THIS year’s Burns supper celebrations might have felt more like Groundhog Day. Holyrood is again told it cannot fulfil its democratic mandate, a decision which will end up in court.

Westminster’s entitled cronyism continues with dodgy loans, ‘careless’ errors over millions in unpaid tax, and ‘forgetting’ to wear a seatbelt.

Legislation governing seatbelts first came into effect in 1983 and, in 40 years, has saved thousands of lives, but the law was disregarded by Rishi Sunak, who simply paid another fine. Supporters of the Union are waiting a long time to see Lord Nolan’s 1995 ‘standards in public life’ consistently upheld.

The independence-supporting majority are also waiting to get the referendum they voted for. Currently, the two Governments disagree on the relationship between gender recognition reform and the 2010 Equality Act.

Here and elsewhere, Holyrood’s priority is to make people’s lives better and fairer across the country, and I’m confident that East Lothian residents will recognise as fair the £100 million investment (from both Holyrood and Westminster) for Scotland’s island infrastructure and services.

Our county has road, rail and bus connections to two major cities; thriving towns; a growing population; and access to good-quality housing, with a recognised need for greater affordability. Scotland’s island communities need to be appropriately funded: enhancing fairness is one goal for an independent Scotland. Another is making Scotland healthier, for example through current innovative measures to tackle the drugs-related public health emergency with healthcare support for drug users and their families. The aim is to end the stigma both of drugs dependency and of other aspects of mental ill health.

As a politician and as a husband and father, I’d like to applaud New Zealand’s Jacinda Ardern for saying publicly that she has “nothing left in the tank” to continue as Prime Minister.

It was courageous and it should encourage others to recognise the times when saying ‘enough’ represents a step forward.

For Andy Murray, losing a match isn’t a failure but a step in a remarkable international career; win or lose, Murray’s Saltire flies proudly and his outstanding commitment is a fine example to the young.