Tag: travel

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Anti-immigrant hate crime arrests at protests/riots in England are running at 300 times the level in Scotland

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From BBC Scotland yesterday: Police have issued a warning about hate crime and violent disorder after hundreds of people gathered outside a property in Glasgow. The protest, during which windows were said to have been smashed, took place in Tormusk Road, Castlemilk, at about 18:50 on Wednesday. It follows another incident on Tuesday when police were called to a large gathering of people who had gathered outside a block of flats in Lamlash Crescent in the Cranhill area. A Police Scotland spokesman said: “Violence, disorder, hate crime and threatening behaviour that poses a risk to safety is not legitimate protest. Anyone who … Continue reading Anti-immigrant hate crime arrests at protests/riots in England are running at 300 times the level in Scotland

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Truth be told even Scotland’s ‘most dangerous’ place is less so than 27 of them in England and far less so than 18 of them

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The Daily Record yesterday had the above and: Scotland’s “most dangerous” areas have been named as part of a new list put together by security experts, with one of the country’s major cities placing first. The city was described by the experts as having “startling figures across the board”, with overall crimes figures rising by more than 5 per cent. On Tuesday, July 7, ProFM Group shared a roundup of Scotland’s 15 most dangerous destinations using official data from the Scottish Government Data Repository. The experts expressed this as a rate of the number of crimes per 10,000 residents, which is the … Continue reading Truth be told even Scotland’s ‘most dangerous’ place is less so than 27 of them in England and far less so than 18 of them

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As Ayr remembers the tens of thousands of Scots who died in the Battle of the Somme a reminder that ‘It can be said with certainty that men born in Scotland did suffer disproportionately more deaths during the First War’

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In the Ayr Advertiser today, the above and: From July 1-13, 140 silhouettes are being displayed in Wellington Square to commemorate the 110th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme. 1 From the National Records of Scotland in January 2001: The Battle of the Somme was a mass allied offensive of the First World War by the British and French armies against the Germans. Conceived by General Haig, the prelude to the attack was a week-long bombardment of the German lines. Over 1.5 million shells were fired, in an attempt to destroy the German defences and allow the allied armies … Continue reading As Ayr remembers the tens of thousands of Scots who died in the Battle of the Somme a reminder that ‘It can be said with certainty that men born in Scotland did suffer disproportionately more deaths during the First War’

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‘I see tourists pee in front of my house?’ – the real campervan crisis was in 2021

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BBC Scotland this morning is going large on: ‘I see tourists pee in front of my house’: The campervan problem on the Isle of Skye. More than 30,000 trips by campervans and motorhomes are made to the Scottish Highlands every year – with many of them touring the Isle of Skye. For islanders, the tourists play an important part in the local economy. But some visitors bring significant challenges too – leaving litter and even toilet waste in the stunning landscape. Julia Dawber says people should be discreet when nature calls. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crlwj7z7481o As an aside, it is good to see … Continue reading ‘I see tourists pee in front of my house?’ – the real campervan crisis was in 2021

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Be Careful What You Sound Like

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By Mark E. Saunders of “The Scottish Minuteman” https://www.facebook.com/profile.php/?id=61575625542197 When we read through today’s article abovefrom The Daily Express, it appears to be little more than comedy gold worthy of Armando Iannucci. Read it in the context of Scottish history, however, and it becomes something rather more sinister. The debate is supposedly about authenticity. But authenticity measured by what? Policy? Integrity? Competence? No. Pronunciation. For centuries, the British state understood something that many modern commentators of the British experiment often overlook: language is power. Following Culloden, the assault upon Scotland did not end with disarmed clans and outlawing highland dress. It continued in classrooms, … Continue reading Be Careful What You Sound Like

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Affluent Canadian region hangs on to far older, unreliable and frankly pot ugly vessels – islanders leave saddened by lack of aesthetics

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CalMac‘s oldest ferry, the MV Isle of Cumbrae (above) is 50, launched in 1976. the MV Isle of Arran is 43 and there are another 4 built in 1986, so 40 years-old. In British Columbia‘s (Canada) archipelago ferry service – BC Ferries – which operates in an economy with twice the GDP of Scotland, with only a fraction of government subsidy to keep ticket prices down and in warmer, less stormy, more southerly, seas, they keep them going long after the MSM operating in Scotland would be calling for them to be replaced to stop islanders starving, missing medical appointments … Continue reading Affluent Canadian region hangs on to far older, unreliable and frankly pot ugly vessels – islanders leave saddened by lack of aesthetics

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Shetland business woman tell complete lie about how Scottish Government funds, ‘extremely highly’ overfunds, their service

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So, a representative of some Shetland Islands business group gets to tell the Westminster Scottish Affairs committee that ferry transport is underfunded in Scotland. Watch now a Labour member of that committee invite the PM to damn the SNP Government with that claim. is the claim true? How do the relative subsidies for ferry transport in Scotland, Norway, British Columbia, Washington State, UK Channel Islands and Isle of Wight compare in light of this claim – https://www.shetlandtimes.co.uk/news/lyall-tells-mps-isles-are-in-a-race-against-time-to-resolv-437901/ Scottish island ferries (especially CalMac/CHFS and Shetland inter-island services) receive among the highest per-passenger operating subsidies of the listed regions, with very low … Continue reading Shetland business woman tell complete lie about how Scottish Government funds, ‘extremely highly’ overfunds, their service

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UK Labour deny England’s under-22’s the ‘transformative benefit’ of Scotland’s free bus scheme as it hits more than 300 million journeys

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From Transport Scotland yesterday, the above and: Children and young people in Scotland have now made over 300 million free bus journeys since the Scottish Government introduced free travel for under-22s. Since January 2022, the scheme continues to transform how young people are traveling by bus, saving people money, supporting greener travel, and boosting the economy by opening up access to education, jobs, and leisure. Over 80% of eligible young people have access to the scheme through a National Entitlement Card or Young Scot National Entitlement Card. Source: https://www.transport.gov.scot/news/over-300-million-free-bus-trips-made-by-young-people-across-scotland/ What’s happening in England, Sir Keir? Thanks to Dottie for alerting me to … Continue reading UK Labour deny England’s under-22’s the ‘transformative benefit’ of Scotland’s free bus scheme as it hits more than 300 million journeys

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Surge in e bike offences is exacerbation of wider county lines drug gangs plague from England

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From Aberdeenshire Live, last week: Fifty people have been charged in connection with a Police Scotland crackdown on illegal e-bikes in Aberdeen. The city’s Community Action Team identified 154 crimes during a three-week crackdown on illegal e-bikes, with dozens of people charged. Between Monday, May 18 and Friday, June 5, officers working on Operation Armour patrolled known crime hotspots, targeted offenders and gathered intelligence. The initiative followed an increase in reports from the public about illegal vehicle use across the city. https://www.aberdeenlive.news/news/aberdeen-news/50-people-charged-amid-huge-11007759 This is a further exacerbation of the county lines drug gangs plague, based in English cites, now into every corner of Scotland and … Continue reading Surge in e bike offences is exacerbation of wider county lines drug gangs plague from England

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Only tiny 2% of terror referrals are in Scotland because….

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The Scotsman today trying suggest terror referrals in Scotland are a serious problem just like in other parts of the UK. It’s not true. Even if we accept their claim of higher ‘preliminary’ figures up from 162 in 2024/2025 to 227 in 2025/2026, these remain tiny compared with those in other parts of the UK: So, quickly, 11 times the population, if Scotland was just as troubled by this as England & Wales, and they’d have 1 782 referrals but they had 8 778, MORE THAN FOUR times as many, 98% of the total. If we accept the Scotsman’s figure … Continue reading Only tiny 2% of terror referrals are in Scotland because….