Best Laid Plans

You can imagine the scene. In the early hours of Saturday the phone in the Alexander-Ashcroft household rings and the voice at the other end says ‘worst result since the battle of the Somme and Boris has won London...’.

But which way to turn? Support for independence continuing to rise, the SNP Government gaining in popularity and Annabel Goldie being hailed by the press as the real leader of the opposition. What was Wendy to do? Something decisive, something bold...but what?

After being up most of the night she picked up the phone and gave the instruction that the Sunday Mail, favoured organ of Labour, would be briefed that Labour were considering calling the SNP ‘Bluff’ and supporting a referendum. Oh and they were to make it sound like Gordon was on board. It would be enough to create a distraction and could be denied later on...

Gordon was not on board. Gordon was in a darkened room, refusing all visitors having said for a long time that forcing a referendum would be to play into the SNP’s hands. But then again no-one was really listening to him these days.

Wendy goes on the BBC is gentle pressed on the possibility of Labour backing a referendum and after protest she cracked and declared ‘bring it on’. The distraction was now taking on the momentum of a runaway train. She declares that this is all due to the SNP not being able to introduce a bill and hold the referendum in the same year.

Declaration made the Labour MSPs had no choice but to accede and leaving their spokesman Duncan McNeil to say that they would support ANY referendum brought forward. A few MSPs quietly point out that yes the SNP could bring a bill forward and have the referendum in 2010. Panic sets in, the runaway train was not under control...so the declaration is made that if the SNP Government don`t bring forward a bill then the Labour party will...

Wendy thinks she’s back on track and back on the front foot...until Gordon starts getting asked questions...Gordon ain`t for backing it, or her on this. They’d talked it over in the past and he has said ‘no’.

Voices start emerging from both MPs and MSPs calling the plan ‘hair brained’. Gordon is pressed by David Cameron on the issue at FMQs and appear to have lost any grip on reality or the Scottish Labour party.

But Wendy clings to the threat of bringing forward a referendum bill, hoping that means she stays in control of the runaway train. Alas, like many best laid plans (and like other plans made on the hoof such as this one) even this has been snatched away from her.

Brian Taylor and the BBC observes that “Ms Alexander's threat to bring forward her own referendum bill to Holyrood may fall at the first hurdle because of Scottish Parliament rules...MSPs proposing legislation need the support of 18 colleagues from at least two of the major parties. The rules also state that the lawmaking process cannot be started if the Holyrood government of the day plans its own legislation on the same proposal within the parliament's four year term. “

Since the SNP Government plans to hold a referendum in 2010 using a Government Bill then this supercedes any Members Bill that Alexander may plan to bring forward. She’s now caught in a trap of her own making. They now have to support the future Government Bill on an Independence Referendum, on the Government’s timescale. She doesn`t have the backing of Gordon and the party is fragmenting around her.

Apparently in the Scottish Labour party it used to be said that Henry McLeish had ‘Nationalist Accidents’ where Jack McConnell had ‘Nationalist Intentions’. What must they be saying about Wendy?