England’s railways pay out nearly SEVEN times more than ScotRail in compensation for cancellations and delays to flummox Graham Simpson

Talking-up Scotland costs nothing so donate to our friends at  https://www.broadcastingscotland.scot/donate/ or take out a subscription to the Scots Independent newspaper in which I have a column, at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/product-category/subscriptions/ Not for the first time, helpfully thick, the Scottish Conservative’s Graham Simpson announces gleefully, after another freedom of information request we all paid for: ScotRail has paid out a staggering £1.5 million in compensation for cancelled and delayed trains since the SNP took over the rail service. Taxpayers are footing an enormous bill as a result of the SNP overpromising and underdelivering. https://twitter.com/ScotTories/status/1767528542101799226 In the Insider, Simpson, describes this as ‘absolutely staggering.’ Remember those … Continue reading England’s railways pay out nearly SEVEN times more than ScotRail in compensation for cancellations and delays to flummox Graham Simpson

Rape offences 2-3 times higher in England & Wales than in Scotland

Talking-up Scotland costs nothing so donate to our friends at  https://www.broadcastingscotland.scot/donate/ or take out a subscription to the Scots Independent newspaper in which I have a column, at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/product-category/subscriptions/ The Guardian today, reports: Lawyers in the Crown Prosecution Service in England and Wales have trivialised teen sexual abuse, are “obsessed” about the credibility of rape victims and used victim-blaming language, according to a critical official examination into how the service deals with serious sexual crimes. The report is the first major independent examination into how the CPS prosecutes rape since a promised overhaul of the criminal justice system. It warns of a reliance on “new … Continue reading Rape offences 2-3 times higher in England & Wales than in Scotland

Reported domestic abuse in England & Wales climbing steadily to THREE times the rate in Scotland where it is also falling steadily

Talking-up Scotland costs nothing so donate to our friends at  https://www.broadcastingscotland.scot/donate/ or take out a subscription to the Scots Independent newspaper in which I have a column, at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/product-category/subscriptions/ BBC Reporting Scotland today is headlining the stories of 7 abused women whose cases, often several years old, have again become ‘the news‘ as they form the basis for another of their Disclosure series. Once more there is no context. Have these crimes become more or less common? Are they more common in Scotland than elsewhere? These are questions we’d get the answers to if they were about drug deaths or any rare phenomenon … Continue reading Reported domestic abuse in England & Wales climbing steadily to THREE times the rate in Scotland where it is also falling steadily

How one local newspaper gave the people the facts they needed to ‘Take back our town’ from English drug gangs

Talking-up Scotland costs nothing so donate to our friends at  https://www.broadcastingscotland.scot/donate/ or take out a subscription to the Scots Independent newspaper in which I have a column, at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/product-category/subscriptions/ Last September, English County Lines gangsters were driven out by mass protests in Auchinleck and Cumnock (East Ayrshire) with hundreds of locals involved. They had become increasingly angry and fearful as reports of a massive surge in cheap drug availability threatened the lives of their families, of the exploitation of vulnerable individuals to provide bases in their homes, of direct threats to kill local young men and of reports of the sexual abuse of … Continue reading How one local newspaper gave the people the facts they needed to ‘Take back our town’ from English drug gangs

Cancer patients ‘at risk’ in England, with far longer waiting times despite less demand than Scotland, is not politicised

Talking-up Scotland costs nothing so donate to our friends at  https://www.broadcastingscotland.scot/donate/ or take out a subscription to the Scots Independent newspaper in which I have a column, at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/product-category/subscriptions/ In the Guardian and on the BBC Health website: Cancer patients may be at risk due to overstretched NHS staff, ombudsman warns Cancer patients at risk from stretched NHS, says NHS complaints chief No statistics are offered about actual waiting times. No politician is named or blamed and there is nothing like this which BBC Health did offer last year, much to the reported horror at BBC Scotland: Not only does Scotland have far … Continue reading Cancer patients ‘at risk’ in England, with far longer waiting times despite less demand than Scotland, is not politicised

English drug gang travels 600 miles to Aberdeen to enslave vulnerable locals but still no main news coverage after 5 years of abuse

A County Lines gang arrested in Aberdeen last year. Talking-up Scotland costs nothing so donate to our friends at  https://www.broadcastingscotland.scot/donate/ or take out a subscription to the Scots Independent newspaper in which I have a column, at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/product-category/subscriptions/ BBC Scotland and the Scottish newspaper front pages have nothing on this dramatic story today of a Southampton based ‘County Lines‘ drug gang moving into Aberdeen, significantly increasing the supply of proscribed drugs and the level of ‘Modern Slavery’ whereby vulnerable locals have their homes occupied by extremely violent criminals as bases from which to deal the drugs. Sexual abuse of women and children often … Continue reading English drug gang travels 600 miles to Aberdeen to enslave vulnerable locals but still no main news coverage after 5 years of abuse

MPs on UK defence – increasingly reliant on allies to protect UK national interests whilst equipment budget for its nuclear weapons soars by 62% (that’s £38.2 billion)

Talking-up Scotland costs nothing so donate to our friends at  https://www.broadcastingscotland.scot/donate/ or take out a subscription to the Scots Independent newspaper in which I have a column, at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/product-category/subscriptions/ … and the ONLY Royal Navy ship able to fully replenish the UK’s aircraft carriers will be unavailable for a year because of a refit! By stewartb It’s always relevant to amplify new information about the actual state of this UK nation-state, the one within which we in Scotland are supposedly ‘better together’. Is the UK all that it’s cracked up to be in Unionist messaging? Notwithstanding the fact that in the Union the … Continue reading MPs on UK defence – increasingly reliant on allies to protect UK national interests whilst equipment budget for its nuclear weapons soars by 62% (that’s £38.2 billion)

The real and the opportunity costs of Union – how much more will Scotland’s electorate accept?

Talking-up Scotland costs nothing so donate to our friends at  https://www.broadcastingscotland.scot/donate/ or take out a subscription to the Scots Independent newspaper in which I have a column, at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/product-category/subscriptions/ By stewartb – a long read Amongst the political noise generated by the UK Chancellor’s budget, one remark hit home. On the Radio 4 Today programme (7 March), Jeremy Hunt when asked about the ‘losers’ from his budget, remarked in reply: ‘I’ve asked the Scottish oil & gas industry to make an additional contribution …’. (https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001wymc – at c. 2:17 in – with my emphasis) This is referring to an extension of the period … Continue reading The real and the opportunity costs of Union – how much more will Scotland’s electorate accept?

Former Labour candidate back in the Scotsman with fake news on Scottish schools which are actually funded 18% higher

Talking-up Scotland costs nothing so donate to our friends at  https://www.broadcastingscotland.scot/donate/ or take out a subscription to the monthly Scots Independent newspaper in which I have a column, at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/product-category/subscriptions/ Today, in the Scotsman, Barry Black, with no mention of who or what he might be, is allowed to suggest the Scottish Government is underfunding schools. Black was on BBC Scotland’s The Nine, last November, to tell a few viewers that the Scottish Government was failing to close attainment gaps. you can read the response here: https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2023/11/24/scotsman-and-bbc-let-labour-candidate-and-just-a-student-pretend-to-be-an-independent-researcher-and-to-make-big-mistakes-on-attainment/ Who is he? Introduced as a ‘researcher’ on BBC Scotland’s The Nine and in the Scotsman the next day … Continue reading Former Labour candidate back in the Scotsman with fake news on Scottish schools which are actually funded 18% higher

A&E patient spends 5 days in a chair in a ‘warzone’ hospital but the Welsh Labour Health Secretary is not responsible in any way

Talking-up Scotland costs nothing so donate to our friends at  https://www.broadcastingscotland.scot/donate/ or take out a subscription to my favourite, nearly 100 year-old, paper-based, to your door, Scots Independent newspaper, at: https://scotsindependent.scot/FWShop/product-category/subscriptions/ From BBC Wales today: Man spends five days in chairs at ‘warzone’ hospital. A patient who said he was left waiting in a hospital chair for five days has described his “nightmare” experience. Nicky Morgan, 42, went to Morriston Hospital, Swansea, on Saturday night with severe headaches and was told he had a potentially serious condition.But he said he was told there were no beds and has slept on a chair in a … Continue reading A&E patient spends 5 days in a chair in a ‘warzone’ hospital but the Welsh Labour Health Secretary is not responsible in any way