Tag: scotland

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Newly created Mayors and far less powers for the Scottish government – That’s where you might live

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Help Talking-up Scotland keep going Crowdfunder at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-talking-up-scotland-keep-going Or by direct bank transfer to: JOHN WATSON ROBERTSON Sort Code – 08-91-04 Account – 12266421 By Liz S “Far more probation officers and far less re-offending – that’s where you live, really” Also potentially “far more” newly created Mayors and “far less” powers for the Scottish government – “that’s where you live” , as in perhaps coming soon within Scotland under a Andy Burnham UK Premiership. BBC website politics section article dated 23 August 2026: (English) “Mayors to get powers to overrule local councils on planning decisions”. “Mayors across England will be given new powers to overrule local councils … Continue reading Newly created Mayors and far less powers for the Scottish government – That’s where you might live

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Exodus, Loquaciousness And Made-Up Numbers….in the Daily Record

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By Mark E. Saunders of “The Scottish Minuteman” https://www.facebook.com/profile.php/?id=61575625542197 ___________________________________________________________ Help Talking-up Scotland keep going. Crowdfunder at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-talking-up-scotland-keep-going Or by direct bank transfer to: MR JW ROBERTSON Sort Code – 08-91-04 Account – 12266421 ___________________________________________________________ Wow! That Daily Record headline certainly gives the impression of a measurable exodus of Scots workers moving to England to “escape” SNP income tax. But it is a highly questionable — if not entirely misleading — statement to make. Where do these British tabloid newspapers pull their numbers from? That was a rhetorical question — just to preempt your answers. The latest published migration report from HMRC actually shows that Scotland has been a net recipient of … Continue reading Exodus, Loquaciousness And Made-Up Numbers….in the Daily Record

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Grenfell – England is letting companies pass the buck

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In the Guardian today, the above and: There is something profoundly wrong when the company behind Grenfell Tower’s flammable cladding paid more compensation to its shareholders than to victims of the disaster. Of Arconic’s £86m in Grenfell-related settlements, all but £1.5m was covered by insurers. Hardly enough to make a multinational think again. The company whose product the inquiry found was the “primary cause” of the fire’s rapid spread has ended up paying only a fraction of the wider social cost, while the multibillion-pound bill for making hundreds of buildings safe falls largely on the state. In June 2017, 72 people – … Continue reading Grenfell – England is letting companies pass the buck

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Serious assaults in Glasgow drop 33% to 5 year-low and overall violence increases at significantly lower rate than across Scotland

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BBC Scotland have exported the above story to BBC Breakfast, have a special on it tonight, and claim: Videos of brutal beatings, blatant drug deals, and racial violence in the centre of Scotland’s biggest city have become a common sight on social media. Posts claim that parts of Glasgow’s city centre are a “no-go zone” where it’s not safe for unsuspecting members of the public, especially women, to enter. Angry protests have spilled on to the streets – but is it as bad as some say? https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckgdej0xxgyo Note, the source for these claims is not official figures but merely ‘common … Continue reading Serious assaults in Glasgow drop 33% to 5 year-low and overall violence increases at significantly lower rate than across Scotland

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One tunnel designer accuses Scotland of falling behind on tunnels while another says they’d never pay for themselves – Who will the Herald quote?

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In the Herald today the above. Who accuses? This guy, a ‘top’ tunnel designer. How strong is the case for replacing Scotland’s west coast ferries with tunnels? UK Treasury Green Book-style present-value calculations (with discounting) often make high-upfront tunnel capital look less favourable than ongoing ferry replacement and operating costs, even when undiscounted lifetime cash costs favour tunnels. Recent Shetland analyses illustrate this divergence. https://www.shetlandtimes.co.uk/news/could-much-criticised-treasury-guidance-on-public-spending-d-436409/ Low traffic volumes: On sparsely populated islands, pure financial payback via tolls or conventional CBA is difficult. One tunnelling expert [Martin Knights] publicly stated Shetland-style schemes “would never pay for itself” under standard cost-benefit analysis … Continue reading One tunnel designer accuses Scotland of falling behind on tunnels while another says they’d never pay for themselves – Who will the Herald quote?

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What would Scotland’s fiscal position be outside the UK?

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By derekscott1953 Richard Murphy’s argument (above) demonstrates why the independence debate needs two sets of numbers, not one. 1. What is Scotland’s fiscal position inside the UK? GERS addresses that. We may argue about some of the assumptions, and its origins in the 1990s, but Scottish Governments do not disassociate from the analysis. Maybe they should in future in order to move this debate on? 2. What would Scotland’s fiscal position be outside the UK? That’s the estimated calculation Murphy says matters, but his articles and videos never try to provide it. I accept if we were facing another referendum … Continue reading What would Scotland’s fiscal position be outside the UK?

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Naïve SNP dismiss China warnings

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By Liz S So today, surprise surprise (not), the front pages of the decidedly non Scottish editions of The Daily Mail & The Daily Express state this: The Daily mail – “Naïve SNP dismiss China warnings”. The Daily Express – “SNP support for Chinese turbine plant poses profound security risk“. I prefer to “dismiss” anything that the Daily Mail front pages write about either the SNP or Scotland. Also it is clear that The Daily Express “poses a profound risk” to truth and honesty when writing about politics in Scotland , that is due to their (obvious) “support” for ‘any party but the SNP in Scotland due to their (most … Continue reading Naïve SNP dismiss China warnings

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Scotland is deliberately having costs dumped on it by Westminster

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By Liz S Kevin Hague has had a lot to say on the recent released GERS figures via his ‘X account , that is in him discrediting anyone who argues that it is not an honest reflection on the reality of Scotland’s finances as a future independent country. Indeed in respect to Richard Murphy arguing that “”Scotland is deliberately having costs dumped on it by Westminster in a way that is entirely unreasonable” Hague’s response to that was this: “a quick watch and i counted at least 8 massive factual errors and/or idiotic statements – is it worth me writing them up or does … Continue reading Scotland is deliberately having costs dumped on it by Westminster

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They are certainly better together

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By Liz S I also saw on the BBC website today under their ‘Scottish’ page , the front page headlines of the newspapers where it included: The most certainly not ‘Scottish’ Daily Mail front page: “We really are better together” “Being part of the Union worth record “2.7k to every Scot”. “Known as the Union dividend”. First of all this is not a Union that Scotland is a part of. Second of all , the English gutter press constantly promoting that the UK somehow benefits Scots more than other citizens living elsewhere within the UK, is completely and also conveniently ignoring what Scotland contributes to their UK State . For example the … Continue reading They are certainly better together

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The Hammer Of The Scots – Can Scotland afford to remain part of the Union?

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By Mark E. Saunders of “The Scottish Minuteman” https://www.facebook.com/profile.php/?id=61575625542197 Every August, a report drops like a hammer — GERS. The Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland report arrives with the same ritual timing, and the same ritual headlines. Scotland, we are told, is broke. Scotland, we are told, is subsidised. Scotland, we are told, cannot stand on its own two metaphorical feet. I must admit, it is an interesting annual event. But I really don’t want to talk about the methodology of GERS, or the fact that 25 of its 26 figures are more guesswork than estimates. Those arguments have been made many times before … Continue reading The Hammer Of The Scots – Can Scotland afford to remain part of the Union?