Tag: travel

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CalMac predicted to see boom in one-way Arran to Troon or Ardrossan ticket sales?

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The Talking-up Scotland fund raiser primarily, finishing on 28 February, to enable the recruitment of some research assistance, in order to take pressure off me [74 in June and tiring] and hopefully to further improve the blog, has made a good start. To contribute, only if you can (!) go to: Talking-up Scotland – a Politics crowdfunding project in Ayr by Professor John Robertson By Professor John Robertson OBA, former Faculty Research Ethics Chair, UWS Based on the 2011 census results (above), around a quarter of Arran’s 4 600 population – 1 200 – were born in England. In the south-east of the island as … Continue reading CalMac predicted to see boom in one-way Arran to Troon or Ardrossan ticket sales?

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300 years in jail for English County Lines drug gang members who had ‘their eye on Scotland’ and who English media link to stubborn drug deaths statistics in Scotland, is NOT news in Scotland it seems – why?

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Support Talking-up Scotland’s work to counter the lies and get you the facts, daily, at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/checkout/help-talking-up-scotland-tell-truth-about-scotland/payment/nBQxjVzq/details By Professor John Robertson OBA My Google Alert today, offered Operation Apollo continues crackdown on County Lines with over 300 years in jail time secured [by the above members] from Cheshire Constabulary. There’s no mention of Scotland in it but it triggered a memory in me. This from 2022: A series of raids across Scotland last week highlighted the continuing focus of Merseyside’s organised crime groups on the drugs market north of the border. Last week officers from Merseyside Police teamed up with Police Scotland for … Continue reading 300 years in jail for English County Lines drug gang members who had ‘their eye on Scotland’ and who English media link to stubborn drug deaths statistics in Scotland, is NOT news in Scotland it seems – why?

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Why is Scotland able to train almost TWICE as many nurses as England?

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By Professor John Robertson OBA, former Faculty Research Ethics Chair, UWS The Scotsman today is front-paging Alarm over fresh drop in applicants for nurses course based on a 2% reduction in applications, from 4 650 to 4 560, six months before ‘clearing’ processes in the week and months before course start, can fill the missing places. The ‘alarm’ is from a union rep and, evidence-free, the fall in applications is explained by poor working conditions, which in turn, is based upon a small sample, self-selecting (squeaky wheel) survey. Not mentioned, of course, is how this level of nurse training compares with other parts … Continue reading Why is Scotland able to train almost TWICE as many nurses as England?

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The power of early-morning nightmares – Reporting Scotland create a fictional world of dangerous prisoners released early

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By Professor John Robertson OBA, former Faculty Research Ethics Chair, UWS IMPORTANT – If you know someone frightened by the broadcast above or by the same story in their newspaper, tell them the facts below to reassure them! BBC Reporting Scotland‘s insert on early prisoner release in BBC Breakfast at 06:30, with repeated doses throughout the day is classic propaganda designed to keep you and especially your elderly and vulnerable neighbours, fearful of change. There’s a strong correlation between heavy news consumption and anxiety/depression. Some groups, the elderly, the inform, the disabled, are more likely to be worried by reports that seem to … Continue reading The power of early-morning nightmares – Reporting Scotland create a fictional world of dangerous prisoners released early

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England’s NHS underperformance day, bed-blocking, community care and road accidents set BBC Scotland an impossible task to match the misery – third, road deaths

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The Talking-up Scotland fund raiser primarily to enable the recruitment of some research assistance, in order to take pressure off me [74 in June and tiring] and hopefully to further improve the blog, has made a good start. To contribute, only if you can (!) go to: Talking-up Scotland – a Politics crowdfunding project in Ayr by Professor John Robertson By Professor John Robertson OBA, former Faculty Research Ethics Chair, UWS In a typically Anglocentric piece, BBC Breakfast spend some time on speeding and road deaths with no awareness of any differences across the UK’s four nations. BBC Scotland are struggling to compete … Continue reading England’s NHS underperformance day, bed-blocking, community care and road accidents set BBC Scotland an impossible task to match the misery – third, road deaths

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England’s NHS underperformance day, bed-blocking, community care and road deaths set BBC Scotland an impossible task to match the misery – first the NHS

johnrobertson834

The Talking-up Scotland fund raiser primarily to enable the recruitment of some research assistance, in order to take pressure off me [74 in June and tiring] and hopefully to further improve the blog, has made a good start. To contribute, only if you can (!) go to: Talking-up Scotland – a Politics crowdfunding project in Ayr by Professor John Robertson By Professor John Robertson OBA, former Faculty Research Ethics Chair, UWS Today, NHS England’s performance data come in and the omens, judging by the media attention, are bad. I’ll do a direct comparison later. For the moment, a reminder of the numerous sets … Continue reading England’s NHS underperformance day, bed-blocking, community care and road deaths set BBC Scotland an impossible task to match the misery – first the NHS

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Worried about your child at University? Everywhere across the UK is more dangerous, often much more so, than anywhere in Scotland, including Oxford and Cambridge

johnrobertson834

The Talking-up Scotland fund raiser primarily to enable the recruitment of some research assistance, in order to take pressure off me [74 in June and tiring] and hopefully to further improve the blog, has made a good start. To contribute, only if you can (!) go to: Talking-up Scotland – a Politics crowdfunding project in Ayr by Professor John Robertson By Professor John Robertson OBA, former Faculty Research Ethics Chair, UWS I did this years ago and have been meaning to do it again. From the Complete University Guide – How safe is your city? published in March 2024, the above table, shows … Continue reading Worried about your child at University? Everywhere across the UK is more dangerous, often much more so, than anywhere in Scotland, including Oxford and Cambridge

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Scotland’s private sector economy surges in UK league but the news ‘falls of the BBC News editor’s table’

johnrobertson834

The Talking-up Scotland fund raiser primarily to enable the recruitment of some research assistance, in order to take pressure off me [74 in June and tiring] and hopefully to further improve the blog, has made a good start. To contribute, only if you can (!) go to: Talking-up Scotland – a Politics crowdfunding project in Ayr by Professor John Robertson By Professor John Robertson OBA, former Faculty Research Ethics Chair, UWSIn the Herald today, by their only decent journalist, Ian McConnell: Scotland last month surged up the league table of UK nations and regions in terms of the performance of its private sector … Continue reading Scotland’s private sector economy surges in UK league but the news ‘falls of the BBC News editor’s table’

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I see we are about to nationalise it but why should we, the Scottish taxpayer, pay much for the Ardrossan dock, fully owned and neglected by a Manchester billionaire tax exile ?

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First posted nearly a year ago By Professor John Robertson OBA Front page in the Herald today, 18 paragraphs putting responsibility for the maintenance of the Ardrossan dock, one of the two hubs for Arran crossings, onto the First Minister, based on the prompting of Katy Clark, Labour MSP and Baroness of Kilwinning. After reading those 18 paragraphs, would any reader wonder who owns the dock? CalMac? Scottish Government? North Ayrshire Council? Nope, it’s James Whittaker, a Manchester billionaire. Read on. In the UK Defence Journal in April 2024: “The facilities at Ardrossan have not been maintained to an acceptable standard,” stated Duncan Mackison, Interim … Continue reading I see we are about to nationalise it but why should we, the Scottish taxpayer, pay much for the Ardrossan dock, fully owned and neglected by a Manchester billionaire tax exile ?

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TWICE as many wait over 8 hours in NHS Wales A&E departments but Holyrood Mag finds a way to hide that fact and others favourable to NHS Scotland as well as to fake their figures

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stewartb An article about NHS Scotland in Holyrood Magazine today has a very odd statistic. Am I missing something? See: Holyrood Magazine (February10, , 2025) Bed Bound: The chronic problem of delayed discharges is tying up resources across the NHS. Here is the text with the problematic stat (the named reference is to the author of a recent IFS report): ‘The honest answer is that it’s probably too early to tell, although Phillips says there are some signs of recovery in England’s NHS based on available data. Meanwhile, figures published last week showed more than 180,000 patients waited more than eight hours … Continue reading TWICE as many wait over 8 hours in NHS Wales A&E departments but Holyrood Mag finds a way to hide that fact and others favourable to NHS Scotland as well as to fake their figures