THE NUMBERS GAME

“Preserving the past, recording the present, informing the future” – the mission statement of the National Records of Scotland. Well worth keeping an eye on; data there records trends needed for planning and decision making. It’s not dull or dry at all; in fact I challenge you to read a few of the headlines without cursing aloud.

Here’s one we should all pay attention to – in March it was reported that the birth rate in Scotland for the last quarter of 2023 was about 8% lower than average. At the same time our population is ageing. However, in some parts of our country, those areas of deprivation, life expectancy is reducing. Most local authorities in Scotland have reported that in the last few years life expectancy has been falling. How can this be ?

Poverty? Ill health arising from poor starts in life ? Inequality – given that the educational attainment gap is more or less static? Shabby housing ? Rising prices ? Energy bills unduly high ? Self medicating on drink and drugs as those numbers reach sickening records ? The warm enfolding embrace of the broad shoulders of the Union ?

While those in government now talk of a reset of devolution, Scotland needs three things more than ever – 

Competent government

An independence campaign manned and driven by a spirited determined knowledgeable team

Public confidence in a leadership who prioritise Scotland’s interests and the advancement of all of our people.

Instead we have a Labour government with a Secretary of State for Scotland earmarking millions for space projects as tens of thousands of Scots hunger and soon will freeze again in winter; we’ve the insulting retention of the two child rape clause Labour railed against when the Tories introduced it – we need to grow our population not penalise those born into the larger families our country needs. Scotland can mitigate the two child cap meantime and we can look after our own when we reorder the skewed priorities of the last ten years. Weasel words about Grangemouth abound yet not one Labour politician has promised to keep the refinery open – it’s all been about securing a future and a just transition. Watch what they don’t say as much as you heed what is said. There’s the £700 million squandered on the Rwanda scheme and Yvette Cooper’s announcement targeting nail bars and car washes. Two cheeks etc.

As for the SNP – if those now penning miles of post mortems had the brains they were born with that Constitutional Convention would be sitting tonight; their 9 MPs would be shouting the odds and getting suspended from Westminster daily. What we wouldn’t have would be the treat of buffoons attributing blame to others for their own sins. A gravy train to make Casey Jones proud indeed. The realisation dawned only when it hit the buffers. 

Wake up Scotland – our number’s nearly up.