Tag: politics

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The Galloway National Park No Campaign and their friends in high places

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Professor John Robertson OBA I knew the Galloway Hills well, oh so well, but sadly as I age, not at all anymore. I’ve been on top of every hill and some of them, multiple times. Solitude, I get it. Despite that, I’m not so well informed on the debate over the merits or otherwise of national parks. I’ve seen the media reports of human waste, litter, overcrowding, congested roads. I’ve been to the Lake District to see the extremes of that but I’ve also seen there, ordinary folk enjoying themselves responsibly and local businesses thriving. I’ve also read the reports … Continue reading The Galloway National Park No Campaign and their friends in high places

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UK Government’s dysfunctional Under-Secretary at the Scotland Office will clearly say anything, absolutely anything she’s told to say

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stewartb Should anyone book a holiday for their family on a Scottish island this summer? Should a bank or other investor support a business based on a Scottish island that relies on serving customers off island? Should anyone thinking of moving from the UK mainland or elsewhere to set up a family home or set up a business on a Scottish island? Should any resident of a Scottish island with the option of continuing to make a life there or moving to a mainland location choose the former? Should a business on the UK mainland or elsewhere enter into a … Continue reading UK Government’s dysfunctional Under-Secretary at the Scotland Office will clearly say anything, absolutely anything she’s told to say

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As the UK Ministry of Justice prepares for summer riots how only Scotland has the lower crime levels, the complete absence of riots previously, lower levels of background racism and the police staffing levels to be able to help other countries

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By Professor John Robertson OBA From the Guardian today, the above and: Prisons are being prepared to cope with a sudden influx of offenders in case there is a repeat of last summer’s riots, the justice minister, James Timpson, has told the Guardian. The facts behind my headline: From BBC Scotland on 9 August 2024, in what must be an unauthorised ‘Scotland is the best‘ report by a junior reporter not yet ‘inducted‘: Police Scotland is considering a request to send 120 officers to Northern Ireland following several nights of anti-immigration riots in Belfast and other parts of the UK. Jon … Continue reading As the UK Ministry of Justice prepares for summer riots how only Scotland has the lower crime levels, the complete absence of riots previously, lower levels of background racism and the police staffing levels to be able to help other countries

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Prof who doesn’t ‘give a flying fcuk’ resurfaces to lie about Scotland joining the EU

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Published in the Sunday Herald today, retired Prof of German History, Jill Stephenson, is enabled to repeat, above, the old claim that Scotland ‘is not qualified to join the on grounds currency, control of monetary policy, lender of last resort and deficit’. TuS gets a rare mention as a ‘separatist blog‘. Should we rename as ‘Splitting-up Britain?’ More on Prof Paterson, her colleagues in a covert letter-writing and radio phone-in group, later, but first the substance of her claim. She’s wrong, all wrong. The full answer is far too long for this place but you can read it at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/building-new-scotland-independent-scotland-eu/pages/11/ … Continue reading Prof who doesn’t ‘give a flying fcuk’ resurfaces to lie about Scotland joining the EU

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The Herald’s reporting on homes is ‘Not fit for trust’ and ‘well below a tolerable standard’ as proper researchers find 90% of Scottish homes entirely free of damp

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Professor John Robertson OBA In the Herald today: More than 700,000 Scottish homes are classed as not fit for habitation – with 600,000 more properties registered as below a legal tolerable standard since the pandemic, The Herald can reveal. Official surveys carried out for the Scottish Government show that in 2023, the number of Scots properties falling below the ‘tolerable standard’ in order to be fit for habitation has shot up from an estimated 54,000 (2%) in 2018 to 729,000 (27%) in 2023. The report is keen to link the above figures to child deaths: OMG, we think, until we … Continue reading The Herald’s reporting on homes is ‘Not fit for trust’ and ‘well below a tolerable standard’ as proper researchers find 90% of Scottish homes entirely free of damp

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Covid fallout – How Scotland did better on Covid deaths, life expectancy, homelessness and mental health care

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Professor John Robertson OBA In the Guardian today, the above and: Britain performed worse than most other developed nations in its response to the Covid pandemic, according to an Observer analysis of international data, five years on from the first lockdown. The UK spent more money than most other countries on economic help yet still ended up with larger drops in life expectancy, more people too sick to work, huge levels of homelessness and soaring mental health problems among young people. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/08/five-years-on-britons-among-hardest-hit-by-covid-fallout There’s no mention of Scotland in the Guardian survey and there’s the regular use of data from England to back … Continue reading Covid fallout – How Scotland did better on Covid deaths, life expectancy, homelessness and mental health care

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Falkirk SNP council tried to set lower council tax but Labour and Independents forced through largest council tax increase of 15.6%

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By Liz S BBC have an article on their website which is the top story on their Scottish Politics page and top story on the Tayside & Central page too and also it’s the sixth story on the main Scotland page with a headline that states: “Falkirk sets largest council tax increase of 15.6%” The text of the article explains that “The budget of the council’s SNP administration was defeated. Instead the motion of Independent councillor Laura Murtagh was backed by the Labour group and other Independents”. “Council leader and SNP councillor Cecil Meiklejohn said her administration’s proposed 13.7% would have brought … Continue reading Falkirk SNP council tried to set lower council tax but Labour and Independents forced through largest council tax increase of 15.6%

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Leading European expert says Scotland is ‘at the very top pillar with regards to patient safety’ since 2007 but BBC Scotland desperately try to hide that from you

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In Scotland’s health service every day on average. That’s according to figures obtained by the BBC. Data released under a Freedom of Information requests show the number of significant adverse events, including avoidable deaths jumped by 41% in the last four years. Professor John Robertson OBA This wee story today seems to be another one of those carried out by the Pacific Quay team, at public expense, in the hope of undermining the Scottish Government via the NHS. Details are not available at the BBC Scotland website, as yet but I’m looking forward to seeing how the wee souls came … Continue reading Leading European expert says Scotland is ‘at the very top pillar with regards to patient safety’ since 2007 but BBC Scotland desperately try to hide that from you

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The treatment of refugee children – How Scotland is trying to become a better place even before we have full control

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Professor John Robertson OBA In the Guardian today, the above and: Tens of thousands of children in migrant and refugee families in the UK are being denied access to government-funded childcare because of benefit restrictions linked to their parents’ immigration status, a report says. Having “no recourse to public funds” (NRPF) means parents are not entitled to 30 hours of free childcare and are having to stay home to look after their young children instead of working. This is pushing families into poverty and denying their children the benefits of the early years education available to their peers, the report … Continue reading The treatment of refugee children – How Scotland is trying to become a better place even before we have full control

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Major balanced poll – Information-starved public critical of Scottish Government’s record but are sure Labour would not do a better job

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By Professor John Robertson OBA The first thing I check for in any full poll is the extent to which the initial sample has been adjusted to reflect the make-up of the electorate in the 2021 Holyrood Election (not required) and they 2014 Referendum (good, they have not). In the light of the latter non-adjustment which many feel has distorted previous poll results against the SNP, we can, for the first time, reasonably trust these results. Their own headline – Public critical of Scottish Government’s record but aren’t convinced that Labour would do a better job – is surprising given … Continue reading Major balanced poll – Information-starved public critical of Scottish Government’s record but are sure Labour would not do a better job