Chris Whiteside's Blog

GDP figures released this morning show that the  UK economy grew by 5.5 per cent in the period April to June , up from the previous estimate of 4.8 per cent – showing that Britain's economy is recovering from the pandemic as we build back better. As we move beyond the pandemic, one of the country's key priorities must be getting people back into work and helping businesses to thrive - and it is clear that the government's plan to do this is helping though of course it is business that really does the work of creating wealth.    New figures released this morning show that Britain's economy grew by 5.5 per cent between April and June – beating market expectations – with the arts, entertainment, and recreational sectors growing by over 20 per cent.    This will mean job security for millions of workers, more trade for businesses, and greater prosperity throughout the country.

"A parliamentary democracy requires an effective opposition.  Judging by what I have seen in Brighton I am not holding my breath that we are going to get one any time soon." (Ali Miraj sums up the Labour party's 2021 conference this week in an article called " Keir Starmer's Labour party isn't ready to oppose, let alone to govern " which you can read in full here .) 

The Youtube platform has adopted a stricter policy of refusing to allow anti-vaccination misinformation and this has resulted in a row with the Kremlin . Following the adoption of new guidelines the Russian state propaganda arm RT was suspended from the platform for a week after warnings over videos which were considered to be in breach of the platform's COVID-19 misinformation guidelines. RT was then deleted altogether after it registered a second channel to subvert the suspension. Needless to say the Kremlin was not happy. YouTube also removed a number of channels on which it was falsely alleged "that approved vaccines are dangerous and cause chronic health effects" as part of its new policy on vaccine misinformation. The company said its new approach to handling anti-vaccine videos includes tackling "content that falsely says that approved vaccines cause autism, cancer or infertility, or that substances in vaccines can track those who receive them". YouTube h...

  The government has  announced new plans to unlock the power of gene editing,  seizing the opportunities of leaving the EU to help our farmers grow more resistant, nutritious and productive crops.  Gene editing could help tackle some of the biggest challenges we faces – around food security, climate change and biodiversity loss – and outside of the EU, we can now make the most of this opportunity.   The new plans announced today will make plant breeding more precise and efficient, helping farmers to grow crops that are more nutritious, resistant to pests and disease, and more beneficial to the environment.   This will help to support the production of healthier food while reducing impacts on the environment as we build back better and greener.

 "So, you're talking about an increase from a figure, but you don't know what the initial figure is?" (Nick Ferrari , interviewing a senior member of the Labour shadow cabinet who called for an increase in the minimum wage but then had to admit that he couldn't remember what it is now - or give a clear idea that he knew exactly what it would be if he were in government.)

The October meeting of Cumbria Health Scrutiny Committee will be held next Monday, 4th October 2021, at 10.30 am in Conference Room A/B, Cumbria House, Botchergate, Carlisle, CA1 1RD. The meeting will be open to the public. The agenda and supporting documents can be found on the county council website at Agenda for Cumbria Health Scrutiny Committee on Monday, 4th October, 2021, 10.30 am | Cumbria County Council It includes: Impact of the COVID 19 Pandemic Updates on the Health and Care Bill Implementation and Local Government Reform Enhanced Network Model of Acute Stroke Care and Rehabilitation in Lancashire and South Cumbria  Update on NHS Dentistry in North Cumbria Rowanwood Ward, Carleton Clinic, Carlisle - Temporary Closure Update Ambulance Provision in Alston

 

The government has announced  a temporary relaxation of competition laws and new measures to increase the number of HGV drivers , helping to ease pressures affecting petrol stations across the UK as a result of increased demand.  There is no shortage of fuel in the UK. A spike in localised demand has led to increased pressures at our petrol stations - and the government will take whatever action is necessary to resolve this.    The government is implementing The Downstream Oil Protocol – a temporary exemption to competition laws to enable information sharing between petrol stations – and also introducing short term visas for HGV drivers, increasing HGV testing, and establishing skills bootcamps to train up to 3,000 more people to become HGV drivers and provide more resilience in the system.    These measures will help petrol stations to respond to the increased demand – and we urge all drivers to act responsibly in filling up their cars.

 

There was a time earlier in the pandemic when half the people on social media seemed to be sharing charts designed to show that countries whose governments or policies they liked had lower COVID-19 death rates or that governments or policies they disliked had worse ones. The trouble with almost all these attempts is that comparing the statistics from different countries tends to be like comparing apples and pears. Even those countries which tried hardest to provide honest reports of the  number of COVID-related deaths were probably under-stating the impact during the first wave though those countries are  probably over-reporting it now - most of the people in hospitals in Britain who have COVID-19 have other serious conditions as well. For most of those reported as having died within 28 days of a positive COVID-19 test, there is a good chance that COVID contributed to their deaths   The most accurate attempts to monitor the true cost of the pandemic in terms of human...

Politicians of all parties should resist the temptation to whip up hatred against their opponents.  If they give way to the temptation to denigrate their opponents in dehumanising language in private and it leaks, they should apologise, not double down. As former Labour MP Tom Harris wrote today on Twitter in response to the Labour deputy leader, Angela Rayner, referring to her Conservative opponents as "scum," "If it’s acceptable for Labour MPs to use dehumanising language about other people, then it’s open season on anyone who wants to do the same. A dangerous road to be drawn down by over-promoted student politicians."

"Not since Gordon Brown’s unwise declaration of support for ‘ British jobs for British workers ’ has a Labour leader wrapped himself so decisively in the Union flag. What’s significant is that none of this – not a sentence or comma – would be remotely legal if Britain were still an EU member.  Offering favouritism and public contracts to British firms would have the European Court of Justice descending on parliament like a tonne (metric measures only) of bricks.  Yet here we are, one of, if not the, most enthusiastic supporters of British EU membership, basing his entire economic prospectus on a legal structure that can only be made to work outside the European Union." (Extract from a review by Tom Harris on the CAPX site of Sir Keir Starmer's 12,000 magnum opus "The Way forward." I commend this review because it is neither a hatchet job nor a sycophantic puff piece in support: Harris is not afraid to both criticize what he thinks is wrong and praise what he th...

One of the themes I wrote about quite frequently when  I first started this blog was the desperate need in modern society for a better understanding of statistics. It's not a new problem - Disraeli referred to as far back as the nineteenth century to " Lies, Damned lies, and statistics " but about the only skill in relation to statistics which is common - particularly among salesmen and advertisers, politicians, pressure groups and journalists - if the ability to pick the statistic which best supports the story you want to tell. Unfortunately that particular statistic will only rarely and incidentally be the one which is also the most helpful and accurate in understanding the whole truth. I was prompted to revisit the need to improve statistical knowledge when an individual who may or not have meant to be ironic posted a comment on this blog in response to a mention of misleading averages. He or she asked whether the concept that averages could be misleading was my idea. ...

Congratulations to John and Lesley Sloan and all involved with the successful event at Moor Row Club this afternoon which I understand raised about £2000 for cancer charities, Young Lives vs. Cancer, MacMillans and Danica's Dream Fund.  Magnificent effort, it was obvious that people had worked very hard preparing it.

This week the government  began rebuilding the first of 500 schools to benefit under the 10 year School Rebuilding Programme , providing state of the art and net zero compliant facilities for pupils and staff as we build back better. As students catch up on their education, Britain must aim to deliver world class facilities to help them fulfil their potential while creating jobs and meeting our net zero target.    That is why the goernment is investing in the school estate by starting the first 100 projects out of 500 that will benefit from £2 billion in funding to create world-leading classrooms, science labs, sports halls and dining rooms.    This programme will improve the lives and education of thousands of children across the country over years to come, and their communities –  as we truly build back better.

 

Today the government  announced plans to overhaul tipping practice by making it illegal for employers to withhold tips from workers  – providing a boost to workers in pubs, cafes and restaurants across the country. Unfortunately some companies choose to withhold cash from hardworking staff who have been tipped by customers as a reward for good service.    That is why the government is overhauling tipping practices by making it illegal for employers to withhold tips from workers – helping around 2 million people keep more of the money they earn.   The government is already providing a boost to workers, through the National Living Wage – this policy to protect tips will also help ensure that workers receive a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work.

Anyone who puts their head above the parapet and stands for election can expect to be the target of criticism. Where this is discussion, even robust discussion, of their views and actions, it is fair comment. But sometimes it crosses the line into abuse. And it is my impression that, other things being equal, you get significantly more of this on social media for each of the following which apply If you are a tory If you are female If you are a member of an ethnic minority  The most obvious example of someone who is all three and gets an inexcusable amount of abuse is, of course, the home secretary, Priti Patel. Many of the comments aimed at her are such that the very people making them would rightly describe as racist and misogynistic equivalent comments made about, say, Diane Abbott MP or Dawn Butler MP.  When Theresa May was prime minister she once said that you don't have to agree with a word Diane Abbott says to find the volume of abuse directed at Britain's first female ...

 

The Economist magazine makes a strong case for the resignation of Kristalina Georgieva, who is now head of the IMF, for her role in an incident when she was deputy which appears to amounted to fiddling figures the IMF publishes to benefit China and three other countries. As they begin "In 2003 the world bank launched a league table that assessed the ease of doing business in different countries around the world. By 2017 Li Keqiang, China’s prime minister, grumbled that his country was lagging behind its peers. At his urging, officials began freeing entrepreneurs from red tape—and crimson ink. They cut fees, streamlined approvals, and began to use electronic seals instead of the traditional ink stamp on many documents." So far, so good - the figures gave China an incentive to make it easier to do business there. the problem occurred when the government of China was not satisfied that the latest IMF figures reflected adequately the progress they had made. According to the magaz...

"The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes." (This quote is often attributed to Winston S Churchill, but I have been unable to track down any evidence that he actually said it.)

The Labour party's public policy is that Britain should have a minimum wage of £10 per hour, But unless they notice this inconsistency and change their mind, next week the party is due to pay stewards at their conference £9.50 an hour.

“The growth of social media and the rapid polarisation of our political sphere have demonstrated more than ever that debate in the absence of civility can be not only unproductive but hugely damaging.” Professor Stephen Toope , the Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University, while introducing a debate on freedom of speech among students and staff. You don't have to agree with all his views and actions in relation to free speech to realise that he had a point with this one,

If you have heard local community leaders in Cumbria or two other areas of the country where it is taking place use the acronym "LGR" they mean "Local government reorganisation." Cumbria County Council and the six district councils in the county are all being abolished and replaced with two new "Unitary" councils, one covering the are currently served by Allerdale Borough Council, Carlisle City Council and Copeland Borough Council, the other covering the area currently served by Barrow-in-Furness, Eden and South Lakeland councils.  This is an opportunity to provide better service and a challenge - if it is done right it has the potential to improve services by putting in one place services which should be provided co-operatively but have been hampered by the failure of County and District level counties to work together - it shouild also save considerable sums by having fewer politicians, administrators and duplicated administration which can be redirected...

 “Indelibly seared into my memory are the scenes I witnessed while liberating these centres of death and destruction. Camps like Buchenwald, Mauthausen, and Dachau are vividly imprinted in my mind’s eye. Even today, when I close my eyes, I witness a deadly vision I can never forget — the crematoria aglow with the fire of burning flesh, the mounds of emaciated corpses stacked like cordwood waiting to be burned… I had peered into Hell.” ( Ben Ferencz , 101 years old, and  the last living Nuremberg prosecutor, in the book "Planethood" referenced in an interview piece published today on the "The Article" website, " Peering into Hell " which can be read here and is worth a read.)

The pensions committee which manages the pension funds for all the councils and various other public services in Cumbria meetings tomorrow (21st September 2021) at 9.30 am in Cumbria House, Botchergate, Carlisle. Some but not all of the meeting will be open to the public. As you would expect of a body which looks after £3 billion of public money and the retirement savings of thousands of public servants, the reports to the committee are quite detailed and thorough - the full agenda is two inches thick and runs to 775 pages. Those papers which are available to the public can be found on the council website at Agenda for Cumbria Pensions Committee on Tuesday, 21st September, 2021, 9.30 am | Cumbria County Council . The main reason some parts of the committee's work is not public is that when you are buying or selling assets it is not in your interests to give away advance notice of your negotiating position by determining it in public. That would not be in the interests of Cumbria...

 "Alok Sharma could read the Book of Revelation and make it sound like a railway timetable" (Comment on the BBC Radio 4 politics hour last night. This appeared to be a complement about his ability to keep calm) 

 I wasn't planning to mention the Lib/Dems again for a while after my piece on the first couple of days of their conference, but there is a question they really should be asked. Is their policy on building new houses the one they had previously described at Westminster and reaffirmed again this weekend in a motion passed at their conference to build 380,000 new houses a year? Or is their policy the anti-housebuilding position on which their candidate and now MP Sarah Green fought the Chesham and Amersham by-election? Because it can't be both. Either the motion they passed yesterday at their conference calling for 380,000 new houses to be built each year was pure window dressing with no relation to anything they would actually attempt to do, or the anti-housebuilding stance taken by Sarah Green's campaign and reaffirmed today by their party leader Ed Davey was a cynical and duplicitous trick on the voters of Chesham and Amersham. There are difficult choices facing any party ...

 Sorry to learn of the death of legendary Spurs and England football star Jimmy Greaves at the age of 81. To one generation of football fans he was a popular commentator, particularly remembered half of the "Saint and Greavsie" partnership with former Scotland and Liverpool player Ian St John (who also died this year.) To an earlier generation of football fans Jimmy Greaves was one of the greatest goal scorers of all time. Rest in Peace

“We don’t think what Tim and Sue are doing is particularly helpful. There is an urgent need for real action to tackle climate change, but blocking roads and sewing your lips together is not the right way to go about it. “It’s this sort of thing that alienates people and makes them think that tackling the climate crisis is not possible without extremist measures. We don't think the protests this week led to anything other than irritated drivers and could well have placed people in danger.” ( Church of England sources quoted in the Telegraph referring to the Reverend Tim Hewes and the Reverend Sue Parfitt, two priests who were among the protesters who glued themselves to M25 slip roads this week)

 A very big thank you to all those generous souls who have so far sponsored me for Swimathon 2021 and thereby supported two excellent causes - Cancer research UK and Marie Curie Cancer Care. I completed the swimathon - 200 lengths of Copeland Pool (5,000 metres) in two hours and nine minutes; here are the swimming cap and medal I have to remember the event You can view my sponsorship page - and donate to Cancer Research and Marie Curie if you are feeling generous - by licking on this link: Christopher Whiteside is fundraising for Cancer Research UK, Marie Curie & The Swimathon Foundation (justgiving.com)

I generally try to avoid putting in too many comments on political parties other than my own into this blog - indeed, when I quote a politician from another party it is often one of the rare occasions when I agree with him or her. So this is my first mention of the Lib/Dems for weeks and frankly, this one will probably last me for the rest of the year. All political parties get accused of facing both ways at once, and because grown-up politics is often a compromise between competing priorities, there is often a bit of justice in it. But few parties are capable of being as comprehensively two-faced as the Liberal Democrats and in the first two days of their conference they are set to excel themselves. The Liberal Democrat conference could almost be an attempt to prove that their leader  Ed Davey and his team cannot be trusted. They will say anything to try to get elected – I learned this a long time ago when in Cumbria they were saying that Trident subs should be built and maintaine...

 

"Nothing in the world can stand in the way of the unification of China" If Chinese 'unification' with Taiwan cannot be achieved peacefully, then " any means will be possible " says Victor Gao, vice president of the Centre for China and globalisation. Well, if the People's Republic of China is really willing to consider "any means" to persuade the people of Taiwan to rejoin them, here are a few suggestions for things they could do to make the people of Taiwan want to do so. Prove that territories which join China will be treated well and the promises made by the PRC on how it will treat such territories will be honoured by keeping the promises made to Hong Kong Honour the promise of "One country, two systems" Scrap the National security law and restore freedom of speech and assembly and fair trials Release all the people unjustly arrested for non-violent protests or for having the "wrong" political opinions Reinstate Legco me...

Design work for the next-generation of Royal Navy submarines is underway following the award of two contracts to UK industry, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has announced today. Two contracts worth £85 million each have been awarded to BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce to deliver design and concept work for a future class of Royal Navy submarine. Over the next three years and supporting 350 jobs - 250 for BAE at Barrow in Furness and 100 at Rolls-Royce in Dervby - the contracts will deliver design work for the replacements for the Astute Class submarines – the nuclear powered fleet of submarines (SSNs) currently in service with the Royal Navy. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “Marking the start of a new journey for the Royal Navy’s submarines, British designers and engineers will lead the way in developing submarines for our Royal Navy. “This multi-million pound investment ensures that this vital capability will be ready to replace our Astute Class submarines as they come out of service, ...

Public health is central to Britain's international travel policy – and with more than eight in ten adults fully vaccinated in the UK, we are now able to introduce an updated system.   That is why the Secretary of State for Transport, Grant Shapps, has today announced a simpler, more straightforward approach for international travel – scrapping costly pre-departure and PCR tests for fully vaccinated passengers, and moving away from the ‘traffic light system’ towards an easier to understand travel list.   These changes will allow more people to travel, see loved ones, and conduct business around the world – while also providing a boost for the travel sector as we build back better from the pandemic. The government aims to do this by: Creating a simplified system for international travel by ending the traffic light system, providing greater stability for industry and passengers.  From 4 October, we will no longer use a traffic light system of red, amber or green – but inste...

There was another meeting which was an important first today - a hybrid meeting of the NHS community forum for the Northern two-thirds of Cumbria - covering the NCIC area, which roughly corresponds to the local authority areas of Allerdale, Carlisle, Copeland and Eden (and to the historic county of Cumberland.) This was a hybrid meeting - with some people physically present in one room while others joined online via Zoom. I think this was a first for Cumbria - a lot of public bodies have had online meetings, some have gone back to physical ones, and some in other parts of the country - including parliament - have experimented with hybrid meetings but I do not recall a similar hybrid meeting in this county, I thought it worked well and I hope we will consider continuing this kind of meeting where it is appropriate even after the pandemic. One item of very good news from the meeting was that the plans for the next stage of redevelopment of West Cumberland Hospital will be going on displa...

This morning the  Prime Minister's new Cabinet met for the first time  - getting on with the job of building back better from the pandemic and delivering on the people’s priorities.  The Conservative government's focus is getting on with the job: managing Covid, continuing our historic vaccine rollout, levelling up and getting more people into work - and we will also redouble our efforts to deliver on the people’s priorities.   The Prime Minister's new cabinet will deliver on this mission - uniting and levelling up every corner of the country, and seizing the opportunity to fix the long-standing problems that have held back too many people for far too long.   Our new, strong and united team are getting on with the job to build back better from the pandemic - delivering on the promises we made to the British people.

"The fact that the market is not doing what we wish it would do is no reason to automatically assume that the government would do better."  ( Thomas Sowell , American economist)  

Congratulations to Trudy Harrison, MP for Copeland, on joining the government as a junior Transport minister as the Prime Minister appoints a new cabinet and ministerial team to build back better from the pandemic and deliver on the people’s priorities. The Conservative government's focus over the coming months is getting on with the job: managing Covid, continuing our historic vaccine rollout, levelling up and getting more people into work - and we will redouble our efforts to deliver on the people’s priorities.    The Prime Minister's team will deliver on this mission - uniting and levelling up every corner of the country, and seizing the opportunity to fix the long-standing problems that have held back too many people for far too long.    Our new, strong and united team are getting on with the job to build back better from the pandemic - delivering on the promises we made to the British people. Trudy Harrison joins the government as a junion minister with an inter...

The Prime Minister has announced a  new security partnership with the US and Australia , making the world safer and generating jobs across every part of the United Kingdom. The UK, Australia and US are natural allies – while we may be separated geographically, we share interests and values as leading democracies and strong believers in freedom.    That is why the Prime Minister yesterday joined President Biden and Prime Minister Morrison to announce a new ‘AUKUS’ defence partnership, which will strengthen our security collaboration, foster deeper integration on defence science and technology, and see Australia draw on British and US expertise to help them acquire a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines.  Obviously this latter point is good news for Cumbria as it may mean a boost to the BAE systems submarine industry in Barrow-in-Furness.   The new alliance will join us even more closely together with some of our oldest friends, help protect our people against new ...

The government has announced that  millions of the most vulnerable in society will be offered a Covid-19 booster vaccine  from next week, giving them the strongest possible protection over the winter months. Britain's vaccine roll-out has been phenomenal - but we must do everything we can to prolong the protection our vaccines offer, particularly for the most vulnerable, as we head into the autumn and winter months.    That is why, following advice from the JCVI, next week the NHS will begin offering a booster vaccine to those most at risk, including care home residents, health and social care workers, people aged over 50, and 16 to 49 year olds with underlying health conditions.    This will give the best possible protection to the most vulnerable over the months ahead, and all those eligible who do not have specific reason not to are urged to get their Covid-19 and flu vaccines as soon as they can.

£600 million has been provided under the Start Up Loans scheme to businesses outside London , creating jobs across the country and levelling up as we build back better. While talent is evenly spread across the country, opportunity is not, and without access to funding it is harder to unlock the entrepreneurial spirit that makes this country great.    That is why, through our Start Up Loans scheme, the government have now provided £600 million in loans to businesses outside London – giving aspiring business owners up to £25,000 each to launch their business, that they may otherwise have struggled to get from a commercial lender.    This will help a diverse range of entrepreneurs across the UK to get their businesses off the ground, create more jobs – supporting talent and levelling up the entire country.

New figures out this week show that job vacancies have hit a record high and unemployment has fallen  – and that the Plan for Jobs to get people back into employment is working. Throughout the pandemic the government has invested over £400 billion to protect lives and livelihoods – and now as we continue our recovery, we are creating the jobs this country needs to build back better.   New figures out yesterday show that our plan is working – with unemployment down to 4.6 per cent, job vacancies rising to over one million for the first time since records began, and the number of employees on payroll back up to pre Covid levels.   Through our Plan for Jobs Conservatives will continue supporting people into work, ensuring they get the skills they need to get good jobs and helping businesses fill their vacancies to get our economy moving .

"All statements are true, if you are free to redefine their terms." ( Thomas Sowell , American economist.)

The government has  announced that £600 million has been provided under the Start Up Loans scheme to businesses outside London , creating jobs across the country and levelling up as we build back better. While talent is evenly spread across the country, opportunity is not, and without access to funding it is harder to unlock the entrepreneurial spirit that makes this country great.    That is why, through the Start Up Loans scheme, the government has now provided £600 million in loans to businesses outside London – giving aspiring business owners up to £25,000 each to launch their business, that they may otherwise have struggled to get from a commercial lender.    This will help a diverse range of entrepreneurs across the UK to get their businesses off the ground, create more jobs – supporting talent and levelling up the entire country.

 

Today  the NHS is launching the world’s first trial of a revolutionary new blood test for cancer detection  as Britain's world-leading scientists continue to pioneer innovative cancer diagnosis and treatments.   Cancer is a devastating disease which wrecks far too many lives, but by finding cancer before signs and symptoms even appear, we can give people the best possible chance of beating the disease.     That is why today, the NHS is launching the world’s largest trial of a revolutionary new blood test – the Galleri test - that can detect more than 50 types of cancer before symptoms appear. If this trial is successful, it will save many lives and play a major part in achieving our NHS Long Term Plan ambition to catch three quarters of cancers at an early stage.   Ensuring fewer people need treatment for advanced cancer is vital for patient care, and another example of the NHS innovating to be more efficient – which will be crucial in bringing down th...

Today the government has announced  the biggest-ever round of our flagship renewable energy scheme, backed by an additional £265 million,  as we lead the world in clean electricity generation, lower prices for consumers and creating jobs. The Conservative government is committed to supporting the next generation of renewable electricity projects needed to power our homes and meet our world-leading climate change targets.    That is the reason for today's announcement of the biggest round yet in the flagship renewable energy scheme, Contracts for Difference, backed by £265 million to encourage investment in low-carbon electricity, with £200 million to support offshore wind projects, as well as £55 million for supporting emerging renewable technologies and creating well-paid highly skilled jobs in our former industrial heartlands.    This will deliver on the Prime Minister’s Ten Point Plan and helps Britain to maintain our place as world leaders in clean elec...

Alex Massie has written a very powerful response to the separatist fantasies in which the SNP indulged at their virtual conference. Here are a few extracts. “Even by the elevated standards of nationalist chutzpah, Nicola Sturgeon’s speech to the virtual SNP conference was a remarkable exercise in sophistry. In this, if little else, the first minister truly is the world-beating leader that her followers imagine her to be.  Her government’s failures, you see, are not really its fault. Rather, she is hamstrung by the inadequacies of the opposition at Holyrood. Just as Celtic and Rangers have historically blamed their failures in European football on the inadequate opposition provided by the likes of Motherwell or Kilmarnock, so the SNP’s shortcomings are apparently the responsibility of the Tories and Labour and even, heavens, the Liberal Democrats.” “ Effective opposition matters in a democracy ”, the first minister said, “ but that is not what we have in Scotland ”.  Perhaps so...