It has been seven years since FMQs saw a new First Minister installed. Alex Salmond brought to the Chamber the Westminster style bombast with which he had been praised during his time on the green benches. In Scotland however it created something of a marmite effect, and polling consistently showed that his popularity with men was not matched by women. He was often portrayed as arrogant, aloof and needlessly aggressive.
The challenge for Nicola Sturgeon, who it must be remembered, was Deputy First Minister for all that time, and had on occasion stood in place of her predecessor, is to forge a new style of FMQs. Today she made a fair start at the undertaking, with ‘consensus’ and ‘listening’ being the buzzwords of the day.
With Labour still conducting its leadership campaign, it fell to Jackie Baillie to once again lead the Opposition bench. Choosing to go on the subject of drug treatment for cancer patients, the discussion looked like it would be a throwback to when both were responsible for the Health brief. Baillie argued that there was still a postcode lottery for patients suffering from cancer despite assurances that the issue would have been resolved last year.
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Sturgeon responded by acknowledging that challenges continued to present themselves, but that she would be happy to work with Scottish Labour to find a solution. It was reasonable, it was balanced, and it was a fresh start. While party politics did rear itself slightly when Baillie asked when the Government would treat cancer patients with dignity and respect, Sturgeon remained resolute, only saying that the comment was beneath Labour.
Ruth Davidson asked about early prison release, calling for it to be dropped and citing a recent case which demonstrated the inadequacy of the policy. Once again the First Minister took a consensual tone, stating that a review would soon be underway and she would be happy to work with Davidson on the matter.Willie Rennie continued his pursuit of Kenny MacAskill, stating that everyone knew that he would be soon on his way out – a reference to incoming reshuffle. Therefore he asked, would she consider reviewing the corroboration legislation, and the scale of stop and search. The First Minister skirted round the issue and joked that she had managed to maintain the consensus mood for twenty minutes.
It remains to be seen whether this new tone for First Ministers Questions will be maintained, and more to the point whether it should. Opposition parties have a duty to hold fire to the feet of Government and this can often result in very heated debates. But the First Minister achieved a sense of a fresh start. Comparisons were made online to the feeling of a first day at school. The real test of this outbreak of consensus will be if it continues to be maintained for the next year and a half.
This article was originally published on The Garden Lobby.