Getting to know you
Colin Keir SNP MSP for Edinburgh Western
Q1. If you weren’t a politician what would you be? Probably finishing my CPC in public transport management to extend my career in the bus and coach industry.
Q2. Who would be at your fantasy dinner party? The Marx Brothers, Oliver Reed and Girls Aloud.
Q3. Who would play you in a film of your life and why? Ewan MacGregor – because of the uncanny likeness.
Q4. Best thing about being a politician? I enjoy making a difference to people’s lives.
Q5. Something that would surprise people about you? I used to be thin with hair.
Q6. What are you reading at the moment? Two eggs on my plate by Olaf Reed Olsen. It’s a story about his part in the Norwegian Resistance during WW2.
Diary
Love letters Further tales of romantic misadventures at the Scottish Parliament reach us after Whollyrude’s revelations in the last issue about a misplaced invitation to the cinema for a viewing of Wuthering Heights provoked the following response:
Sir [Let’s leave aside the fact that
Holyrood magazine has been edited by a woman for the past six years for just a moment and carry on. Ed…] Further to an entry in last week’s
diary – ‘Fine line between love and hate’ – I would like to say how hurt and disappointed I was that none of my esteemed SNP colleagues grasped the hand of friendship, and accompanied us on the romantic adventure that was Wuthering Heights. Not only did they fail to turn up, they didn’t even bother to respond to my heartfelt – and entirely intentional! – invitation! Now, the Tories, on the other hand…
From: Gardiner DJ (David) Sent: 14 November 2011 10:26 To: Shaw D (David) Subject: RE: cinema
Comrade Shaw, I’m pleased to inform you that all the staff up here on the Tory corridor will be coming along, replacing our usual Tuesday champagne and caviar social. Yours in the revolution,
Good times
David Gardiner Scottish Conservatives MSP Group
Indepandance Many arguments have been cast for and against independence, but Whollyrude was amused by the Nationalists’ latest attempts to, ahem, ‘panda’ to the electorate…
For animal lovers as the pandas come to town
Bad times
Friends not foes Te battle may be over but Whollyrude hears that the fight may still be on within the Tory ranks. We hear whispers that all is not well among researchers in the Conservative corridors at the Parly and newly elected leader, Ruth Davidson, may have to employ all her best diplomatic skills to calm the natives down and get them all being friends again. Watch this space…
When the cat’s away Newly appointed Minister for Local Government Derek MacKay will have to be on his toes when it comes to delicate negotiations with his council partners but he may have to be swifter on his feet when the FM returns from China and finds out who has been sitting in his chair while he’s been away – and it wasn’t a panda… We don’t think Eck will listen to the excuse that there was no other vacant office in the ministerial tower.
Creating a storm Angela Constance may have breezed into her new ministerial office this week ready to take up arms against the rising tide of youth unemployment but was soon beaten back by Mother Nature when one of the windows in her office was blown in by the ‘Great Storm’ leaving a wee man trying to hold it shut while papers and pictures flew off the walls like something out of a spell in Hogwarts. Now there is job creation and job creation…
More than words can tell Whollyrude was amused to receive this recent press release from Director of CBI Scotland, Iain McMillan, bemoaning the poor standard of spelling and grammar in Scotland’s schools. What a shame he didn’t re-read his own headline and realise that classrooms are where children are taught and class rooms are things like drawing rooms…
CBI SCOTLAND DIRECTOR CALLS FOR THE RAISING OF STANDARDS IN SPELLING AND GRAMMAR IN SCOTLAND’S CLASS ROOMS
For Labour as Daily Record and Sunday Mail indicate they will adopt a more sympathetic tone towards the SNP
Outbreak of misspelling But then Labour never seems to learn the lesson…Labour press release spelling mistake no 2,346: BAILLIE CALLS ON STURGEON TO ACT ON NORAVIRUS OUTBREAK – the real spelling is norovirus. Poor Nora!
Contributions to the diary should be emailed to
diary@holyrood.com or faxed to 0131 272 2116.
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www.holyrood.com 12 December 2011
Tweets
For tweets direct from Holyrood magazine follow @HolyroodDaily
@NicolaSturgeon Practising the welcome toast – Huanying nimen liangge dao Sugelan lai (welcome to Scotland, you guys) #pandas
@HarryGiles Nothing, but nothing, says more about my country than that we have just collectively named the worst storms in decades #HurricaneBawbag
@John2Win [John Lamont MSP] Snow – I told you in February that our relationship was over so why have you come back into my life? Why?
@tavishscott Fine snowy night in Shetland – night to watch v good doc on Rolls Royce engines but girls want X factor
@EdinburghBiagi [Marco Biagi MSP] Out with police tonight to see work firsthand. Brief calls it Citizens on Patrol. Misspent youth watching Police Academy flooding back.
@HumzaYousaf Alright time to confess a guilty pleasure – love Grand Designs, choose it over #xfactor any day of the week!
@Tom4Scotland [Tom Harris] Just waiting for the kids to go to bed so Carolyn and I can watch “The Muppet Christmas Carol”.
Quote
“I’m glad to hear such braying from the SNP backbenches, I thought non- essential staff had been sent home.”
Ruth Davidson at FMQs on the day of the great wind
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