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c75y44e9w9do All true, I fully agree but let’s not think … Continue reading ‘Alleged anti-Muslim attacks are ‘intolerance wake-up call’ but there are positives to be noted in Scotland

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Huge surge in child exploitation – carrying drugs in body cavities and sexual abuse – by English county lines drug gangs in Scotland

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From Human Trafficking NRM referrals re county lines – 10yrs published by Police Scotland today, that ‘referrals made by Police Scotland to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) where county lines and suspected criminal exploitation was a factor‘ was: Under 16 year-olds – from 6 in 2020/2021 to 39 in 2025/2026, almost a seven-fold increase. 16-17 year-olds, from 16 to 65, a four-fold increase. Source: https://www.scotland.police.uk/access-to-information/freedom-of-information/disclosure-log/disclosure-log-2026/june/26-1022-human-trafficking-nrm-referrals-re-county-lines-10yrs/ What forms does that exploitation take? County lines refers to a violent, exploitative model of illegal drug distribution in the UK, where urban gangs and organised criminal networks export drugs (primarily heroin and crack cocaine) … Continue reading Huge surge in child exploitation – carrying drugs in body cavities and sexual abuse – by English county lines drug gangs in Scotland

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Holyrood still far more open and transparent for journalists than Westminster

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The Herald and other media wailing at new constraints on their journalists wandering Holyrood and mobbing ministers, fail to tell you this. Holyrood access still remains more transparent overall than Westminster, even after the recent media pen change. The new restriction is narrow and targeted. It’s only after First Minister’s Questions, in one specific area. Westminster’s system is much more controlled. Why Holyrood Is Still More Transparent There is broader general access. Accredited journalists at Holyrood have significant freedom to move around the building, approach MSPs in public areas and can conduct impromptu interviews. The media pen is limited. It … Continue reading Holyrood still far more open and transparent for journalists than Westminster