YESTERDAY, this newspaper reported on the anger within the SNP following Keith Brown’s announcement that the convention due to happen later this month won’t decide the party’s official independence strategy. Senior unnamed sources were harsh in their criticism. I was not one of them. Firstly because I prefer to put my name to my views but also because I don’t know why anyone was surprised.

POLLS brought mixed news for Yessers this week. While support for independence was riding high at 53% in the Ipsos Scottish Political Monitor poll reported by this newspaper, support for the Scottish National Party in voting intentions at Westminster has dropped to 41% and the SNP face the threat of losing seats to the Labour Party. However, when the pollsters put six questions to voters on which party they trusted most, the SNP came out on top each time, including on the questions of which party is most trusted to stand up for Scotland’s interests, to grow the economy and to tackle the cost of living crisis.

Last Saturday, together with a significant cohort of SNP parliamentarians, I joined independence supporters at the All Under One Banner March in Glasgow.  I had been offered the chance to put my name in the ballot for a seat at the Coronation, but it was clear to me that there was no contest as to where I should be.  

When last week I wrote about the discrimination against gender critical women in public life I had no idea that I was about to join their ranks. For all the column inches, tweets and vox pops expended this week what has happened to me is really quite simple. In January of this year after an approach from my colleague and friend Tommy Sheppard MP, the Stand Comedy Club invited me to appear as one of their guests in a series of ‘In Conversation’ events at this year’s fringe. I said yes.