Tag: news

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£11bn Lower Thames Crossing – Put simply, in the end, Scotland still pays for another capital project it does not benefit from

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Yesterday, I wrote a post: Never mind Barnett, the Lower Thames Crossing to cost Scots taxpayers between £300m and £1bn! The full AI-assisted argument is at: https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2026/07/12/never-mind-barnett-the-lower-thames-crossing-to-cost-scots-taxpayers-between-300m-and-1bn/ In a comment, rogercolkett wrote While it’s clear that the UK government tends to spend more on big projects in the south of England than elsewhere, it’s not true that Scots are paying for it through their taxes. UK government expenditure is not funded by taxes or anything else. UK government expenditure works by instructing the Bank of England to create the money required and credit it to the relevant payee, just as … Continue reading £11bn Lower Thames Crossing – Put simply, in the end, Scotland still pays for another capital project it does not benefit from

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These are not school ‘knife’ incidents, the trend is down, the TWO actual stabbings took place OUT of school by gang members and knife crimes have plummeted here to only half the level under Labour/Lib Dems 20 years ago

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The Herald today, taking a turn on knife crime, to give the Daily Record a day off? It’s another naked piece of data fiddling to treat you like a fracking idiot. To be fair, they don’t hide the actual facts once they’ve set the scene falsely in the headline. They’ll be thinking no one reads beyond the headlines these days. What are the facts? Highlight of the report, not for the first time, comes from the mouth of Alex Cole-Hamilton! Let’s have a look at some real facts on knife crime in Scotland In Scotland in 2006/2007, there were just … Continue reading These are not school ‘knife’ incidents, the trend is down, the TWO actual stabbings took place OUT of school by gang members and knife crimes have plummeted here to only half the level under Labour/Lib Dems 20 years ago

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As Rochdale rape grooming gang returns to front pages be ready with these simple facts to rebut anything like it in Scotland

johnrobertson834

Today BBC UK has the above. The press front pages were not posted as I write at 09:25am but seem likely to be trying to make money out of the image. In July, we saw the ‘Scottish’ Daily Express try to include Scotland in this horrific practice and readers will remember Scottish Labour MPs and MSPs insisting the same things does happen here. The Daily Express ‘Scottish’ 2 July 2026, above with an English/Pakistani rape gang leader and one of his victims in England on the front page. Below in the UK, where is the story? Why is this unacceptable propaganda? From the First Minister 9 February 2026, responding … Continue reading As Rochdale rape grooming gang returns to front pages be ready with these simple facts to rebut anything like it in Scotland

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Rapists and sex offenders among 5 000 prisoners to be released early only in England – SNP Government will not release any such offenders early in Scotland

johnrobertson834

Thanks to Dottie for alerting me to this. In the Guardian yesterday: Opponents of plans to release rapists and sex offenders early from prison have “no solutions” to halt the criminal justice system’s possible collapse, David Lammy has said. Under pressure from Labour MPs – including the former safeguarding minister Jess Phillips – to curb the early release scheme, the deputy prime minister said failing to implement it could leave no capacity across jails in England and Wales in November. Killers, rapists and sex offenders will be among more than 5,000 prisoners freed early from September. They include those convicted of manslaughter, rape, grievous … Continue reading Rapists and sex offenders among 5 000 prisoners to be released early only in England – SNP Government will not release any such offenders early in Scotland

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Never mind Barnett, the Lower Thames Crossing to cost Scots taxpayers between £300m and £1bn!

johnrobertson834

In the Guardian today: The UK’s public spending watchdog has said it plans to investigate the Lower Thames Crossing, as campaigners voice concerns over the rising costs of one of the UK’s largest infrastructure projects. The head of the National Audit Office (NAO) said he anticipated the agency would “examine and report” on the planned £11bn road tunnel between Kent and Essex, and that work to monitor the project had already started. It emerged last month that £174m of additional public money was being made available for the scheme, which is estimated to cost more per mile than the HS2 high-speed rail link from … Continue reading Never mind Barnett, the Lower Thames Crossing to cost Scots taxpayers between £300m and £1bn!

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Glasgow disorder orchestrated by individuals not from Scotland

johnrobertson834

In the Glasgow Times, two days ago: Disorder in Glasgow this week has been branded as “disgraceful” and is said to have been ‘orchestrated by individuals who are not from the city’. Protests took place outside homes in the Cranhill and Castlemilk areas earlier this week after claims spread locally and online that ‘suspected sex offenders’ were living there. A significant police response was deployed to both incidents to try and control crowds who could be heard shouting “get them out” and ‘no peace for the beast’ at the properties. David Kennedy, the general secretary of the Scottish Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file … Continue reading Glasgow disorder orchestrated by individuals not from Scotland

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SNP’s progressive policies have not destroyed growth and may have helped

johnrobertson834

Thanks to Dottie again for this one: From What can Scotland teach Andy Burnham about devolution? Scotland’s economy has outperformed its neighbours in Future Economy Scotland yesterday, the above and: and: and my favourite: and: Taken together, the evidence is difficult to dismiss. Whether measured by GDP, productivity, earnings, disposable income or the prevalence of low pay, Scotland has generally outperformed the UK since devolution. Across most of these measures, it sits at or near the top of the UK’s league table. None of this proves that devolution itself caused these stronger outcomes. Scotland’s economy differs from England’s in important ways, and … Continue reading SNP’s progressive policies have not destroyed growth and may have helped

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UK may follow US lowering nuclear safety standards to increase worker risk of cancer by 20%

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From the highly-respected Scientific American, yesterday: A proposed rule from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) would ease the standard for low-dose radiation exposure. The NRC argues the change will bring more clarity to the nuclear industry, but the health effects of this rule on the public are not so clear. And if the change takes effect, then people living near nuclear facilities could be exposed to higher doses of radiation than they are currently. For workers, the proposed NRC limits would put nuclear employees at a higher risk of cancer than that tolerated by other occupations, says David Richardson, a radiation … Continue reading UK may follow US lowering nuclear safety standards to increase worker risk of cancer by 20%

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The Wretched of Scotland’s Independence Movements

johnrobertson834

While AI has often been taught to favour broadly establishment positions, reinforced by their dominance of the media landscape it relies upon, I have found that, if you keep your wits about you and counter those positions with evidence you have, it will often come to offer a more independent evidence-based answer than you will get from even the most respected but all-too-human academic, like me. Based on the evidence from the time such as the lack of a formal act of union, the unbroken, largely unchanged continuation of the parliament in London and the end of such in Scotland … Continue reading The Wretched of Scotland’s Independence Movements

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Three Police Chiefs say leading anti-immigration protesters don’t come from Scotland

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Thanks to Capella for spotting this: In Police issue hate crime warning after hundreds gather in Glasgow street, today, eight paragraphs down: Chief Supt Stevie Dolan said he believed there are individuals outwith the local communities and probably outwith Glasgow or central Scotland who are seeking to “influence” the actions of local members of the public. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gyqdpd0z8o Is there further evidence to support this? Police Scotland overall position: The disorder over several nights was “clearly been orchestrated by individuals who are not from Glasgow.” A further protest planned for the weekend was based on “entirely false information.” https://www.aol.co.uk/articles/police-warn-against-protest-misinformation-113938000.html Assistant Chief … Continue reading Three Police Chiefs say leading anti-immigration protesters don’t come from Scotland