Last week the nation followed the red brick road to the Emerald City, pulled back the curtain and revealed the vacuousness that stood behind it. The great and powerful couldn’t hide any more and telling the people to not believe what their eyes were telling them was the only tactic left as the clock ticked down to 10pm on Thursday night.

The lack of heart, courage and brain were not the afflictions of those who undertook the journey, but rather defined those upon whom judgment was to imminently be passed.

Goblins and witches had been slain and there was euphoria as Rishi Sunak and John Swinney had been torn from their lives by a tornado that had been building for years. For Sunak it has taken his house. Swinney’s was left severely storm damaged.

Friday morning began with lots of sorrys. John Swinney was “very sorry to be losing so many able Members of Parliament” and was sorry for the difficulties this would cause those who would be losing their jobs. An hour later and 400 miles further south, Rishi Sunak was just sorry.

In the first 10 minutes of his press conference John Swinney was listening, learning and reflecting no fewer than 16 times. That’s a lot of soul searching! But it was what he said immediately before this that really should have grabbed the headlines. Swinney told us “It [the Scottish National Party] needs to heal its relationship with the people of Scotland” A sickness and disease metaphor was bold given he had just been on the receiving end of an SNP-endectomy, but alluding to the party of government........

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