Scotland's Sword of Damacles

Scotland, where I live, relatively recently acquired its own parliament. This parliament carries certain responsibilities such as Health and Education but serious issues, like defence or foreign policy, are left to the heavyweights in London to mess up.

The Scottish Parliament building attracted considerable controversy because it was built for eleven times its agreed budget and no-one overseeing the project had any skills in building trade practice, architecture, structural engineering or building project management. Many watching the televised debates that have been broadcast from the building subsequently must wonder on what basis such feeble discourse can justify such lofty expense and surroundings. It was therefore a telling metaphor of the challenge the chamber faces to hold anything together when the roof began to collapse and a beam swung over the heads of the opposition party, threatening to knock some sense into them. They have now set up in a smaller room in the building, a triumph for democracy, given that it cannot accommodate all members and votes. No-one can figure out how long the chamber will be closed as repair work proceeds.

Another current Scottish Parliamentary embarrassment is the McKie fingerprint fiasco that refuses to go away. The story, in a nutshell, is that three civil servant fingerprint experts in Scotland identified a police officer's fingerprints inaccurately. The experts concerned are furious that their names are being blackened by the governments payment of compensation, while the government appears to be covering up some scandal by refusing a public enquiry. I am quite sure that if they check the displaced ceiling beam that hangs over the chamber that they will find McKie's fingerprints on it.

Enough said, as someone's fingerprints are now all over my keyboard.