No time like the present for grand plan

WHEN it comes to out-of-the-box blue-sky thinking, you have to hand it to the proponents of the new Scotland International Airport, planned to be midway between Glasgow and Edinburgh. It is the ambitious infrastructure project to lift Scotland into the big blue yonder.

Furthermore, it unites nationalist aspirations for Scotland to become a global transport hub with their political message by being near to the site of the battle of Bannockburn.

Some fine-tuning, of course, will be required. Officials at Glasgow and Edinburgh city councils might perhaps be supplied with a special tape which will indicate the mid-point between the two cities to the nearest centimetre – and measuring will be undertaken under full UN supervision.

But leaving aside such wrangles, think of the benefits. With this super-link plan, passengers will have the convenience of a 'one-stop stop' serving all of Scotland.

And imagine the impact of 'Bing Bong' Tannoy announcements in the distinctive brogue of Sir Sean Connery, whose name might have adorned the airport had he not been still alive. This new hub will be the first stop for a truly Scottish Homecoming experience.

Why wasn't it thought of before? Well, it was, but it was poorly timed and did not coincide with today's significant date for the announcement. Timing is all in mega-announcements of this sort.