SNP MSP Mairi McAllan appears to be rated rather highly by First Minister John Swinney, who created an entirely new job for her on her return to Holyrood from maternity leave – but the Scottish government’s new housing secretary hasn’t had the smoothest start to the job. A rather awkward interview with STV this week highlighted the Cabinet minister isn’t quite as on top of her brief as she should be. Oh dear…
The SNP claims on its website that ‘since taking office, we have delivered 96,750 affordable homes, nearly 67,000 of which were for social rent’. But on how many people are currently waiting for a social home in Scotland, it seems the Nats are a little less clear. When quizzed during a visit to Bathgate on Wednesday, McAllan’s interview fast became rather excruciating…
STV: Do you know how many people are waiting for a social home currently?
MM: I don’t have that… I don’t have that figure.
STV: You don’t know how many people are waiting for a social home in Scotland?
MM: I don’t have that figure on me.
STV: You’re the new cabinet secretary for the housing brief, and you can’t tell me how many thousands of people are waiting for a social home?
MM: It’s not that I don’t know it. I don’t have the figure with me today.
Er, that rather sounds like she doesn’t know, then…
STV: Well, it’s 250,000. More than a quarter of a million Scots are waiting for a social home. What are you going to say to them? They’ll be quite shocked to hear you didn’t know how many of them were waiting for a home.
Ouch. Watch the clip here:
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