The graceless bubble.

Jim Sillars.  The man towered over the rest of the panel on BBC Question Time last night.  

You might not always agree with him, but the wisdom, common-sense and grace he embodies rose above the squabble that characterised parts of the programme.  And that grace was somewhat lacking in his SNP colleague, Humza Yousaf, Minister for Europe and International Development in the last parliament, and it was telling.  

Mr Yousaf lives in a bubble akin to Manchester Utd in the days of Alex Fergusson.  Everyone hates us. Certainly he believes the Scottish Labour Party leader does.  

Kezia Dugdale rather gently scolded him by saying I don’t hate you, I just disagree with you.  Mr Yousaf didn’t seem to see the difference.  Which is worrying for a man who clearly aspires to the post of First Minister.  Always seen on the shoulder of Nicola Sturgeon.  The heir apparent.

And that is the problem with the SNP.  You are for us or against us is their mantra. The implication being, you are not a good Scot if you don't agree with us. Hardly conducive in the world of consensus politics that the electorate have wisely visited upon us in the ballot box in Scotland. 

And didn’t George W Bush deploy the "for or against us" line too?   

Poor Humza.  He sounded positively second rate sitting on the same table as Jim Sillars.