Leader: Leaden-Footed Snp Hands the Initiative to Labour

Summary

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EVERY politician is at the mercy of events, as Harold Macmillan so wisely pointed out. Those who do not adapt are likely to be swept away, no matter how clever they appeared. That is not to praise opportunism, but it is to say that a politician can never afford to take the eye off the ball. Equalisers get scored in the last 30 seconds of a match, in politics as well as sport.

Thus Alex Salmond, the master political operator who dominated Scottish politics all last year, now finds himself in danger of being outflanked by events. Labour, which seemed down and out five months ago at the Glasgow East by-election, has recovered the initiative by responding decisively to the global economic crisis. Of course, Gordon Brown, one of Britain's longest-serving and experienced chancellors, had the advantage of playing on his home ground. But Mr Salmond, a trained economist with a sharp mind and an even sharper tongue, has made a career by knowing how to go for the political jugular. Why has he proved to be so leaden-footed on this occasion?

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Leader: Leaden-Footed Snp Hands the Initiative to Labour

Why, in the middle of the worst recession for 70 years, is the SNP government pressing on doggedly with its plan to replace PFI building contracts, running the risk that desperately needed schools and hospitals will be delayed? A...

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