Tag: scotland

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Canadian ferry service is 44% more expensive without the kind of massive £173 MILLION subsidy given by SNP Government for islanders in Scotland

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By Professor John Robertson Washington State Ferries in the USA have just announced new prices for the popular 15 miles, 1 hour crossing of the sheltered Puget Sound, between Bremerton and Seattle – $54.35 or £43.30. https://mynorthwest.com/3959021/travel-alert-washington-ferry-prices-go-up-amid-waves-riders/ The popular 14.3 miles, 1 hour 20 minutes crossing of the, at times very stormy, Firth of Clyde, from Brodick, Arran to Ardrossan, is £30.20. How is this possible? In 2022/2023, the SNP Government ferry subsidy to keep prices down to affordable levels for hopefully grateful islanders, native or settler, was £173 MILLION! https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/24276739.calmac-gets-63-real-terms-public-subsidy-rise-despite-drop/#:~:text=Then%20the%20grant%20to%20CalMac,space%20of%20just%20one%20year. There are many mainland villages in Scotland with far … Continue reading Canadian ferry service is 44% more expensive without the kind of massive £173 MILLION subsidy given by SNP Government for islanders in Scotland

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13 000 WASPI women in Ayrshire should know that Labour and Conservative candidates do not support their claim – the SNP does

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Ayrshire’s roughly 13 000 WASPI women who have been cheated out of their pension rights, forcing many to work on into older age, burned out, often caring for elderly and sick parents, denied time with grandchildren and becoming sick themselves, have for years now asked the UK Government to offer a little compensation for those losses. On 30th April 2024, in the Scottish Parliament, the First Minister, Humza Yousaf of the SNP, tabled a motion calling for the UK Government, which is responsible for pensions, to pay compensation in full. All of the 63 SNP and all of the Scottish … Continue reading 13 000 WASPI women in Ayrshire should know that Labour and Conservative candidates do not support their claim – the SNP does

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BBC & ITV are orchestrating a pile on

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By NMRN So BBC Debate night has included Ash Regan and Lorna Slater on their panel….of course they have. Preston tonight has the Labour branch office manager Anas Sarwar as a guest…of course it does. BBC QT tomorrow in Cambridge has an SNP MP on it’s panel…of course they do. Both the BBC & ITV are orchestrating a pile on during what is a time of mega over promoted troubled times for the SNP by the media….while we also see one of them, ITV, laying out the red carpet for Sarwar to do what he does best……playing politics…..to try and … Continue reading BBC & ITV are orchestrating a pile on

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The SNP government’s survival did not depend on Green votes only on their refusal to vote with this unholy Blue alliance

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From BBC Scotland today: The SNP government’s survival depended on Green votes David Henderson BBC Scotland political correspondent The chamber of the Scottish Parliament is an impressive place. More so on a day like today. Noisy too. There was a full house of MSPs. Notable among them, former FM Nicola Sturgeon. The debate today – on Motion 13005 – was a matter of political life and death. A vote of no confidence, with the survival of this Scottish government at stake. So it was a bit odd to see Humza Yousaf as its principal defender. He’s already lost his job. … Continue reading The SNP government’s survival did not depend on Green votes only on their refusal to vote with this unholy Blue alliance

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First poll since SNP/Green split suggests first tentative signs of SNP recovery

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By Professor John Robertson A YouGov poll of 1 034, 16+, with fieldwork on 26-29 April, has: For Westminster, Labour up 1 at 34%, from 33 in March; SNP up 2 from 31 to 33 and the Greens down one from 5 to 4. For Holyrood Constituency Vote, Labour stalled at 32; SNP up 2 from 31 to 33 and Greens down 1 from 5 to 4. For the regional/list vote, Labour stalled on 24; SNP up 1 from 22 to 23 and Greens down from 4 to 3. On whether the SNP was right to end the power sharing … Continue reading First poll since SNP/Green split suggests first tentative signs of SNP recovery

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Six ferries ‘down’ YET state-owned CalMac at 100% where it matters and not one island cut-off

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By Professor John Robertson, Talking-up Scotland’s International Ferry Correspondent and Factchecker In the Herald today: Six of CalMac’s ageing ferry fleet were placed out of action at the weekend as a new breakdown ‘calamity’ has deepened. Thirty-three-year-old MV Loch Buie, the 11-year-old pioneering diesel electric hybrid ferry MV Lochinvar and CalMac’s oldest ferry 48-year-old MV Isle of Cumbrae, joined MV Caledonian Isles, MV Loch Shira and MV Isle of Lewis on the sidelines since Friday as a new wave of problems hit the state-owned ferry company’s fleet. Here’s the thing. State-owned and because it is, CalMac has the resources to … Continue reading Six ferries ‘down’ YET state-owned CalMac at 100% where it matters and not one island cut-off

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Ardrossan to Arran ferry – Manchester billionaire tax exile’s company is to blame for reduced services and safety risks

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In ukdj today: “The facilities at Ardrossan have not been maintained to an acceptable standard,” stated Duncan Mackison, Interim Chief Executive of CalMac, in the submission. He detailed the “continuing deterioration” of the Ardrossan berths, emphasising that the lack of investment has significantly impacted the operation and safety of ferry services. Over the past decade, CalMac has paid a staggering £15,480,000 in fees for the use of the berths, split into berthing and traffic dues. Despite this substantial outlay, the necessary reinvestment in harbour maintenance appears lacking argue the ferry firm. https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/calmac-criticise-peel-ports-harbour-maintenance/ Where does that money go? Peel Ports Group Ltd are the … Continue reading Ardrossan to Arran ferry – Manchester billionaire tax exile’s company is to blame for reduced services and safety risks

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Far better staffing ratio means teaching assistants in Scotland not replacing teachers but Herald and Glasgow Times happy to deceive you

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By Professor John Robertson Thanks to Dottie for alerting me to this: In the Guardian today: Hundreds of thousands of pupils in England and Wales are being educated “on the cheap” by low-paid teaching assistants (TAs) covering lessons for teachers who are off sick or have quit, according to new research. A desperate teacher recruitment crisis, compounded by inadequate funding, means schools across the country are struggling to put a qualified teacher at the front of every class, unions say. https://www.theguardian.com/education/2024/apr/26/teaching-assistants-deployed-to-routinely-cover-lessons-in-england-and-wales Is this happening in Scotland too? A quick search gets this: Wow! It seems like its a thing here too. Wait, … Continue reading Far better staffing ratio means teaching assistants in Scotland not replacing teachers but Herald and Glasgow Times happy to deceive you

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Pupils feel far safer in Scottish schools than elsewhere in the UK but our media report England’s worries as ours

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By Professor John Robertson In the Guardian today: Only two in five children in England say they always feel safe at school, according to a government survey, and teachers from across Britain have told the Guardian they have seen pupils’ behaviour deteriorate over the last two years. https://www.theguardian.com/education/2024/apr/26/two-in-five-pupils-in-england-always-feel-safe-in-school-survey-behaviour So first, see that ‘in England?’ Today, the Herald, the Glasgow Times and even the National completely drop it from their headlines so as to clearly imply Scotland too is part of this crisis. The facts on Scotland below but briefly, near the bottom of the report, the Guardian has: A secondary school teacher … Continue reading Pupils feel far safer in Scottish schools than elsewhere in the UK but our media report England’s worries as ours

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CalMac currently operating at over 99% reliability with most destinations at 100%

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The Times, the Scotsman and many others are going with a ‘summer of chaos‘ narrative for Scotland’s ferries because of delays with two new boats and extended maintenance for the MV Caledonian Isles but surely those are current problems for the ferry service, affecting current performance? By Professor John Robertson, Talking-up Scotland’s International Ferries Correspondent Gee, I wonder how we could find out how reliable CalMac is? I know, unlike any other ferry service in the world, they have to publish daily figures. Let’s have a look. Yesterday – 502 sailings and 99% of them on time The day before? … Continue reading CalMac currently operating at over 99% reliability with most destinations at 100%