The reaction of the Scottish media and political opposition to Audit Scotland’s annual report on the NHS today has been nothing if not predictable. But we thought you might like an instructive and enlightening look at the two very different types of approach they’ve taken to trying to mislead the Scottish people about it.
First up is the non-specific Scottish Labour apparatchik (as far as we’re aware he has no official role in the party since Jim Murphy quit – indeed we don’t know what he does for a living at all any more) Blair McDougall:
This is what we in the writing trade call a “flat-out lie”.
This month we’ve been noting a sudden avalanche of factually-questionable articles in the media attacking the SNP’s record in government. At the weekend and yesterday we also picked apart a highly misleading and disingenuous claim by Andrew Neil on the BBC’s Sunday Politics that there had been no cuts to the Scottish Government budget since the Conservatives came to power in 2010.
At the weekend this site noted that on the BBC’s Sunday Politics, presenter Andrew Neil claimed that the Scottish Government’s budget had not been reduced in real terms in “the last five or six years”, and that therefore Scotland has not faced cuts.
But as we pointed out, the Scottish Government budget HAS been cut, year-on-year, since the Tories took office. The independent Fiscal Affairs Scotland assessed the cumulative reduction at a hefty 10%, or a little over £3bn a year.
Okay, so we’ve tried everything. We’ve read all the papers, we’ve been through all the emails, and we’ve even gone out for a walk, which usually never fails to trigger some cataclysmic political upheaval or animal-sex scandal.
As spectacular and mindboggling as some of the coverage undeniably is – most notably Alex Massie’s barking-mad, lie-filled howlatribe “J.K. Rowling and her heroic attack on the wicked cybernats” (whose title, remarkably, does not appear to be ironic) in ultra-right-wing loonzine CapX – even we’re fed up of reading people going on about us, so to pass the time we’re going to do something else instead.
We weren’t going to take Professor Adam Tomkins’ hysterical “NATMAGEDDON!” article for this week’s Spectator seriously enough to pull it apart line by line.
But once we’d wiped the tears from our eyes we thought we’d better do our job.
Mark Beggan on The Shortest Day: “@ young Lochinvar It is artistic licence. Loosely based on history. Uhtred spanned four kings and fought in about eighty…” Aug 30, 15:58
Young Lochinvar on The Shortest Day: “MB Errr, that’s a no. No matter how much you wish it so..” Aug 30, 15:31
DaveL on The Shortest Day: “If it was up to Chas we’d still be living in caves. “What? Build a shelter? Best not, we don’t…” Aug 30, 15:09
Mark Beggan on The Shortest Day: “No Lochy I was there., I remember distinctly Uhtred kicking the shit out of the Scot. I can still see…” Aug 30, 15:01
sam on The Shortest Day: “The first paragraph of Aidan’s post is irrelevant. “Growth in a time of Debt” was published in January 2010. George…” Aug 30, 14:49
Mark Beggan on The Shortest Day: “That was a worthy effort Northy. The psychiatrists just give him 100mg of largactil three times daily.” Aug 30, 14:44
Young Lochinvar on The Shortest Day: “One to celebrate; On this month in history (best reckoned as August 1018) the Scots under Malcolm II “Forranach” (the…” Aug 30, 14:42
Aidan on The Shortest Day: “Why be so equivocal Alf, why not; Do you want: – to be tortured in the fires of hell for…” Aug 30, 14:19
Chas on The Shortest Day: “Stu. What about starting a ‘crowdfunder’ to get some medical help for Che? If this was a success and the…” Aug 30, 14:12
Alf Baird on The Shortest Day: “Yes James, if Swinney were really our national liberator he would select a referendum question befitting the reality of the…” Aug 30, 14:03
Northcode on The Shortest Day: “No, James, I didn’t. Yours is a classic example of someone mixing historical grievance, constitutional myth, and modern legal reality…” Aug 30, 13:43
Mark Beggan on The Shortest Day: ““What we’ve got here is failure to communicate.” – Captain, ‘Cool Hand Luke’ That is exactly what we’ve got here…” Aug 30, 13:29
James Che on The Shortest Day: “Alex Salmond like other politicians never read the details, and the SNP today ignore that the old parliament of England…” Aug 30, 13:25
James Che on The Shortest Day: “North Code. You sadly missed the point on the Scotland act and the 2014 referendum. It is not up to…” Aug 30, 13:00
Mark Beggan on The Shortest Day: ““Same Shit Different Day” was specifically written for you James. You own that one.” Aug 30, 12:59
Mark Beggan on The Shortest Day: “There are some men who think they are women and some women who think they are men. There are even…” Aug 30, 12:52
Aidan on The Shortest Day: “The really incredible part of the story is how David Cameron/George Osbourne, when divising economic policy in 2008/9, were able…” Aug 30, 12:24
Chas on The Shortest Day: “Easy answer Sam. Who will do the how’s and when? The SNP? Are there people waiting on the periphery ready…” Aug 30, 12:24
sam on The Shortest Day: “https://russincheshire.substack.com/p/the-spreadsheet-that-broke-britain?r=lwml0&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web “In 2013 Thomas Herndon, an unsung, 20-something economics student from Massachusetts, was handed a homework assignment. He was tasked…” Aug 30, 11:57
Aidan on The Shortest Day: “It’s nonsense to suggest that this single paper was the entire basis for the post-2010 coalition economy policy, not least…” Aug 30, 11:47
Hatey McHateface on The Shortest Day: “You barsturt, CC. I really didn’t want to know that! Another fondly remembered experience from the past that the young…” Aug 30, 11:46
factchecker on The Shortest Day: “Perhaps that’s because that’s how democracy works in the 21st century. The reason we (the people of Scotland) were not…” Aug 30, 11:43
Hatey McHateface on The Shortest Day: “Sure, Bob. If you tell us you don’t celebrate Christmas either, we’ll believe you. After all, that was never a…” Aug 30, 11:41
Knuckle_Heid on The Shortest Day: ““….Good Governance in Scotland….” er, you what, Dave? As has long been documented on WoS, since 2015 your “Government” has…” Aug 30, 11:38
Hatey McHateface on The Shortest Day: “Respect to you, Northy, for daring to utter some of the truths that most won’t. It remains but to add…” Aug 30, 11:36
sam on The Shortest Day: “It can’t be said with any certainty what any independent country will look like as time passes. Within my considerable…” Aug 30, 11:33
Dan on The Shortest Day: “robertkknight says: at 10:37 am “It’s raining outside…” https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyrv84yd9ko #WetterTogether” Aug 30, 11:26
Aidan on The Shortest Day: “Good man Spartan! I’m guessing you have your PPL? It’s something I’d love to do, particularly in Scotland where we’re…” Aug 30, 11:17
robertkknight on The Shortest Day: “…and it’s NOT a “holiday weekend” in my country.” Aug 30, 11:04
100%Yes on The Shortest Day: “Oh dear, it’s now dawned on the zombie SNP membership. I’m not laughing I’m applaud you’ve been taken in so…” Aug 30, 10:58
