Talking-up Scotland

 

© BBC and Channel 4

Tonight at 6:30pm, Jackie Bird announced proudly:

‘A ferry operator [P&O] is to stop carrying calves to Europe after animal welfare concerns were raised in an investigation by BBC Scotland’s Disclosure team.’

The decision by P&O is a panicked reaction to ‘Disclosure: The Dark Side of Dairy’, a deeply flawed and confused piece of work, already covered here:

Reporting Scotland lie about their own documentary to ‘beef-up’ the bad news for Scotland

Most important, was the BBC team’s failure to provide any concrete evidence of the transport of the very young calves beyond Northern Ireland, after a 2 hour-only journey. Finding that she had followed the same lorry from Larne to France, but now containing much older calves, we were asked to accept as evidence only verbal conversations she claimed to have had. I was not convinced.

BBC Scotland’s team knew that the only alternative to transporting and fattening calves for later slaughter is the shooting of the calves, within days of their birth. Farmer’s representatives made this clear and expressed their disquiet at having to choose the shooting option. It must be a deeply harrowing experience to shoot a virtually new-born baby animal and, from a waste management perspective, the incineration and the burial of ash from thousands of calves, plus the failure to add all of that food into the chain seems utterly indefensible.

In their populist and shoddy reporting, BBC Scotland seems not to have looked at evidence, properly or perhaps at all. See, for example, this, available to them in March:

‘The number of male calves being killed straight after birth is on the rise again, despite efforts by the dairy industry to end the practice known as ‘the dirty secret’. A Guardian analysis shows that it can cost a farmer up to £30 per calf to sell it on for beef or veal, while early disposal costs just £9. A growing number of farmers feel compelled to take the latter option, with 95,000 killed on-farm in the most recent set of figures.’

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/mar/26/dairy-dirty-secret-its-still-cheaper-to-kill-male-calves-than-to-rear-them

BBC Scotland has rushed in here, ill-informed, seeking popular approval and, if they can, harm for the reputation of the Scottish Government. The costs may be considerable, but will they face any?

 

 

 

 

• The midwifery vacancy rate in Scotland is only 3%
• Staffing levels have been constant for five years
• Scotland’s stillbirth rate is much lower than the UK and close to Scandinavian levels

 They never rest, especially if they can insert a wee nagging doubt about NHS Scotland and by implication the Scottish Government’s competence to run it, as the elderly, the sick and pregnant mums wake to the typical anxiety of humans in the early hours. For a reminder of why this matters, see:

The Power of Early Morning Nightmares and Expectant Mothers: BBC Scotland callously undermines the morale of midwives, their patients, expectant mothers and their relatives, with highly selective and un-contextualised information

At 06:26 this morning, this was inserted into a general piece about overweight babies:

‘The number of vacancies for midwives has increased significantly over the last five years.’

Here are some facts:

First, the Midwifery vacancy rate is 3%. This is not by any means a significant problem for NHS Scotland allowing as it does for the healthy transfer of staff and the arrival of ‘new blood’ within the system. If the level is currently only 3%, how can a change from less than that to only 3% be significant? It cannot. The graph published by NHS Scotland does, to the untutored mind, suggest an increase but knowing that it is from around 1% to only 3% we can see it is not significant on its own.

http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Workforce/Publications/2018-03-06/2018-03-06-Workforce-Report.pdf

Second overall staffing has been fairly consistent over the last five years with a fall of only 0.1% in qualified staff. See:

http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Workforce/Publications/2018-06-05/2018-06-05-Workforce-Report.pdf

Finally, more important than staffing levels on their own, as a measure of success in midwifery is the rate of stillbirths. In the Nordic countries – Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Iceland – the rate of stillbirths and deaths of babies within 28 days is 4.3 per 1 000 live births. This is the lowest in the world. In the USA, it’s about 10. The Scottish figure has now fallen to just 4.72 with the rate for the UK at 5.61.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-40366637

Note the above is from the BBC website. Have you ever heard Reporting Scotland mention it?

 

Graph shows SNP failing to achieve Jenni Marra's target for NHS staffing of 20% more than any amount achieved

From NHS Improvement on the BT website today:

‘The number of NHS staff vacancies has increased and is expected to rise further by the end of year, new figures show. There were 107 743 vacancies in England at the end of June, up from 98,475 in March and bucking a downward trend seen in 2017/18, according to a quarterly report. Independent think tank The King’s Fund warned growing nurse shortages “risk becoming a national emergency” and are “symptomatic of a long-term failure in workforce planning”.’

https://home.bt.com/news/uk-news/nhs-vacancies-increase-expected-to-continue-by-end-of-2018-11364294711458

Meanwhile in NHS Scotland, as of end 2017, there were 3369 vacancies.

http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Workforce/Publications/2018-03-06/2018-03-06-Workforce-Report.pdf

England has ten times the population of Scotland so, all things being equal would have ten times as many NHS vacancies, 33 690. However, it has 107 743, more than three times as many.

Is the SNP anti-English? What more evidence do we need? What does Rhoda Grant think?

 

(c) Gas2

From Energy Voice today:  

Scotland’s world-first offshore wind farm electricity to cost less than half that of Hinkley Point C nuclear and has ability to withstand hurricanes.

Nearly 100 Scottish contracts awarded by Swedish wind-farm owners

Scotland’s offshore wind electricity generation capacity could be five times greater by 2030

Another 1 GWh wind farm taking our current supply up enough for 3 200 000 homes to be built in forest near Dumfries. 100% renewable energy by 2030? More like 1 000%.

Why floating wind farms offer the best solution for bird protection and energy generation in Scotland

 

Veal? Yes please!

(c) BBC

• The documentary does NOT say that ‘Scotland is at the heart of a supply chain’ nor that it is a ‘key link’ in one
• Reporting Scotland made an editorial decision to insert their own words to make the report seem worse for Scotland and the Scottish Government
• Neither Reporting Scotland nor the documentary mention that young calves are not exported from England and Wales because of the BSE ban
• The documentary is deeply compromised thereafter when the reporter finds she has been following older calves to Spain and not the young ones which left Scotland
• Their inclusion of horrific practice in an Egyptian abattoir cannot be convincingly connected to Scottish exports and then they don’t have the courage to explain that this is ‘halal’.

 BBC Scotland have been having a go at that investigative journalism again with their fearless exposé of the export trade in young calves. At first sight it looks edgy and dark with sad images of wee calves no longer wanted by the dairy industry. It is deeply disturbing in places but its attempt to place Scotland in a central role in this global practice, then exaggerated by the Reporting Scotland coverage, is completely flawed with inaccuracies and inadequacies.

Now, I find it all pretty upsetting to look at but unless you’re a vegan, there’s little you can say about it. If you like your cream, butter and cheese, at reasonable cost, then the killing of young male calves is very much part of your world.

I’ve got no problem with BBC Scotland investigating this topic. It’s only when they, once more, try to use their findings as a justification for attacking the Scottish Government that we need to check them out.

Before we get to the big documentary, Disclosure: The Dark Side of Dairy, Reporting Scotland tell us that ‘Scotland is at the heart of a supply chain’ and that it is the ‘key link’ in that same chain. The documentary does NOT use these words. Someone has deliberately chosen them. Perhaps the documentarist knew better or did not share the same agenda. These are animals coming from Scottish dairy farms, going to Ireland, before allegedly being transported to Spain and then, really stretching it, on to North Africa. Surely then, Ireland or Spain is ‘at the heart’ or the ‘key link’ in this supply chain? Scotland like North Africa is surely one of the end points in the chain. That it even happens at all is then put in doubt, in the documentary, as we see the reporter discover that she has followed a truckload, of older calves to Spain, leaving the Scottish young calves in Northern Ireland. She then tries to rely on hearsay to make her case.

Reporting Scotland tells us that 5 000 were supplied last year to Spain and Italy. We’re supposed to be shocked by that number but, as always, there’s no context. Here’s what one of the contributors to my blog had to say yesterday (10^th):

THEPNR September 10, 2018 / 9:24 am

‘The Republic of Ireland have exported 189 771 live cattle this year to date, with 148 418 of them being calves. 80% of the exported cattle go to continental Europe, roughly 10% to the UK and 10% to ROW. These figures certainly provide some perspective with the 5000 or so exports from Scotland via NI to Europe. In fact, it is not stated how many may have remained in NI or the Republic for breeding purposes. BBC Investigation once again failing to provide the full picture.’

https://www.bordbia.ie/industry/farmers/pricetracking/cattle/pages/livecattleexports.aspx

So, not so much the ‘heart’ or the ‘key link’ in any chain, Scotland is more a peripheral appendage to it, while in England & Wales, farmers are presumably shooting many thousands of young ‘boy’ calves and dumping them, because of BSE risk?

 

(c) Huffington Post

Once more in that clearly pro-Russian and nationalist rag, Insider, we read today:

‘Private sector business activity picks up further. Latest Royal Bank of Scotland PMI shows growth and staff numbers accelerating from July – when it rose at its strongest rate in four years – but output charges also increased. Momentum in Scotland’s private sector economy has been building since the start of the second quarter. Private sector business activity expanded again in August, leading to a third monthly rise in backlogs of work.’

And, only London, I suspect, is experiencing worse:

‘The backlog of work at Scottish private sector companies rose midway through the third quarter. The rate of accumulation, albeit only modest, was the second-strongest of all 12 monitored UK regions.’

https://www.insider.co.uk/news/royal-bank-scotland-pmi-august-13210791

When oh when will the SNP stop interfering with business?

Scottish business confidence stays high…Ah but!..Oh shut up Revoking Scotland!

63% fall in large business insolvencies as Scottish economy reveals strength

See this Douglas? Business investment in Scotland up 250%!

Scottish Business Strength No.77: Small Scottish construction firms’ growth up 17%

Scottish small businesses still more confident than those in non-Scottish parts

Business activity soars to four-year high across manufacturing and service

Business confidence in Scotland soars by 24% while it sinks 29% in non-Scottish parts of UK

Scottish businesses more likely to be stable than those in rest of UK: News from a parallel universe unknown to our mainstream media

Scottish Government supports economy with new business rates unique in UK

Scottish business confidence higher than in any other region of UK

 

In the Independent today:

‘Business optimism has hit its lowest level since May 2017, when Theresa May announced a snap general election, according to new research. The decline comes as key questions on the UK’s trading relationship with the EU after Brexit remain unanswered and the government ramps up preparations for no deal. ​BDO’s Optimism Index, which shows how businesses expect output to develop in the next three to six months, declined by 0.43 points in August to stand at 101.93.’

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/business-confidence-falls-brexit-trade-no-deal-scenario-bdo-survey-a8529786.html

Meanwhile, only ten days ago, in the Scottish part of the UK, not run by the Tories, Labour or the DUP:

‘Business confidence among firms in Scotland has remained steady for a second month in a row, a survey suggests. Economic optimism stood at 9% in August, an increase of seven points on the previous month, according to the Bank of Scotland’s Business Barometer.’

Bank of Scotland’s regional director also said:

‘To see overall confidence holding firm demonstrates the continued resilience of Scottish businesses during uncertain times.’

https://www.insider.co.uk/news/bank-of-scotland-business-barometer-13166801

Could SNP government be helping in any way?

This added 13:55

As the early risers sit over their bowls of cereal with milk, this morning, BBC Scotland may have caused many to feel a sudden surge of disgust with this headline report:

‘Animal welfare groups are calling for calf exports from Scotland to be banned following a BBC investigation. Thousands were shipped last year from the port of Cairn Ryan, yet none was exported from England.’

Were none exported from England simply because English beef is still banned in most places due to BSE concerns? See more on this below.

We also heard that these were ‘boy’ calves. Why not ‘male’ calves? Makes a better story?

Then we heard that the ‘campaigning groups’ (unnamed) thought long journeys ‘unnecessary’. Just ‘unnecessary’, not ‘cruel’?

Finally, the report tells us that the NFU says ‘export is better’ and that the Scottish government says, ‘live export is an important option for the country’s economy.’

Now, seriously, I have concerns myself about cruelty in the dairy industry and I’m lactose-intolerant, but I’m entertained here by BBC Scotland leaping on a possible SNPbaad storty about cute wee ‘boy’ calves to make one of those comparisons with England they say is wrong, especially if it’s about NHS Scotland.

However, could BBC Scotland have missed the real reason for England’s non-exports?

Scottish beef can, as of July 2017, be sold anywhere globally after the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) recognises the BSE risk from beef raised in Scotland is at the safest level available – negligible risk. England and Welsh beef remain at controlled risk BSE status and will not be reviewed before 2020.

Rural Secretary Fergus Ewing was applauded by the Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers for his help with the bid for approval, in 2017, said:

‘This is reward for years of hard work from the Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers, producers, our red meat businesses, vets, and this government all of whom have worked tirelessly to build a failsafe system which protects our animal and public health. Scotland’s meat exports are currently thriving and this certification stands us in good stead for our exporters to increase Scottish Beef exports even further.’

The president of the Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers (SAMW) described the work of Fergus Ewing and his staff as ‘invaluable’.

https://news.gov.scot/news/bse-risk-status

 

 

 

Reading this in the Herald today has made me think (8.9.18):

‘Scotland’s most senior civil servant has been commended for speaking about her personal experience of mental health problems. Permanent Secretary Leslie Evans said she had worked through “several tough and very stressful episodes” in the past and had seen a health professional at one point.’

In particular, the last few words in the quote above, made me think it time to tell my own story of mental health problems.

In January 2014, I published some research revealing that BBC Scotland’s reporting had been biased against the Yes campaign. It went ‘viral’. I went viral too. BBC Scotland wrote to me, copying in my boss, THE Principal (!) condemning the research as flawed. It was, a wee bit. It had ‘secretarial errors’ of the kind most research reports have but are not exposed. BBC Scotland had used a team of ten or so new graduate employees, I was told by a former senior manger there, to go through the research with a ‘fine tooth comb’ and they had found these errors. No other researcher had ever had this inquisition by the BBC. I had hurt their feelings.

Needless to say, I was very worried. Knowing the research findings were still reliable but realising the BBC would make much of the minor errors and not knowing how my employer would react.

In March, I appeared before a Holyrood committee, having unknowingly shared the train through to Edinburgh, with three senior and quite beefy BBC staff. They were of course in first-class, so they didn’t see me. The skies opened. From a quiet life as a back-room researcher and teacher, I was catapulted into public view, demonised in the Unionised media and lionised by thousands of Yes sympathisers. Back on the campus, colleagues with links to BBC Scotland were warned by them to stay away from me. In wider academia, no one spoke out to defend my academic freedom. I felt good but a bit isolated.

18 months later, suffering serious sleeping problems, I was encouraged to stay at home before ‘retiring early’. Over the next year but for reasons not yet entirely clear to me, I became addicted to opioid painkillers (as well as killing pain they make you feel good) and sleeping tablets. I also started to drink alcohol more.

In November 2016, I was hospitalised and weaned off the opioids with benzodiazepines but then became addicted to the latter which are even more addictive. Regardless of any commendation, I won’t be revealing the ‘places’ I went to in the year and more it took me ‘come off’ the benzodiazepines but by May 2018, I was clear. All is well now but I’ll never forget it. Most of all, my understanding of what it means for those suffering mental health problems today is sharp.

I’m NOT blaming BBC Scotland for anything. I’m NOT blaming anyone for anything. There were too many other factors and decisions made by me, in that time and, in the end, I’m responsible for me.

Now, what I want, is a commendation, in stylish handwriting and with a heraldic shield, for my experiences requiring me to ‘see a health professional’ or twenty, at somewhat more than ‘one point’, and surviving.

Older readers will have recognised the Spike Milligan reference in my headline. It seems right that I finish off with him too:

‘Blessed are the cracked, for they let in the light’