Covid Inquiry: Hallett and Dawson have shown us all how Sturgeon intentionally broke devolution - Brian Monteith

The UK Covid Inquiry has thown into relief some uncomfortable truths about how Scotland is being governed

So there we have it. After years of well-meant but unsuccessful attempts by attentive observers to expose the unnecessary divisiveness, immense incompetence, sleekit skulduggery, exaggerated claims, fraudulent excuses – and ultimately the shameless pack of lies by Nicola Sturgeon and her administrations over the last decade – it has taken a UK institution to park its tanks in Edinburgh and expose it all beyond refutation.

That is not a good look for devolution.

Some notable members of the Scottish media tried, but for the insubordination and disrespect of asking perfectly reasonable questions received a public thrashing in plain sight of their colleagues. Learning the lesson, too many became accepting and unquestioning while some broadcasters even thought producing a hagiographic video worthy of North Korean dictators was nothing out of the ordinary. Such a lack of self-awareness served to tar all media with the sweeping accusation of fawning servility.

Former first minister Nicola Sturgeon leaves the UK Covid Inquiry hearing after her evidence session. Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

Many political opponents sought to use the legitimate rules and parliamentary procedures available to them but were often cowed by orchestrated disgust directed towards them for having the audacity to raise doubts about the facts, the motives, the reassurances and the lack of information being made available. Faced by the omerta of the SNP parliamentary party and Pecksniffian Greens providing opportunistic saving votes there was no hope of holding Government Ministers to account.

Various committees of inquiry were tried, attempts at freedom of information were requested, and protests about the dire effects of policies were held outside the Scottish parliament – the outcomes all ignored even when they revealed resignation-level behaviour.

Only when the Scottish Government has lost before the courts, only when courts exposed how SNP-Green laws on women’s private spaces would work in practice has there been a reluctant change in policy by the Scottish Government.

Only when a Scottish advocate interrogating before a UK inquiry asked forensic questions that must be answered has the Empress and her courtiers been found to be wearing no clothes all this time – and it has not been a pretty sight.

What this tells us about the management of the response to the Covid pandemic by the Scottish Government remains to be seen when the Hallett Inquiry publishes its views in a year or more’s time. What it has already told us beyond a shadow of doubt is devolution failed us and is continuing to fail.

The so-called four nations approach was a massive mistake. We needed a single British response. For the purposes of having the best minds available (including Scots who were ignored in Scotland) to give advice and solve problems it made sense. For the benefit of sharing resources without the false pride that we didn’t need help (the sending in of the British Army, the last-gasp use of English ambulances crossing ‘the border’) it was a must.

For being able to call upon our own UK financial resources – rather than taking on massive EU debt liabilities, it was vital. For Scottish businesses to be able to share in the financial reliefs being made available by London – but which many in Scotland were needlessly excluded from – would have prevented stress, hardship and often insolvency.

Foregoing the simplicity of having one message to communicate quickly and memorably to the public so it might be understood and followed, rather than suffering the mendacity of a competing and confusing Sturgeon message – that was different for the sake of not being ‘made in London’ – was inept, partisan and bigoted.

The benefits of facing the pandemic together far outweighed the delusion of local decision-making when the disease did not discriminate between North Berwick and Berwick-upon-Tweed.

By revealing over the last three weeks how the Scottish Government – with First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Deputy John Swinney, and her chief advisor Liz Lloyd – were in command and often unaccountable even to Sturgeon’s own Cabinet, the UK Covid Inquiry has done Scotland a service before it reports.

The shocking lesson is even at the height of an existential level threat to public health – a matter of life and death for tens of thousands – the Scottish Government sought to use the existence of devolution to establish political advantages and trash the reputations of those wishing to help us.

A further lesson is the arrogance and of those at the heart of Scottish Government, believing themselves to be untouchable, unaccountable and able to dismiss the awkward squad who raised questions as “arseholes”. We need more MSPs in the awkward squad and cherished as a necessary control on the abuse of power.

If devolution can be so easily turned against its intent of improving Scottish public administration to become a Trojan Horse for the destruction of our country – when the people have already been called to give their verdict on such a notion and convincingly rejected it in a turnout of over 85 per cent – then it is truly broken. If it is to be saved it must be reformed and to do that a new Scottish political reformation must be a campaign priority.

The Scottish Labour Party, Scottish Conservatives, the Scottish Liberal Democrats, and others such as Reform UK must put it on their agendas – not to give Holyrood yet more powers, but to make the tartan leviathan accountable to its people.

We must have legislated provisions to maintain records of meetings and written conversations; who attended, who disagreed, decisions taken and texts recorded – not shabby guidance too few understand.

We need the power of recall to hold politicians to account without having to wait on a Scottish election. And we need to ensure the Scottish Government and Holyrood remain focussed focus on their devolved responsibilities – not spending scarce resources beyond new cast-iron limitations, irrespective of the motives.

So, thank you Baroness Hallett, thank you Jamie Dawson KC. By revealing the Empress was wearing no clothes your presence alone has done Scotland a service.

Brian Monteith is a former member of the Scottish and European Parliaments and editor of ThinkScotland.org