Tag: politics

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The evidence that UK Government ‘suspicion of the Scots’ led to inferior Covid-19 pandemic measures and the unnecessary deaths of thousands in England and Wales

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By Professor John Robertson, OBA In the National today: Mark Drakeford: Tories’ ‘suspicion of the Scots’ hindered UK in Covid THERE was an “inherent suspicion” in the way the UK government dealt with its devolved counterparts during the Covid pandemic because they were “worried about the Scots,” the former first minister of Wales has said. The above table is summarised by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation on page 100 of UK Poverty 2023 published on 26 January 2023, as: Scotland has the lowest mortality rate per 100,000 people for every degree of deprivation across the UK [p100] https://www.jrf.org.uk/uk-poverty-2023-the-essential-guide-to-understanding-poverty-in-the-uk That the above variation … Continue reading The evidence that UK Government ‘suspicion of the Scots’ led to inferior Covid-19 pandemic measures and the unnecessary deaths of thousands in England and Wales

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Comparison of educational performance across UK at odds with Labour Party spokesperson’s claim of ‘failure’ in Scotland.

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By stewartb A report from the Centre for Cities provides striking comparative analysis of levels of educational qualifications across 65 of the UK’s cities and large towns. Source: Centre for Cities (January 2025) Cities Outlook 2025 (https://www.centreforcities.org/publication/cities-outlook-2025/ ) The Centre’s research is summarised in two tables (reproduced below). In Table 10, the remarkable finding is that all four areas in Scotland within the scope of the Centre’s study of UK urban locations appear in the top ten in terms of the percentage of the working age population with high-level qualifications. (The report explains ‘high-level qualifications’: equivalent to Regulated Qualifications Framework … Continue reading Comparison of educational performance across UK at odds with Labour Party spokesperson’s claim of ‘failure’ in Scotland.

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Factcheck – Scotland a richer employment environment for 16 to 24 year-olds

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By Professor John Robertson OBA From Labour Market Statistics for 16 to 24 year olds: Scotland and the United Kingdom – October 2023 to September 2024, published today: Compared with the United Kingdom as a whole: the estimated employment rate for 16 to 24 year olds in Scotland was higher (55.9 per cent compared to 52.0 per cent) the estimated unemployment rate for 16 to 24 year olds in Scotland was lower (10.4 per cent compared to 11.4 per cent) the estimated inactivity rate for 16 to 24 year olds in Scotland was lower (37.6 per cent compared to 41.3 per cent) … Continue reading Factcheck – Scotland a richer employment environment for 16 to 24 year-olds

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8th sub-poll in a row confirms SNP lead of 15% to 20% over Labour

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From a YouGov poll today, with data collected on 19-20 January 2024 and based on a sample of 2 466 aged 18+: Con – 22% Lab – 26% Lib Dem – 14% Greens – 9% Reform UK – 24% with a Scottish sub-poll of 215: Con – 14% Lab – 16% Lib Dem – 13% Green – 5% Reform UK – 16% SNP – 36% Source: https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/51428-voting-intention-lab-26-ref-24-con-22-19-20-jan-2025 Previously, 7 comparable sub-polls, staring on 2/12/2024, produced these averages: Con – 13% Lab – 20% Lib Dem – 11% Greens – 7% Reform – 16% SNP – 35% These sub-polls have the … Continue reading 8th sub-poll in a row confirms SNP lead of 15% to 20% over Labour

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BBC Scotland faking baby death ‘spikes’ that were never there

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By Professor John Robertson OBA From Scottish pregnancy, births and neonatal data dashboard, published on 14th January 2025, you can see Scotland’s falling stillbirth trend with variation between 3 and 5 per 1 000 births around the ‘normal’ level of 4, from one quarter to the next. There is one quarterly figure of 5 per 1 000 in July-September 2021 but it is not repeated and is no more significant then the very low figure in the previous quarter. Scotland’s higher level of midwife and home visitor staffing must be credited as a major factor in this trend. In the second graph, … Continue reading BBC Scotland faking baby death ‘spikes’ that were never there

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4 tower block fires but no towering infernos in Scotland confirm higher building standards and more frequent safety inspections in Scotland

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By Professor John Robertson OBA I’m four-sevenths of an architect. From 1970 to 1974, I passed 4 years of the part-time Certificate course in Architecture at Glasgow School of Art before getting sacked for (guess). I could calculate how much reinforcing steel you’d need in a concrete beam, but it’s all gone now, except one thing. Everyone moaned about the local authority building control officers telling us our airy dreams were unsafe. Looking back, thank goodness they did. Anecdotally, I’ve often heard about stricter building control regulations in Scotland, going back for decades but maintained by the SNP these 18 years, as … Continue reading 4 tower block fires but no towering infernos in Scotland confirm higher building standards and more frequent safety inspections in Scotland

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New Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Scotland Office attacked her ‘local’ A&E in Fife, Scotland, despite it treating 3 000 patients per month more within the target time than her preferred local A&E in Croydon, England

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Yesterday on BBC Politics Scotland, from Westminster (see the backdrop), Melanie Ward, Scottish Labour MP for Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy joined the horde of ‘Scottish’ Labour MPs serving up and humiliating their local communities in the service of the UK Labour Party. From the local Courier in May 2024: A Palestine medical charity boss based in London has been picked to stand for Labour in the Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy seat at the next election. Melanie Ward was chosen to replace disgraced candidate Wilma Brown, who was ditched by the party after she liked “racist” posts on social media.1 Only 6 months earlier, … Continue reading New Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Scotland Office attacked her ‘local’ A&E in Fife, Scotland, despite it treating 3 000 patients per month more within the target time than her preferred local A&E in Croydon, England

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The lure of a negatively framed headline about Scotland’s environment to conceal what the expert actually said

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By stewartb So a highly experienced journalist with the Guardian – its Scotland editor no less – demonstrates how to manufacture a negative frame for a news story.  As you read on, is the editor revealing that it’s OK for journalists supposedly serving the public in Scotland to mis-report – to  manipulate – the content of an interview in order to create a damning headline? As it’s well know that headlines impact readers, is this a blatant example of seeking to influence by deception? Note the headline (from January 19, 2025): ‘We are resting on our laurels’: Scotland faces significant challenge … Continue reading The lure of a negatively framed headline about Scotland’s environment to conceal what the expert actually said

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84 000 Scots are paid the living wage [but not by Mrs Sarwar]who would not be in England and 840 000 more in England are not but would be if they lived in Scotland

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In the Guardian yesterday: Low-paid cleaners have accused the Living Wage Foundation of giving accreditation to an “uncaring” outsourcing company paying less than the living wage. Facilities services giant OCS is accredited under a bespoke scheme for outsourcing firms. But the company has only committed to paying a living wage to its centrally employed staff. The scheme does not cover the majority of OCS’s 50,000 workforce, who are tied to external contracts. 1 What’s the picture across the UK? Scotland has the highest proportion of workers aged 18 and over who are paid the real Living Wage at 89.9% – ahead of … Continue reading 84 000 Scots are paid the living wage [but not by Mrs Sarwar]who would not be in England and 840 000 more in England are not but would be if they lived in Scotland

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Putting the Scotland’s below inflation cost increases into context

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By stewartb Mr Whittle chooses to be a Tory. He has no doubt been delighted that the UK had a Tory government in Westminster for more than a decade prior to mid-2024, with his Tory colleagues responsible for setting most UK fiscal and all monetary policies. Plus responsibility for determining the financing of local government in England, with its knock on impacts for the ‘block grant’ transferred to NI, Scotland and Wales. And so he really does need to face up to and acknowledge his own party’s impact! in government! From the Swim England website dated November 21, 2023: ‘Ongoing high … Continue reading Putting the Scotland’s below inflation cost increases into context