Do WhatsApp revelations mean Scotland’s government is as bad as Westminster?

As it emerges that WhatsApp messages were deleted by senior SNP ministers, Sean O’Grady looks at the fractious relationship between Edinburgh and London

Nicola Sturgeon with her former deputy, John Swinney (PA Wire)

Revelations from the Covid inquiry suggest the Scottish government could sometimes be as cronyistic, secretive and foul-mouthed as the one in Whitehall. It was also arguably quite as prone to playing politics with the pandemic as its counterpart in London.

The latest news is that the former deputy first minister and pandemic minister, John Swinney, manually deleted WhatsApp messages, just as some figures in London had.

The inquiry, still chaired by former judge Baroness Hallett but presently sitting in Edinburgh, also heard that the Scottish finance minister at the time, Kate Forbes, wasn’t invited to so-called “gold command” meetings and Ms Forbes was “not even sure” they existed at the time.