Tag: news

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Scotland’s state schools – in 2007, 37.6% of pupils in bad or poor condition buildings, in 2024 it’s just 5.1%.

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East Dunbartonshire Council’s brand new £34.9m Additional Support Needs School – Woodland View – opened to pupils on Friday 18 August 2023. By stewartb This provides statistics for context and perspective. It follows a BBC Scotland article on the corporation’s News website on 12 October headlined: ‘Child safety fears as ‘repaired’ ceiling falls at neglected school’. Now don’t get me wrong, no one should have a piece of wood or plasterboard fall on or near their head, anywhere. And especially no one wants children to be at risk from such an incident in a school. It’s a legitimate BBC local … Continue reading Scotland’s state schools – in 2007, 37.6% of pupils in bad or poor condition buildings, in 2024 it’s just 5.1%.

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BBC Scotland develops ‘fishy’ sense of humour reporting on ‘charity’ headed up by former UK Government advisor

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BBC Scotland this morning tell is that a ‘main sustainability charity’ (Open Seas) has a accused the Scottish Government of ‘floundering@ (really) because of a simple delay in getting a policy on sustainable fishing in plaice (my word) and properly developed to be effective. They’re just a Scottish charity so it’s not like Greenpeace accusing the Scottish Government. Hugh Raven, above, is the chair of the Open Seas board. Draw your own conclusions about his agenda. Draw your own conclusions as to why a simple delay like this is big news for BBC Scotland’s Reporting Scotland team when it’s not … Continue reading BBC Scotland develops ‘fishy’ sense of humour reporting on ‘charity’ headed up by former UK Government advisor

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Dangerous walks to school – what they don’t want you to know about Labour North Lanarkshire and Labour Wales

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By stewartb I notice in a BBC article a reference to North Lanarkshire Council’s financial woes: ‘In a bid to save £3.6m in August, the Council. changed the qualifying mileage limits for free school transport from one mile to two miles for primary school pupils, and two to three miles for secondary school pupils.’ One parent is quoted by BBC Scotland saying, amongst other things: “But we’re talking about a 50 minute walk for most children, and some will be more than that. So the distance is part of it, but it’s the safety.’ Of course ‘safety’ is a critically … Continue reading Dangerous walks to school – what they don’t want you to know about Labour North Lanarkshire and Labour Wales

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The Wolves of Badenoch?

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I’ve been waiting for some English politician to connect Kemi Badenoch with that other infamous Badenoch: Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, called the Wolf of Badenoch (1343 – July 1394), was a Scottish royal prince, the third son of King Robert II of Scotland by his first wife Elizabeth Mure. He was Justiciar of Scotia and held large territories in the north of Scotland. He is best remembered for his destruction of the royal burgh of Elgin and its cathedral. His sobriquet was given due to his notorious cruelty and rapacity. There is a legend that Stewart—the “Wolf of Badenoch”—died after a chess game with the Devil. According to this legend, Stewart was visited … Continue reading The Wolves of Badenoch?

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Shameful – BBC Scotland’s zombie reporters use a financial fraud investigation to return to unfounded accusations of child death from water supplies

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By Professor John Robertson OBA Reporting on a police and NHS investigation only into financial fraud, BBC Scotland are delighted to add: The QEUH campus, which includes the Royal Hospital for Children, was hailed as a world-leading facility when it opened. However, a series of infection outbreaks and concerns around the water and ventilation systems emerged after it opened and a number of patients died, including 10-year-old cancer patient Milly Main. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gl49vvjgro This is shameful politicising of personal suffering, scaremongering of the million plus served by the hospital, and deliberate harm to the mental well-being of thousands of NHS staff, based on … Continue reading Shameful – BBC Scotland’s zombie reporters use a financial fraud investigation to return to unfounded accusations of child death from water supplies

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Teacher numbers row – Labour/Tory councils play politics with billions in usable reserves and risk the best pupil-teacher ratios in the UK

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BBC Scotland, still headlining and picturing the SNP Education Secretary to suggest it’s all about her actions and putting pupils’ education at risk, while ignoring the facts. First: Pupil to teacher ratios in maintained schools were lowest in Scotland (13.2) and similar in Northern Ireland (17.4), England (18.0) and Wales (18.4).1 That’s a huge percentage difference in 54 000 teachers, meaning several thousand more teachers per head of population in Scotland. It would take massive cuts, of the kind not in question, to change that significantly. Second, Scotland’s local authorities are sitting on massive usable reserves, kept for just this kind … Continue reading Teacher numbers row – Labour/Tory councils play politics with billions in usable reserves and risk the best pupil-teacher ratios in the UK

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So the Envoy will not attend the first collective meeting of those towards whom she will be the Envoy?

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By stewartb So the Envoy will not attend the first collective meeting of those towards whom she will be the Envoy! What a missed opportunity to forge relationships! This Council of Nations and Regions – which will have the Mayors of London and of England’s ‘combined authorities’ invited to attend – fails even in its own terms to be representative. The Institute for Government (IfG) on 24 June 2024 published this: ‘English devolution – What is the history of English devolution? How much of England has devolution? Which powers are devolved?’ It explains that there are currently 12 areas with mayoral … Continue reading So the Envoy will not attend the first collective meeting of those towards whom she will be the Envoy?

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What they don’t want you to know about in the ‘teacher numbers row’

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By Professor John Robertson OBA Headlining on BBC Scotland today: The Scottish government has withheld £145.5m in funding to councils because of a row over teacher numbers. It says the money has been earmarked to maintain teacher jobs, but local government body Cosla disagrees with the ringfencing. Most Scottish councils are looking at education cuts – including proposals to reduce learning hours, school buses, and classroom assistants – but only some, including Glasgow, have reduced teacher numbers. The important detail and context which BBC Scotland, the Herald and Scotsman never tell you: From 2017 to 2023, the number of pupils in … Continue reading What they don’t want you to know about in the ‘teacher numbers row’

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Drug gangs from Aylesbury and Liverpool exploiting children and vulnerable adults in Scotland plead guilty to Modern Day Slavery but our media concentrate on ‘Scotland’s Tony Soprano’

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From Merseyside Police yesterday: Three people who exploited children to sell drugs as part of a county lines network have been sentenced today (Thursday 10 October). James O’Keefe, 23, of no fixed address, Kerry Russell, 39, of Titherington Way, Liverpool and Ruby O’Keefe, 19, of Colby Close, Liverpool were sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court today (Thursday 10 October). Officers from Merseyside’s Project Medusa, the initiative to tackle county lines drug dealing and child criminal exploitation across the country, began an investigation into James O’Keefe in November 2023. Despite being in prison for previous offences, detectives established that James O’Keefe was … Continue reading Drug gangs from Aylesbury and Liverpool exploiting children and vulnerable adults in Scotland plead guilty to Modern Day Slavery but our media concentrate on ‘Scotland’s Tony Soprano’

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‘Prof’ Kezia Dugdale? You’re having me expletive deleted on!

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By Professor John Robertson OBA The host didn’t introduce Kezia Dugdale as ‘prof’ but the above appeared when she began to speak. After 30 years in HE, I got ‘prof’. To get it, I had to publish research in peer-reviewed journals, have a PhD myself and supervise PhD students. I spoke at conferences and chaired a Faculty research ethics committee. Long before I got ‘prof’ I taught research methods for years. Dugdale has a Masters degree and appeared on that get me out of the jungle show. 1 of 7 regional MSPs (not elected by constituents) for Lothian. Labour got only … Continue reading ‘Prof’ Kezia Dugdale? You’re having me expletive deleted on!