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ELECTION 2017

Election diary: Who’s asking the leader?

Wasn’t that a vaguely familiar face in the crowd, grilling Ruth Davidson about the “rape clause” on the BBC’s Ask the Leader?
Wasn’t that a vaguely familiar face in the crowd, grilling Ruth Davidson about the “rape clause” on the BBC’s Ask the Leader?
AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Who’s asking the leader?

Wasn’t that a vaguely familiar face in the crowd, grilling Ruth Davidson about the “rape clause” on BBC’s Ask the Leader? It was indeed: the young woman concerned wasn’t any old member of the general public, it was Kelly Given, an SNP MP’s assistant. On Facebook, Kelly revealed she was “soooo excited” to have had her question selected. Her pals were excited too. “Kick her ass Kelly,” wrote one; “Rip the nasty little beast to shreds,” said another. Imagine the uproar if the BBC had allowed a Tory staffer to take up the cudgels with Nicola Sturgeon.

Own goal

A new king of the pollsters has arrived. Rodney Marsh, sometime hero of England, QPR, Manchester City and now residing in the US, his career as a football pundit sunk by a tasteless joke about the 2005 Asian tsunami, is now polling his Twitter followers on the following: “If Scotland is pushing for independence should Scots be allowed to vote in the general election?” Result: 43 per cent “yes”, 33 per cent “no”, 24 per cent “don’t give a toss”.

A poll beneath asked: “Does an Englishman living in the USA know anything about it anyway?” Result: 60 per cent “no”, 40 per cent “yes”. As Rodders puts it himself: “The people have spoken.”

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Making an impression

Tracey Ullman hilariously sent up Nicola Sturgeon as an evil Bond villain who’d taken JK Rowling hostage in the name of Scottish world supremacy. A little too close to the truth, perhaps. What did the FM herself think, when it was screened a couple of months ago? “I thought it was really funny,” said La Sturge, offering Ullman the ultimate accolade: “She’s got the outfit and everything.” Ullman obviously made a good impression.