Carry On Government...

I was never a real fan of the Carry On films for the same reasons I've never been a fan of this government. It was a film that for me symbolised a Big Mac meal; cheap and cheerful; a moment of pleasure and appeal, but no real substance. People would eat fewer Big Macs if they had any idea what was in them. One's good occasionally, and probably won't make a difference on your long term health. But a diet made up entirely of them?- then you've got a problem. You're running on empty.

In just this week 6 Ministers have quite rightly been publicly criticised for the way they have conducted themselves. Now maths was never my strong point. A 1-1 in Standard Grade was my one- way ticket out of the maths corridor and to a 5th year of interest, but that's one Minister a day of this working week.

Nicola Sturgeon I may well not waste my time explaining, but she knew about the out break of C- Diff at the Vale of Leven Hospital and didn't report it as she should have done to Parliament and relevant officials. And what she did do, she did too slow. Labour were talking about it before the SNP were, and as from what was revealed by Anabel Goldie, it is pretty clear that Salmond nor Sturgeon, who was frantically whispering briefs in his ear throughout, obviously didn't know enough.

And now, I am NOT a happy chappy with Kenny MacAskill at the moment. The SNP's messages on drinking have been bizarre to say the least. We've seen tax on drink go both up and down (although I completely appreciate the difference between 10 year old malt and Buckfast), so maybe that's not such a good point... But raising the current buying of alcohol to drink at home age to 21?! PLEASE DON'T!

How am I supposed to drink before I go...eh... drinking?

I do feel this is definitely the wrong way forward, and I will protest against any proposition to raise any age when it comes to alcohol purchasing or consumption.

The Transport Minister, Stewart Stevenson, failed to clarify any plans for retaining the current pensioner transport scheme, and after the bus fares in Edinburgh rose 10p despite the fact Gordon Brown gave Salmond £7.5 million to offset the rise in fuel cost, the pensioners of Scotland deserve and need that reassurance.

Culture Minister Linda Fabiani was roundly criticised for her mishandling of the passage of the government's Creative Scotland Bill and Schools Minister Maureen Watt was attacked for abandoning the SNP's commitment to class sizes of 20 in S1/S2 English and Maths. *This, I would like to add, was one of the KEY pledges of the SNP at the May election 2007. Like most of their pledges, it disappeared as soon as they realised they might actually have to do it.

And, just to top it all off (I've lost count now of how many Ministers have guffed up this week- remember what I said about maths...?) John Swinney, Scotland's future Chancellor of the Exchequer the Nats would like to think of him as, had tax plans which were this week rubbished by the CBI (people who actually know what they're talking about...)

Oh goodness, you can tell it's a Friday. I'm knacked.

Ya'll have a good weekend now, and think about what I told you...