Apparently somebody has resigned, I think it might have been that Nicola Stephanie that headed up the Scottish wing of the Lib Dems. Seriously though, has Nicol Stephens not been the most ethereal of all political leaders during his three year reign as the Lib Dems Scottish supremo.
It was only in the final year of his leadership that I actually discovered that he is a he and this his name is Nicol and not Nicola! Of course this is easily explained away as he and his party was largely subsumed by the Labour monolith during their years in coalition government when Nicol was officially second in command at Holyrood.
Following their fall from power and their decision to avoid power at all costs with the motto, “opposition for opposition’s sake”, Stephens headed up the fourth party in Holyrood … strange then that he should now tender his resignation on the grounds that he must put his family first, strange given that his portfolio of responsibility must be somewhat lighter than it was while he was sharing a bed with Labour.
It’s highly laudable that he should resign to give over more of his time to his family and it’s a fine example to set. But then I can’t help sensing that their is a whiff of sleaze about this somewhere, a tale untold perhaps, a scandal in waiting … Nicol, Nicol, Nicol, what have you been up to … or is it Nicola? Enquiring minds want to know!
Actually, if he has resigned for genuinely family orientated reasons then I would wish him all the best in placing his priorities in the right place, some things are more important than work, and sometimes the job and the responsibilities just aren’t worth the rewards … or the costs.
