Ill conceived thoughtlessly structured and poorly executed a major failing was potential conflicts of interest were not discussed or declared she found some members had been paid by the pharmaceutical industry some were suing and some being sued it makes $46.00 recommendations including the creation of a bespoke unit to support future reviews their chairs and members to try to avoid similar failings the Scottish government says it will now consider her findings the Department of Work and Pensions is being accused of dismissing evidence that Universal Credit causes hardship for claimants the Public Accounts Committee says it's clear there are major issues with the benefit reform. As head of policy for families welfare and work at citizens' Citizens' Advice Bureau So we're seeing people like single parents but also disabled people who are worse off in some instances by up to $300.00 pounds a month when they move on to Universal Credit So a lot of people facing real turf financial situations when they're on this planet that the Scottish government says it's prepared to invest 200000000 pounds in the taste cities region D.-O. And this challenging the U.K. Government to match that the funding package is designed to boost growth The announcement comes ahead of the Chancellor's budget next week the U.K. Government says it won't play politics with the deal and won't respond to arbitrary challenges but the Scottish infrastructure Secretary Michael Matheson says it should step up what I'm calling upon is for the U.K. Government to step up and too much that because a victory than additional 200000000 pones in this particular program it will make a massive difference to that he said India we've traditionally taken before than a 5050 basis so the Scottish Government is putting up that 200000000 pounds to invest in this particular deal and when asking U.K. Government to step up in the same commitment investigators in the United States believe. Some of the pipe bombs sent to high profile critics of Donald Trump are posted from Florida they're concentrating their inquiry in a mail sorting office near Miami one of the packages was sent to the former Vice President Joe Biden he echoed President Trump's call for more civility in U.S. Politics we've got a tour of the state machine people asked to the Washington people want us to choose hope over hate for real. This is just trying to divide strangers in a country like ours talks over equal pay in Glasgow have been positive and constructive according to both sides in the dispute last night Union kinds to leaders met following a 48 hour strike over claims that women employed by the council have been unfairly treated more than 8000 members of the unison G.N.B. Union 2 part affecting schools and care services a spokeswoman for the consul described the meeting as constructive and said talks would continue. A group of charity cyclists are setting off today on the final leg of their journey to mark the 30th anniversary of the Lockerbie bombing there in New York the United States where they'll be cycling to Sarah Hughes University 35 of the 270 who died were studying there Julian sharp reports Flight 103 was on its way from London to New York when it exploded above Lockerbie on the evening of December the 21st 198-8259 people on board were killed as well as 11 on the ground Colin Dorrance who was an 18 year old off duty police officer on the night of the bombing is leading the group of cyclists today they'll settle from the Lockerbie memorial Cairn in Arlington National Cemetery and ride 600 miles to Syracuse University Scottish secretary David Mendell will be in Syracuse next week scientists say they have created a new antibiotic which could help in the fight against drug resistant bacteria they say early clinical trials in 15 countries were promising That's the news let's get the sports headlines I feel good Kelly thank you I'm a little bit frustrated as people played well it's the take this morning on a side goalless draw with Spartak Moscow in the Europa League the spot several good chances the eye Brookside failing to find the net but the point that keeps them at the top of their group they've also set a new unbeaten record of 11 European games without defeat not such good news for Celtic were lost 2 nil in Germany to RB Leipzig but I didn't Rodgers says his side can still qualify for the knockout stages despite setting 3rd in their section and Tony pheno has a 2 shot lead on the 2nd day of golf's W.D.C. Event in Shanghai the American has won 10 on the part. Here's some of the what some of the travel news Bill Aberdeenshire lots of standing water I'm told on the A 947 new marker road you don't actually know it's there to you and it I'm told to Demain the conditions and ninety's so it's been busy as you move on to the Queens for the crossings that's leaving 5 years on that it's 76 this is South Bend across the clannish a bridge you get roadworks in the temperature off it lights up the Higgins new ground about polar bears and Westlaw the end speed sensors picking up delays on the East 71 eastbound at lame field again road works in the area slowing things down and the ferries and trains that are largely fame but on the ferries possible weather related destruction on Kalmucks Lewis and it's call and see service and that's B.B.C. Radio Scotland travel let's get the weather forecast now it's turning colder he is Gillian Sharp Yes it's called and windy today strong northerly winds driving in blustery showers that we most frequent across the northern and western isles the North West Highland Mari and Aberdeenshire and some will filter down both east and west coast those showers will be wintry on the high ground central and southern Scotland all relatively few showers plenty of sunshine highs though just $5.00 to $8.00 Celsius and feeling colder than that when you factor in the wind chill of the thanks very much and this is Good Morning Scotland with Hillary and Bill White for that minutes past 7 a long awaited report commissioned by the Scottish government into its controversial review into mesh implants was found systemic feelings and a lack of independence Professor Allison Britton has spent the last past year investigating the mesh inquiry and looking at similar views should be handled in future I've been speaking to our social affairs correspondent Lucy Adams who started by telling me about the by going to the US going right back 4 years ago we had dozens and dozens of women going in wheelchairs and on crutches to the Scottish parliament taking a petition which was signed I think by around 700 people saying that the you. Use of transvaginal mash implants should be banned in Scotland that this shouldn't happen anymore and these women told their stories 3 T. Is. Kind of right across all the different news platforms because they were saying essentially they had had treatment for incontinence they were told it would be a simple treatment but some of them had suffered life changing side effects and many of them are now living in chronic pain and they can't really do anything about that So following on from that Alec Neil who was then health secretary said we have to do something he launched a review into the safety and use and efficacy of MASH implants that was back 4 years ago this was meant to take 6 to 12 months and come back with the conclusion all the campaigners wanted what these women wanted was for a ban on MASH many of them were disappointed with how that then went and that 6 to 12 month review went on and on and on ultimately lasted almost 3 years and a few weeks before it was published 3 of the members of that review resigned in disgust they said it was going to be a whitewash the review was published there was condemnation in Parliament and elsewhere as a result the then later health secretary Shona Robison said OK we're going to look into how this was handled and launched an investigative review and that's what we're looking at now so all depends then on what Professor. Finds So so what are her conclusions Well it's pretty damning it's a very very long and detailed report she has spent months investigating ness and interviewing in depth all the main players both the members of the review the people who were involved the chief medical officer and others she says the original review was ill conceived thoughtlessly structured poorly executed. She says while she was doing it she asked the Scottish government how many reviews had been commissioned over the past 5 years to look at sort of how much of an issue this is so there was no information on that there were no established procedures and guidance is piecemeal she said that there should be a dedicated unit established a bespoke unit that would support future reviews both the chairs like chairs who never done this before and who are tasked with this kind of big job and the membership and that there should be clear a clear remit and a test of impartiality because one of the main concerns with the mesh review was that it was meant to be independent and ultimately it was not perceived as such so will there be lessons here for future inquiries it feels like the mass reviews going to be held up as the gold standard of how not to do things Professor Brian says she wants to ensure that future inquiries are done much better and have appropriate support and much more clarity so they would know again what their budget would be what their remit would be and that they would avoid one of the main concerns that she found with this that there were massive conflicts of interest within the membership and not only did those conflicts exist such as you know some people were suing some people will being sued some people had been paid in the past by the pharmaceutical industries who produce the mash and none of this was disclosed declared or discussed so she said there must be a way of avoiding all that and ensuring that these inquiries which are obviously here to stay a both perceived to be independent and are independent itself so it seems that this mash inquiry originally as it was will be seen as a lesson in how not to do things but our social affairs correspondent Lucy in a statement the Scottish government says it will give Professor Britain's findings full consideration and I'll be speaking to Professor Britain in about an hour's time it's 12 minutes past so it's a controversial policy that all opposition parties want to abolish. The future of standardized assessments for Scotland's primary one pupils well nigh be decided by an independent review that was ordered by the education secretary John Swinney and he gave a statement of Hollywood yesterday an independent evidence based review could come to the same conclusion I have reached that P. Want to say spent should be reformed not abolished but I want to be very clear with the chamber today that the outcome of the review could be a recommendation to stop the assessments that if you were delayed by the evidence and by what is best for people's. Well life Flanagan is general secretary Scotland's largest teaching union the E.I.A.S. And he's with us now good morning to you Come on. Do you agree with John Swinney that there is room for reforming rather than abolishing of these assessments Well we've been quite clear that we are in favor of abolishing the compulsory assessments not just in P one but P 47 and in those 3 so we're disappointed in one sense that yesterday we didn't see the Parliament to be not held in but we do welcome the view we have said perhaps it will be useful to review the evidence proletariats were introduced in the 1st place and we think there's a strong case for removing composed assessments him across the board on what basis but let's talk specifically about the P one assess and see which have been more controversial really so on what basis you think that there's you know there is evidence what is the evidence for removing the tests Well the evidence most strongly presented in terms of assessment polls in Scotland is called a formative assessment and that's where teachers will assess routinely in the classroom and feedback to the people in a way that immediately impacts appointing only only the difficulty with the standardized assessments of the arc in a summit of processes and they are driven by the need for Scottish Government to collate data on the basis we're not saying there isn't a need for data but it's a sledgehammer to crack a nut in terms of sunrise assessments who we are seeing is that the assessment practice in the classroom should be under the control of the teacher and should be directly linked to teaching in the only and not Constitution what we saw last year with the standards assessments in P one with the setting of testing Windows My local authorities wished on what could have been a law diagnostic assessment into a high stakes arena and I was we had a lot of the negative feedback from teachers has come but it's also sation of directors of education of confirmed no directors that education have raised any significant concerns by parents in relation to the P one assessments. And John Swinney said that the view of one school overall was that the children responded positively to the assessment so you know if there's no parental concern and there. You know well teachers are concerned well 2 points here one is that there is a very direct parental campaign called Play notice him which is argue against people want to say I'm sympathetic to her because we have we should be a clear based curriculum and we don't have an assessment program that actually much is that beyond that we submitted to Scottish Government the feedback we go from our members which is overwhelmingly negative in terms of the impact of the assessments there is interest in it all the children on on that yes on the children the question practice and it's interesting that yesterday he joins when he said will train scooted address the dates of education because in 26 or 32 councils those are the very people who insisted on testing Windows against the advice in the cadence I'd been issued by the Scottish government and perhaps if they hadn't had these testing Windows and testing Windows at a low comparison between school one school and another which is not the intention of these assessments so they have been distorted by the practice of local authorities and it's not surprising that they are suggestion of this new issue because to be honest with you they are part of the issue. Well thank you very much for speaking to us this morning I found it in their general secretary of Scotland's largest teaching union the E.I.A.S. And we will be speaking to the education sector John Sweeney after 8 o'clock this morning it's no 17 minutes after 7 Scottish Borders councils being criticised for granting taxi licenses to people with criminal convictions it's about as the nearly half of all licenses Like 12017 were given to individuals with convictions the figures were is that a council meeting yesterday by members concerned at the possible safety implications Council says each application is considered on its individual merits the independent council how to Scott was one of them and joins us know where you're alarmed. I was concerned but at the canal she noted that the vast majority of touchy drivers are responsible and trustworthy people and they do provide vital service to the people in the borders but if you think of any other profession and the like any others of the to the few that to give a bad name to the many the soon remarkable though that nearly half of them have these can convictions and some of them for quite serious offenses 15 of assault convictions 7 of domestic violence convictions 24 speeders. One convicted of coming on to your personal and public Well that's what concerned me and it's the other thing that concerns me is that many of the seal licensing hearings are healed in private. The reason given is that the user did data protection reasons are given for the under school of some of these convictions but unless protected by a court order or their spin under the rehabilitation of offenders marked. Convictions are a matter of public record so I see no reason at all why this should not be aired in a public meeting of the committee you know if there are some problems that should be part of the application process that applicants give their consent for previous convictions to be aired a public meeting of the committee should not be held in private Yeah people have a right to know your previous convictions are a matter of public record and. That's just what I've said so why do you think the Consul is refusing to go ahead with public hearings. Well I don't know the back of the reason but the the one of the phrases that he had was that. To protect the personal data of applicants with the public interest of knowing if a taxi license holder has previous convictions no I really take issue with the I think it should be that the safety of the public will raid any consensual data protection concerning the applicants that should have been said over and above all all of that whether it should be in private or public is actually the idea that people with these sorts of convictions actually should be given taxi licenses surely be a fairly straightforward thing to civilize if you've got any convictions of this nature you can't be a taxi driver It depends on the circumstances I mean if some of these offenses will commit when the applicant is very young and then they're in their forty's and there's me nothing in between I think that has to be some sort of rehabilitation but I have to see that. What raised my eyebrows a bit was somebody who had to you convictions for indecent exposure and then I thought was no recent past and I said it yesterday and I'll say again that I would not like my daughter or my wife to be seated in a car with that individual and the other one which sparked. Some reaction from me was the one where some of these been convicted of being drunk in charge of vehicle cultivating kind of S. Possession of a controlled drug disqualify driving driving without insurance and another conviction against a can will just decide no under any circumstances I would question who the person with conviction such as it was is a fit and proper person to hold it actually license I noticed that as a go nogo the Executive Member for roads and infrastructure so that the police are at these meetings I can object to the granting of Don't you have a lot of a license. And therefore police officers will be present dress the committee operative also be invited to speak to be subject to question so their argument is quite a rigorous process. Craigie there are some regulars in the process but I always think that the process could be me take to them better and I think part of that is to have the whole of the application hidden here in public and not in private because I think that's what concerns people the most and whether it's right or wrong people think what's being hidden and I think it's wrong that anybody applying for a license of any kind I have to see not just the taxi license the should be made aware of that history will be the appeal with the public because I think the public deserve to know that but range of the people who are providing those services because of how they Scott from Scottish Borders because A Thanks very much for terminus when 22 minutes pass what the world doesn't have until now is a podcast that talks between holy writ in Westminster we want to get behind the stories we want to see how it's playing on social media we do this podcast every Thursday right after 1st answer questions politics in a slightly different way through definitely it's odd little help a brand new podcast from B.B.C. Scotland I'm stopping in Question Time in December and I want to do a lot of room in our office for you I want to if you're