Another year, another look in my crystal ball

Andy Wightman is predicting there will not be an independence referendum in 2021

There will not be an independence referendum despite all the clamour for one. The pandemic is far from over and will not be until at least Autumn 2021 when vaccine rollout will be on the way to completion. The SNP will not secure a majority at the Holyrood election with tactical voting leaving them short by another narrow margin. Brexit will turn out better than many feared. Hibs and Hearts will both do very well. The Edinburgh Festival will be back but in a very different form. 2021 will be one of the ten hottest years on record. The United Nations Climate summit in Glasgow will set more ambitious targets but fail to make the binding commitments necessary to tackle the climate crisis. And Donald Trump will embarrass himself and the American people at the Presidential Inauguration later this month.

Ice work

As the first snow and ice of winter enveloped the capital over the festive period, I was left wondering once again why those who make the most journeys in the city are left to navigate icy pavements whilst those who take up most room and pollute the urban air are provided with gritted, ice-free carriageways.

In Stockholm, the city government adopted a policy of clearing pavements and cycle lanes first, focusing on schools, day care centres and workplaces, then local roads and highways. This benefited women who used pavements more frequently than men who used cars more often and it also reduced the costs to health services of injuries. Time for a gender-balanced snow clearing policy in Edinburgh?

Covid scrutiny

MSPs receive high volumes of correspondence about the coronavirus pandemic. But we are not public health experts and scrutinising government decisions is difficult.

For example, there is emerging disquiet over the roll-out of Covid vaccines amid a decision to change the timing of a second dose.

I understand the anxiety but we are not living in normal times and the urgency of the public health crisis demands that trade-offs are made and the risks of various options are assessed and weighed against each other. The overall goal is to suppress the virus as much as possible and to increase the immunity across the population as fast as possible beginning with the most vulnerable groups.

I am confident in the assessment of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation and the UK Chief Medical Officers that the greatest protection is provided by the first dose of the vaccine and the priority is to make sure as many people as possible receive that first dose. This is particularly important as the new strain of coronavirus is spreading fast.

Meanwhile, the next two months are going to be very difficult for the health service with regular winter pressures and the new strain of coronavirus. Folk should stay at home as much as possible, avoid crowds and take care around elderly and vulnerable people. As much as is possible, do nevertheless have a very happy new year.

Andy Wightman is a Lothian MSP

Another year, another look in my crystal ball - Andy Wightman