Tag: news

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Scots not at risk as Scottish building regulations have made a Grenfell impossible here

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By Professor John Robertson In the Herald today, revealing as much grasp of towering infernos as he does of ferry services, the Herald’s Martin Williams suggest: Ministers have come under fire for spending just 9% of a special fund set up to deal with ‘dangerous’ cladding across Scotland seven years after the Grenfell tragedy. A total of 72 people lost their lives in the Grenfell Tower fire in London in 2017. Its cladding is believed to have contributed to the rapid spread of the blaze. Where’s the fire coming from? Miles Briggs! Why is Briggs wrong? Regular readers here know why. These … Continue reading Scots not at risk as Scottish building regulations have made a Grenfell impossible here

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Asked repeatedly if he agreed that the two child benefit cap caused harm, Mr McFadden said it was “open to debate!”

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By stewartb The BBC News website has this headline on its Scotland and Scotland Politics pages: ‘Labour rules out GB Energy HQ announcement in King’s Speech’. We get insights into Labour’s current plans or absence of plans – from the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden. He shares a few things with us via the BBC article and it’s notable which one BBC Scotland chooses to amplify in a headline! We’re told that further details about GB Energy, including the location of its HQ would be confirmed in “due course”. The BBC journalist gives us this: ‘Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer … Continue reading Asked repeatedly if he agreed that the two child benefit cap caused harm, Mr McFadden said it was “open to debate!”

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BBC Scotland and ‘County Lines’ drug gangs – now 5 years of silence to protect the Union

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I have an alert for ‘County Lines’ and every day I see reports from BBC UK, BBC England and from BBC regions across the country – BBC Devon (today), BBC Cumbria (last week). I never, ever, see anything from BBC Scotland despite regular reports in the ‘Scottish’ tabloids and on regional news media websites. In October 2019, pushing 5 years ago, BBC Scotland’s Connor Gillies reported under the explicit headline ‘County lines’: Aberdeenshire, Perthshire and Highlands targeted by drugs gangs, this: Rural communities in the Highlands, Aberdeenshire and Perthshire are being targeted by gangs using school children to sell class … Continue reading BBC Scotland and ‘County Lines’ drug gangs – now 5 years of silence to protect the Union

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Every water firm in England and Wales, one Scottish caravan site and one guy in Muir of Ord under investigation over sewage spills

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Thanks once more to Dottie’s Phone for alerting me to this. From the Guardian today: The water regulator is taking action against four more water companies, including Severn Trent and United Utilities, meaning every wastewater company in England and Wales is under investigation over sewage spills. Ofwat said it had served formal notices on Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water, Hafren Dyfrdwy, Severn Trent and United Utilities, asking them to provide evidence for its investigation into companies’ wastewater management in England and Wales. The regulator has looked at the companies’ environmental performance and data about how often they spill from storm overflows. It said this had … Continue reading Every water firm in England and Wales, one Scottish caravan site and one guy in Muir of Ord under investigation over sewage spills

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England and Wales releasing prisoners early at nearly TWICE the rate of Scotland

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By Professor John Robertson In the Guardian today, the above and: Rishi Sunak’s government released more than 10,000 prisoners up to 70 days early, figures reveal, as the new justice secretary prepares to announce further emergency measures to ease another overcrowding crisis in jails. Ministry of Justice figures show that 10,083 prisoners were allowed to walk free under the end of custody supervised licence (ECSL) scheme between October 2023 and June 2024 in England and Wales. https://www.theguardian.com/society/article/2024/jul/12/over-10000-prisoners-freed-70-days-early-sunak-government There is no mention of criticism by opposition parties nor any estimate of how many the new Labour Government might now release. From BBC Scotland … Continue reading England and Wales releasing prisoners early at nearly TWICE the rate of Scotland

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Why there have been no whooping cough deaths in Scotland but 9 in England

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From the BMJ yesterday: Nine infants died from whooping cough in England between November last year and the end of May 2024, the UK Health Security Agency has reported. Altogether a total of 7599 cases of whooping cough have been confirmed in England this year, with cases continuing to rise from 555 in January to 920 in February, 1427 in March, 2106. https://www.bmj.com/content/386/bmj.q1545.full I’ll be accused of being a ghoul for this but by the same folk who love to blame our drug deaths on the SNP Government, so from our regular contributor stewartb in May 2024: My suspicion – … Continue reading Why there have been no whooping cough deaths in Scotland but 9 in England

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So simple and effective but Scottish – The SNP Child Payment scares other UK child poverty activists and experts into deathly silence

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The omission by a leading poverty charity on BBC Woman’s Hour  – it’s hard to conceive of a discussion of the ‘two-child benefit cap’ in which reference to the Scottish Child Payment could have been more apposite!  Inexplicable or what? By stewartb – a long read I listened to a lengthy piece on BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour (11 July) on the ‘two-child benefit cap’. This is arguably a ‘flagship’ BBC programme with a UK-wide target audience: it is a valuable platform for advocacy groups. The item was prompted by a new Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)  report on … Continue reading So simple and effective but Scottish – The SNP Child Payment scares other UK child poverty activists and experts into deathly silence

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The Cringe Cartoonist

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The Herald’s Steven Camley has a long track record of cringy comments on the communities he lives among. Not for him, the wit, not the courage, to satirise the powerful who keep us down. Today he sneers at Scotland’s GPs and housing supply to reinforce that kind of ill-informed personal experience-based moaning that Reporting Scotland can always find. Never mind the facts when a cheap laugh at yer ain folk is what you love. Never mind: From the Scottish Government on 28 May 2024: 84% of people who needed to see or speak to a doctor / nurse quite urgently were … Continue reading The Cringe Cartoonist

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Already a better society after 17 years of SNP rule and Scottish universities buck UK trend to attract more not fewer international students

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In the Guardian today, their Education editor daft enough to to use a Glasgow Uni shot, writes: UK universities face financial turmoil as figures from the Home Office show plunging numbers of international students applying for courses starting in the next academic year. Applications for sponsored study visas have fallen by 40%, suggesting the visa restrictions applied by the previous government continue to hamper recruitment. The Home Office received 28,200 applications last month, compared with 38,900 in June 2023. But three days ago, BBC Scotland had: Net migration to Scotland more than doubled in the year between 2021 and 2022 – up to … Continue reading Already a better society after 17 years of SNP rule and Scottish universities buck UK trend to attract more not fewer international students

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Swinney’s evidence that Labour’s new nuclear start-up costs are more than twice as expensive as renewables, confirmed

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From a Freedom of Information response published yesterday: Information requested At FMQs on At FMQs on 20th June 2024, John Swinney said this: Evidence shows that new nuclear is more expensive than renewable alternatives. Bearing this in mind, the information I am seeking is the evidence to which John Swinney was referring at FMQs on 20th June 2024.   Response The below figures are central cost estimates for projects commissioning in 2025 (in real 2021 prices), and can be retrieved from the following Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) publication: Electricity generation costs 2023 – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). New nuclear: £109/MWh[1]Offshore Wind: £44/MWhOnshore Wind: £38/MWhLarge-scale … Continue reading Swinney’s evidence that Labour’s new nuclear start-up costs are more than twice as expensive as renewables, confirmed