Talking-up Scotland

From news.gov.scot today:

‘Scotland is to become the only part of the UK with statutory targets to tackle child poverty after the Child Poverty (Scotland) Bill was unanimously passed by the Scottish Parliament. The Bill will:

• Set in statute targets to reduce child poverty by 2030
• Place a duty on ministers to publish child poverty delivery plans at regular intervals and to report on progress annually
• Place a duty on local authorities and health boards to report annually on what they are doing to contribute to reducing child poverty
• Establish a Poverty and Inequality Commission.’

This act is especially encouraging in that Scotland already has significantly lower levels of child poverty than the rest of the UK:

‘Once housing costs are taken into account, relative poverty ranges from one in five children in Scotland (21 per cent) to nearly twice this (37 per cent) in London’. (p113)

That twenty-one percent of Scotland’s children live in poverty is a monstrous blemish on the face of a democracy aspiring to much better. That it is higher everywhere else in the UK and nearly twice as high in our globalised golden capital does not excuse it, I know that. The current Scottish government makes nothing of such a comparison. It simply accepts that it is unacceptable and is now doing what it can to remedy the situation.

‘The trends in one of the key drivers of child poverty – employment – are also encouraging:

• The proportion of children in Scotland who live in workless households has decreased rapidly in recent years and is slightly lower than the UK average – only 10.9 per cent of children in Scotland live in workless households compared to 15.8 per cent in 2012 and 11.8 per cent in the UK as a whole;
• More than six out of 10 (62.5 per cent) children in Scotland live in households where all adults are in work, making Scotland the region with the most ‘fully working’ households in the UK – for example, only 54.6 per cent of children in England live in households where all adults are in work;
• Scotland has the second highest parental employment rate of any region of the UK: 83.2 per cent of people with dependent children are in work. This is driven by very high employment of mothers in couples; 79.6 per cent of whom are in work compared to 71.9 per cent in England. However, lone parents in Scotland have a relatively low employment rate – only 62.2 per cent are in work (compared to, for example, 69.8 per cent in the East of England and 69.2 per cent in Wales).’ (169)

‘State of the Nation’: Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission, presented to House of Commons December 2015 at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/485926/State_of_the_nation_2015__social_mobility_and_child_poverty_in_Great_Britain.pdf

I appreciate that these are 2015 figures but have no reason to think that a further two years of brutal Tory rule in the UK and of SNP rule in Scotland will done anything other than to widen the gap. A number of recent actions by the Scottish Government designed to reduce inequalities seem likely to be having positive effects on levels of child poverty by reducing poverty among poorer parents:

58 000 baby boxes to help increase life chances and now Scotland will be the first country in the world to provide free sanitary products to ‘end period poverty’. This is the kind of country I want to live in.

80 000 lowest paid workers in NHS England still on poverty wages as NHS Scotland follows Scottish Government policy to pay a living wage to all public-sector employees

 

In the report, Equalities Secretary Angela Constance said:

‘With one in four children living in poverty, we need to take urgent action – both to help those children who are living in poverty now, and to prevent future generations of children growing up in poverty.  We have already announced a Tackling Child Poverty Fund worth £50 million. This Bill will go even further and see statutory targets to reduce and ultimately eradicate child poverty. This is in stark contrast to the action being taken by the UK Government, which has abolished its child poverty unit and child poverty targets. Meeting our ambitious new targets will be challenging and it will seem like we are often fighting with one hand behind our back in the face of the cuts, which are set to increase child poverty across the UK by around one million children. But the Scottish Government intends to take positive action to address child poverty and tackle the deep seated generational inequalities in our society.’

https://news.gov.scot/news/tackling-child-poverty-1

Of course, setting targets is a ‘double-edged sword’. As we see regularly, with NHS targets, failure to hit targets even though performance is notably better than elsewhere in the UK, is easily used by our Unionists politicians and unprofessional media to attack the Scottish Government. Hopefully, it will be one target for 2030 (post-Independence) with no interim targets.

There has been a notable increase in the number of private sector businesses operating in Scotland since 2000. The total has risen from around 280 000 to 365 600. Much of this growth has been in the smaller unregistered enterprises. You can see from the graph above that growth was stalling in the last years of the Lab/Lib coalition but then started to grow under the SNP minority government from 2007 before a sharper increase in recent years.

Scottish Government policies such as those giving exemption or reductions to rates payments for smaller businesses were implemented last year. The Small Business Bonus rates scheme in 2016/17 lead to 104 000 small businesses qualifying for relief under the scheme reducing or removing rates bills.

Not only is there growth but enterprises are reporting greater confidence. See:

77% of Scotland’s small and medium-sized businesses report success as Scottish Government reports record numbers exempt from rates and in the wake of figures revealing much greater signs of distress among rUK businesses.

This, of course, is linked directly to falling unemployment figures, with Scotland now having consistently lower unemployment figures than the UK.

That’s the third increase in as many weeks, above the $60pb rate. Remember it only costs $15pb to extract the oil. According to Bloomberg yesterday, China raised its import quota by 1.1 million barrels per day pushing the price for crude up to a record high this year. This 63% increase in one year is evidence of the forthcoming shortages already predicted and reported here:

Oil shortages loom and Scottish crude looks like making lots of money for the Treasury

That 1.1 million barrels per day is more than OPEC member Algeria’s total output. Britain produces around 1.4 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (gas and oil) of which only around 60% is oil. We already know that Chinese-owned Nexen have drilled an exploration well west of Shetland. Nexen, which is owned by China National Offshore Oil Corporation claims to have serious growth plans. See:

More signs of massive oil expectations in Scotland’s waters west of Shetland and the Chinese market is desperate for it

I’ve already reported on the fast-growing demand in Asia for heavy-grade North Sea oil which has caused record flows of oil tankers this year. In April 2017 alone, North Sea tankers took more than 16 million barrels to Asia. Once more the income will be flooding into the UK Treasury.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-11-08/as-oil-booms-world-s-top-importer-signals-demand-will-boom-too

Several readers and I have noticed for some time a tendency for the BBC News website to report good news for Scotland and then for little of it to be reported on the Radio and TV broadcasts. The obvious explanation would be a recognition in BBC Scotland News that they have lost the younger voters to the Yes campaign but that they can still scare the pants off the older folk who only get their news from radio and TV.

However, when I read this report on the website, I immediately thought of what is in my, as yet unconfirmed report, of the raid. The young webmasters do try to think of something bad to ‘balance’ the report from HIS Markit, but struggle to do so. Here is the news:

• the number of people placed in permanent job roles in Scotland last month increased at its fastest pace since 2015
• demand for permanent and temporary staff remained “sharp and quicker” [in Scotland] than across the UK as a whole
• permanent placements in Scotland rose at the fastest rate in 32 months
• across the UK, growth in permanent staff placements fell to a six-month low
• salaries for those starting new jobs are still on the rise.
• Scotland is doing better than the rest of the UK, as the growth of permanent placements across the country is slowing.

Needless to say, there are ways to turn this round into a negative but it’s not my job to do so here. You might like to guess why more permanent appointments is bad, yourself, or read the whole report at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-41909722

Oh, OK, here’s my go: ‘Scottish business in crisis as too many applicants get better jobs and refuse to work for shitty employers!’

(c) Arthur Morris/Birds as Art

The Supreme Court decision to uphold permission for the massive Neart Na Gaoithe (NNG), Inch Cape and Seagreen wind farms in the Outer Firths of Tay and Forth to go ahead will have disappointed the RSPB. I’m sympathetic to their concerns and I wonder if a move to greater use of floating wind farms will be the answer.

RSPB Scotland are concerned that the wind turbine blades could harm seabird colonies including gannets and puffins. The RSPB says:

 ‘Our peer reviewed scientific research suggests that there may be limited additional capacity for fixed offshore wind turbines in Scotland, which tend to be located in the shallow waters relatively near to shore and our protected seabird colonies. However, it has identified that there may be huge potential in Scotland for deeper water technologies such as floating wind. In this nascent sector, Scotland now has an opportunity to be a world leader and transition skills and jobs from North Sea oil and gas if we pursue these technologies in a sustainable way.’

There are further, compelling, economic and efficiency-related benefits, summarised by Stanford University back in 2012, to floating wind farms located further out to sea and making this case even stronger:

1. The first and most immediately compelling advantage of floating offshore wind is access to incredible wind resource over deep waters. Currently we can only access a small fraction of the offshore wind resource worldwide due to depth constraints.
2. Offshore wind is recognized for its proximity to load centers but often still encounters significant NIMBY (“Not In My Back Yard”) resistance. Population centers tend to cluster near the coastlines, so offshore wind minimizes the distance from generation to load centers, without competing for valuable land. Opponents argue, however, that turbines negatively impact the skyline (visual pollution) or result in disruptive noise. Floating turbines address these concerns by allowing wind farms to be pushed farther offshore and out of sight.
3. Finally, there are also several manufacturing advantages to floating platforms, such as using less material in construction and reducing the need for specialty marine engineering expertise. One major cost driver for conventional offshore wind are the heavy lift vessels required to erect the turbine. Very expensive special purpose ships are required to transport the parts on site and perform the assembly. Floating turbine platforms, however, are designed to be assembled in port and towed into position using simple barges or tugboats. This can result in major cost savings and greatly increased flexibility in construction.

http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2012/ph240/pratt1/

Remember, when thinking about point 1 above that Scotland has 25% of all of Europe’s coastal wind energy.

(c) TM

The massive Neart Na Gaoithe (NNG), Inch Cape and Seagreen wind farms in the Outer Firths of Tay and Forth are to go ahead after the Scottish Government’s consent was upheld by the Supreme Court.

The Neart Na Gaoithe farm will bring nearly 2 000 construction jobs and the other two will presumably add a similar figure each. So, this is very good news for Scotland already improved unemployment figures. The NNG is expected to bring £827 million directly into the Scottish Economy, by the Fraser of Allander Institute. I haven’t read the full FoA report, but I bet it’s got a few buts in it.

The RSPB had objected to the proposals but were denied by the Court. While being sympathetic to the RSPB’s concerns, wind farms do, of course contribute much to the preservation of the environment by reducing carbon emissions. The NNG will supply around 325 000 homes or all of Edinburgh. Floating wind farms may be the solution to the problem as they can be sited further out away from bird populations. I’ll do a second piece on that.

https://www.energyvoice.com/otherenergy/155498/legal-ruling-paves-way-thousands-wind-farm-jobs-outer-tay-forth/

(c) ifm.org.uk

We’ve seen in previous reports that Scottish salmon sales are second only to whisky at the top of Scotland’s list of booming food and drinks industries. The industry is the second most profitable in the world and has played a major part in exports reaching new record highs. See these for more:

Scottish Salmon the second-most profitable in the World

‘Soaring [Scottish] whisky and salmon sales help UK exports hit record high’

Not surprisingly this has helped create a large increase in employment in the sector and contributed to Scotland’s rising overall employment figures.

Employment and unemployment rise in Scotland but the latter is still lower than the UK figure. Wait a minute though, does this have anything to do with the economy or is it more to do with those pesky students?

See this extract from Insider magazine:

‘The Scottish Salmon Economic Report from industry trade body the Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation suggests employment numbers in the industry rose to 2,472. Bottom of FormTop of FormBottom of Form  Scotland’s salmon farming industry is reported to have increased employment by 13 per cent in the 2016 year to December while capital investment remained “steady” at £63 million.’

That’s a rise from 2 188 to 2472 workers and 91% are full-time.

http://www.insider.co.uk/news/salmon-farming-industry-increased-employment-11476209

(c) theflagshop.co.uk

Porridge and oats specialists, Stoats, has just been named as Scotland’s 1 000^th Living Wage-accredited employer. There are around 3 500 across the UK with 28% of them in Scotland.

https://news.gov.scot/news/1-000th-living-wage-employer

This 8% of the population but a bigger percentage of something else is becoming, I insist, a meme in this blog. See, for example:

Scotland takes nearly 26% of Syrian refugees settled in UK with only 8% of the UK population

Most of the other 8% stories are about the economy so not too relevant to this one which is a return to a theme I’ve talked about before – are enough Scots different enough in their political and other values to identify as different enough to run their own country ?

The above two reports say Yes to me. Here are some others:

58 000 baby boxes to help increase life chances and now Scotland will be the first country in the world to provide free sanitary products to ‘end period poverty’. This is the kind of country I want to live in.

Scots the least respectful of the upper classes: More evidence of a difference that makes a difference?

Scientific evidence that Scots tend to be different from the other groups in rUK?

Racial hate crimes increase by 33% in England & Wales while falling by 10% in Scotland: Who says we’re not different?

‘Scottish tooth fairies are the most generous.’ See, even more evidence we are different.

Who said Scots were not more left-wing than those in the rest of the UK?

Remember, I’m not saying we’re all nicer than all the English. I know, from personal experience, some really nasty Scots and some absolutely lovely English. We’re talking about more communitarian values being more widely held in Scotland, even in its Tories (!), than elsewhere and that being reflected in statistics and in political policy-making by our leaders too.

Changed days from when we proudly said of our fighting abilities – Wha’s like us? Damn few and they’re a’ deid!

Image Credits: Bandar Algaloud / Saudi Royal Council / Handout/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images.

How’s that for a headline I never thought I’d write?

Mohammed bin Salman, crown prince of Saudi Arabia has just removed a bunch of his relatives from positions of power on charges of corruption. He is also a major player in sticking to the Opec production curbs which are mainly responsible for keeping oil prices high. Now, according to the Guardian the price has risen to $62.50 per barrel as a reaction to the uncertainty in the Saudi kingdom.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/nov/06/oil-price-rises-to-two-year-high-after-saudi-arabia-purge

This is the second report of prices at $60pb and above suggesting that the Aramco chief’s prediction of massive shortages and a return to £100pb may well be more likely than some may think. See:

Independent Scotland’s oil wealth is assured as Aramco chief predicts huge shortages

Investors already betting on $100 per barrel oil in 2018? Indyref2 should be a very different story

Bear in mind, also, the BP chief’s admission that it already costs only £15pb to extract the stuff! Time for taxation?

North Sea oil companies making $40 profit on every barrel and costs are still falling!

Anyone know how Good Mourning Scotland and Revolting Scotland are covering oil prices?

According to WWF Scotland and reported in Energy Voice, Scotland’s wind turbines provided enough electricity to:

• Power 189% of Scotland’s homes on 28 days in October
• Provide over 100% of total electricity demand on 15 days
• Provided 1 727 602 MWh or 99% of Scotland’s entire demand for the month

https://www.energyvoice.com/otherenergy/155368/remarkable-month-renewables-claim-green-groups/

This is almost a repeat of the news for May:

All of Scotland could have been renewables-powered in May

Remember massive new offshore windfarms and marine turbine fields are not yet on stream. 100% reliability by 2020 is looking quite a safe bet. See, this for details:

By 2030 when Scotland should be able to power all its homes and industry with renewables energy, all of the fossil-fuel job losses could be replaced there.

And don’t worry about the loss of EU subsidies because:

Scotland’s renewables trend is too strong to be held back by political barriers and challenging market conditions suggesting 100% renewables by 2030 is a real possibility.

Footnote: Re the Panda above, I know we have more Tory MPs than pandas now but how many of them have moral standards anywhere near those of the pandas? FA?

Everything reminds me of a song so to finish of with a musical fade out: