The (not so great) Election Debate

Tonight there will be a television first for the UK. The three leaders of the main political parties in the UK will take part in a debate, live on television, answering questions in front of an invited audience. This practice is commonplace in other countries such as the United States (so, inevitably, it had to happen here eventually) This will be the first of three such televised debates; tonight it's being shown on ITV (so expect plenty of advertisements and a sponsor's message) with the other two being shown in the coming weeks on Sky Television and the BBC.

The theme of tonight's debate is 'domestic issues'. As the media works itself into a frenzy, many Scots will smile wryly at tonight's debate. Domestic issues include health, education and policing. These three examples are now devolved to the Scottish Government - currently led by the Scottish National Party. So can the nation expect to see SNP leader Alex Salmond take the floor with messrs Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg? Not a chance...

It's another example of how Scotland is treated with disdain by Westminster. Yes, it may be interesting to hear the Prime Minister's views on health and how he plans to improve falling education standards. But it doesn't matter one iota to people living in Scotland because Pa Broon has no say in the matter north of the border.

I've little doubt tonight's programme will be little more than a charade. So much so I'm surprised Lionel Blair isn't taking part (he used to present Give Us A Clue on television in the 1980s, younger readers) Compo, Foggy and Clegg will read from a prepared script and will do what politicians do best - avoid giving a straight answer. Count how many times the phrase 'we've made our position absolutely clear' and 'the fact of the matter is' will be heard tonight.

Meanwhile, those who really care about Scotland will be conspicuous by their absence. The elected Scots government (not invited) And the people of Scotland (not considered)

Here's to independence - I can't wait...