I always enjoy a bit of banter with a colleague at Mastrick Towers who sits on the opposite side of the political spectrum to me.

His latest gambit was a drive-by question, rolling down the window to say: “Where’s my £15 billion?”

That’ll be the Scottish deficit then.

However, he was away before I could get in with my riposte.

The one that goes like this:

“Ask Westminster.”

You see, there’s a flaw in the unionist argument of pointing at Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland or GERS (I believe it’s short for gerrymandering) figures and being gleeful about how poor Scotland is.

If you stop and think about it, the question has to be “Why?”

Why is a country so rich in resources as ours apparently in such dire straits?

Sure, the oil industry is on its backside at the moment – and I stress, at the moment, it will bounce back.

But where is all the oil revenue the North-east has been pumping into Westminster coffers over the years? Why is there not a fund to counter the oil troughs while making the most of the peaks?

While we’re on the subject, doesn’t Scotland have an abundance of wind and water power, right at the cutting edge of the green energy revolution?

Don’t we have an astonishingly healthy and money-spinning industry in whisky, that other nations would give their eyeteeth for?

And isn’t Scotland one of the world-class destinations for tourists from all round the globe, coming here and spending billions?

Don’t our farmers, fishers and producers feed the world the finest food on the planet.

So given all of that – which would make any other nation green with envy – how come we’re so poor? Who’s been running the show for generations?

Who has their hands on the economic levers of power? Oh right, the Westminster elite establishment.

The fact we are, allegedly, in such a mess is a damning indictment of the Union not an advert for it. The sooner we get to decide our own spending, our own priorities, our own destiny, the better off we will be.

Getting North-east moving

Ooh look … we have a shiny new bit of super duper road over Craibstone way which will eventually link up with the bypass.

Meanwhile, I’m still getting caught in AWPR traffic lights trying to get out of Stoney of a morning.

That said, any thing that improves our roads is to be welcomed. As for the bypass, it’s been a long time coming, beset and near stymied by numpties. Finally, we’re on the road to get the North-east moving again.

Colourful parade cause to Celebrate

Being a big bairn, I always like a big parade … and they don’t come much bigger than Celebrate Aberdeen.

It was great to see and hear all that music, colour and spectacle on Union Street on Saturday. At one point, I couldn’t even see the end of it, just a stream of smiling, singing, dancing, waving people.

It shows how many charities, community groups and social enterprises are doing so much good in the Granite City, making it a brill place to live. We should celebrate everyone involved every day.