Why SNP needs to work harder to shed its reputation for secrecy

This is a deeply regrettably state of affairs brought about largely by the ability of anyone –or ‘anybot’ – to sound off on social media to a global audience. Algorithms that promote sensational but unfounded content over more considered posts are part of the problem.

What this means is that governments need to be as open and transparent as possible to reassure the public. If they even give the impression of being overly secretive, there are many willing to fill in the blanks.

In a letter to John Swinney, Friends of the Earth Scotland alleges that he and other ministers have committed a total of 28 breaches of the ministerial code over plans to build a new gas-fired power station in Aberdeenshire.

The complaint claims there were 16 meetings between ministers and the developers, SSE and Equinor, for which government records are either missing or unavailable. For example, while SSE revealed brief details of a meeting in September last year between two of its executives and Gillian Martin, the then energy minister, the Scottish Government said it had “no records” of it following a Freedom of Information request by FoE Scotland.

The campaign group complained that while government ministers had repeated meetings with the developers, the views of those who object to the new plant were “neglected”.

We can’t say whether there were any breaches of the code or if there was anything untoward, but the FoE complaint should receive a serious response. The ministerial code must be adhered to.

The broader problem for the SNP is that the impression created – by what may be a failure to keep proper records about the kind of meetings governments should have with industry – does not look good for a party with a track record of secrecy. At a time of public cynicism about politicians, they need to realise how important faith in democracy really is and work harder to maintain it.