French lesson gives Liddell un problème

HELEN Liddell was forced to justify her role as Scottish Secretary yesterday after it was alleged her working week involved a series of long lunches, learning French and attending receptions.

A leaked copy of her ministerial diary for 28 January to 3 February revealed the Scottish Secretary enjoyed a three-day week during which she attended three lunches, two dinners (including Burns’ night) and three receptions. She also found time for a French lesson at Dover House, her official residence in London.

The revelations provoked a frantic damage limitation exercise from Mrs Liddell’s spin doctors who were at pains to portray the Scottish Secretary as one of the hardest working members of the Cabinet.

But opposition MPs renewed their calls for her post to be abolished or reviewed, claiming it had become difficult to justify since devolution.

According to the diary entry, the Airdrie and Shotts MP was excused from voting in the Commons on Wednesday and Thursday and had no official engagements on Friday.

As well as lunch with the Irish ambassador, dinner at the Westminster restaurant Shepherds and a meal with the chief executive of the Bank of Scotland, Mrs Liddell also found time to "pop in" to the BT New Year reception in London and attend a reception at the Reform Club.

"Many people have been asking what exactly Helen Liddell does with her day - now we know the answer is very little," said John Swinney, leader of the Scottish National Party.

"She is meant to be fighting Scotland’s corner in Westminster but her time seems to be split between long lunches, Labour Party meetings and learning French."

Mr Swinney also expressed concern that Mrs Liddell had spent an hour on Wednesday morning discussing the Scottish parliament’s powers "to confer devolved functions on UK bodies".

He said: "There is a clear agenda among some Labour politicians to strip the Scottish parliament of powers.

"Since devolution, Labour has pushed more motions through the Scottish parliament passing responsibility back to Westminster than it has bills enacting Scottish legislation.

"Now, Helen Liddell’s diary has revealed a meeting to discuss more powers being passed back to Westminster. This is deeply worrying and we must now have an explanation of exactly what was discussed and who was at this ominous meeting."

A spokesman for Mrs Liddell said it was not policy to comment on leaked documents but insisted: "As with all Cabinet ministers, the Secretary of State had a very busy schedule".

He added: "It’s public knowledge that last week, the Secretary of State attended Cabinet, spent large parts of one day doing interviews on Enron, attended the Labour Party NEC meeting and spent a day doing constituency business."

Privately, aides at Dover House were seething at what they regarded as a gross misrepresentation of Mrs Liddell’s workload as it made no mention of regular conversations with staff, the length of time devoted to ministerial boxes or her time spent on constituency work each Friday.

"She worked a 14-hour day on Wednesday," one aide said.

However, John Thurso MP, the Liberal Democrat Scottish affairs spokesman, said: "We believe it’s a natural consequence of the success of devolution, that the post of Secretary of State for Scotland is no longer required."