SNP look set to continue their Mad Hatter's Tea Party approach to government – Scotsman comment

SNP’s latest independence paper on education continues an approach to government that prefers make-believe to reality

This is either an actor dressed as the Mad Hatter or an SNP Cabinet minister, it's hard to tell (Picture: Julien Behal/PA Wire)

There was once a time when children with refined tastes would have fun holding pretend tea parties. So it was no surprise when Alice stumbled across one during her travels in Wonderland.

Many of today’s youngsters have developed different interests but SNP government ministers appear to be increasingly harking back to their youth. Instead of governing the actual country we all live in, they seem to prefer running a make-believe one instead.

And so it was that Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth, speaking at the Secret Garden outdoor nursery in Letham, Fife, announced that the Scottish Government would enshrine free university tuition fees in law in a future independent Scotland and a number of other things that aren't going to happen anytime soon.

Hopefully Gilruth will eventually drag herself away from nationalist fantasies to deal with ‘real’ issues like Scotland’s slide down international league tables, classroom violence and university funding. However, sometimes, it feels like trying to persuade SNP ministers to get real is as worthwhile as trying to answer the Mad Hatter’s riddle: “Why is a raven like a writing desk?”