:00:00. > :00:00.The Scottish election campaign starts in earnest as MSPs
:00:07. > :00:37.I now close this meeting and this session of Parliament.
:00:38. > :00:42.A fond farewell to Scotland's first female Presiding Officer.
:00:43. > :00:46.A rare moment of unity and smiles before the party leaders head off
:00:47. > :00:57.for battle, but who will be returned?
:00:58. > :01:00.MSPs gathered at Holyrood for the last time today before
:01:01. > :01:03.heading out onto the election campaign trail.
:01:04. > :01:06.The dissolution of parliament comes as new research suggests people
:01:07. > :01:09.in Scotland are keener on having a powerful Scottish Parliament
:01:10. > :01:13.than at any time since the advent of devolution.
:01:14. > :01:15.We'll hear more about that from Professor John Curtice
:01:16. > :01:25.But, first, our Political editor Brain Taylor.
:01:26. > :01:31.A public book of condolence has now been made available... Holyrood
:01:32. > :01:37.history, Tricia Marwick presiding for the last time this term. Nicola
:01:38. > :01:43.Sturgeon facing her final question session before the election. And, on
:01:44. > :01:49.the throne, King Robert the Bruce, proudly recreating Scotland's past
:01:50. > :01:53.the passing as peas. In the Chamber, though, they focused on the future.
:01:54. > :02:00.The SNP have said they won't alter tax rate in Scotland for now. This
:02:01. > :02:04.First Minister who has campaigned for years on the mantra that more
:02:05. > :02:10.powers means fewer cap now refuses to use the powers to stop the cut
:02:11. > :02:14.is. The SNP will reverse a planned tax cut for high earners but Nicola
:02:15. > :02:23.Sturgeon said increasing the very top rate could backfire. Doing it in
:02:24. > :02:28.the face of analysis that says that right now it could actually reduce
:02:29. > :02:31.the amount of money we have to invest in our National Health
:02:32. > :02:36.Service and public services would not be radical. It would be
:02:37. > :02:41.reckless. It wouldn't be daring, it would be daft. The Lib Dems said
:02:42. > :02:46.Scottish education would suffer as a consequence. The opportunity to
:02:47. > :02:52.transform education is missed. That means nursery education targets will
:02:53. > :02:57.be missed. The attainment gap in schools will keep being missed. The
:02:58. > :03:01.First Minister said the fiscal framework meant Scotland would be
:03:02. > :03:06.recompensed for UK tax plans. That would generate investment for
:03:07. > :03:11.services. Patrick Harvie championed land reform. We still have hugely
:03:12. > :03:17.concentrated patterns of land ownership in Scotland which needs to
:03:18. > :03:22.change. MSP Stuart McMillan plays burden great anthem for common
:03:23. > :03:26.humanity. Watching from the gallery, Sheena Wellington, who sang that
:03:27. > :03:39.very song on Parliament's opening-day in 1999. A procession
:03:40. > :03:45.followed the pipe at down into the garden. There they gather, those
:03:46. > :03:52.departing and those hoping to return. Handshakes, hugs, even the
:03:53. > :03:57.occasional selfie. And from this happy scene... Straight into the
:03:58. > :04:02.streets. Willie Rennie joins a student protest. Ruth Davidson takes
:04:03. > :04:04.the Conservative election message out and about. The Scottish
:04:05. > :04:09.Conservatives don't believe we should put a sign at the border that
:04:10. > :04:12.says higher taxes here. It puts off investment, stops jobs coming here
:04:13. > :04:17.and we don't think people in Scotland should have to pay more
:04:18. > :04:22.tax. Labour prepares its election pitch, and offer on tax and
:04:23. > :04:24.spending. And the SNP must of their election candidates. Who will win?
:04:25. > :04:26.That is your choice. And joining me now in the studio
:04:27. > :04:29.is Professor John Curtice, Senior Research Fellow
:04:30. > :04:39.at ScotCen Social Research. Good evening to you. Pretty lively
:04:40. > :04:44.in the Chamber, even though it was the last day. It looks like tax and
:04:45. > :04:47.spending will dominate the campaign. How was it likely to go down with
:04:48. > :04:54.the voters? It is certainly important to note that this is the
:04:55. > :04:58.first election to take place with the extensive tax powers in place in
:04:59. > :05:02.the next parliament than before, this is an election not just about
:05:03. > :05:08.spending which for the most part the elections have been, it has been
:05:09. > :05:12.about which combination of more teachers, nurses and doctors do you
:05:13. > :05:15.want. This is an election in which the parties will be arguing with
:05:16. > :05:21.each other not only about what the money should be spent on but how it
:05:22. > :05:24.should be raised in the first place. So far as the campaign between the
:05:25. > :05:30.politicians is concerned, this is going to be the top issue. Whether
:05:31. > :05:33.it is going to end up being the most important issue for the voters is
:05:34. > :05:39.another matter because the truth is that for most voters in Scotland,
:05:40. > :05:42.any electoral contest now is a replay of the independence
:05:43. > :05:48.referendum in September 2014, and the opinion polls suggest that
:05:49. > :05:53.around 85%-90% of those that voted yes in September 2014 want to vote
:05:54. > :06:00.for the SNP much as they did 12 months ago, equally about 20% of no
:06:01. > :06:07.voters want to do so. Insofar as people going to the polling station
:06:08. > :06:13.is about affirming or rejecting independence, it wasn't leave great
:06:14. > :06:17.space for the taxation issue. Is this a done deal for the SNP? Is
:06:18. > :06:21.there any sign of a Labour revival? There are no signs of a Labour
:06:22. > :06:27.revival. Trim the course of the last 12 months or so, Labour's vote has
:06:28. > :06:31.been easing further south, getting lower. On average in the opinion
:06:32. > :06:38.polls, they are doing no better than around 20% of the vote, which would
:06:39. > :06:42.be the worst result for Labour since 1918, the first election they fought
:06:43. > :06:48.as a wholly independent party. The truth is that things look very dark
:06:49. > :06:51.for them. What does your latest research suggest about support for
:06:52. > :06:57.devolution, support for independence? In one sense, it says
:06:58. > :07:00.the obvious. It says that in the wake of the independence referendum,
:07:01. > :07:08.support for independence is now higher than it ever has been.
:07:09. > :07:13.ScotCen Social Research has done this, asked the same question every
:07:14. > :07:17.year since 1999 so we can benchmark where we are with history. Having
:07:18. > :07:22.said the obvious, however, there is a twist. Even on the standard
:07:23. > :07:28.long-running question, only 39% of people say they are in favour of
:07:29. > :07:31.independence, 55% say they want to finish or no Parliament at all. The
:07:32. > :07:36.avowed support for independence is lower than the support than there
:07:37. > :07:40.was at the ballot box. Ask another question which is simply to ask
:07:41. > :07:45.people what should be the powers and responsibilities of the Scottish
:07:46. > :07:48.Parliament, 51% of people, a clear record, say the Scottish Parliament
:07:49. > :07:52.should be responsible for making all the decisions for Scotland,
:07:53. > :07:55.including defence and foreign affairs, which of course implies
:07:56. > :07:59.independence, although that isn't the word we use. The best we can
:08:00. > :08:05.make of it, there's no doubt there is support for a powerful Scottish
:08:06. > :08:08.Parliament. There are a lot of people out there who at the end of
:08:09. > :08:11.the day would like a very powerful Scottish government that makes most
:08:12. > :08:16.of the decisions in Scotland but they'd still like to hang on to
:08:17. > :08:20.England. Some of those people probably voted yes 18 months ago,
:08:21. > :08:25.some of those voted no, and the future of the debate depends on how
:08:26. > :08:29.these people make their minds up. We heard Alex Salmond talking about how
:08:30. > :08:36.the independence argument needs to be refurbished. Does your research
:08:37. > :08:40.back it up? The yes side need to make further progress in persuading
:08:41. > :08:46.people that independence would be a good idea. No doubt, they need to
:08:47. > :08:48.make regress on persuading people of the economic benefits of
:08:49. > :08:53.independence, albeit our research suggest they have made progress in
:08:54. > :08:55.that regard because until Scots are convinced independence would be
:08:56. > :09:00.economically beneficial, they won't vote for it and there weren't enough
:09:01. > :09:02.of them convinced of that case back in September only 14. Thank you for
:09:03. > :09:03.joining us. She was part of the first
:09:04. > :09:06.intake of MSPs in '99, and she led them out of the Chamber
:09:07. > :09:09.today in her final act But not before they said thank
:09:10. > :09:24.you to Tricia Marwick. Today is the first female First
:09:25. > :09:28.Minister of Scotland, it is a pleasure and an honour to pay
:09:29. > :09:33.tribute to the Parliament's first female Presiding Officer. Tricia
:09:34. > :09:37.Marwick's election was historic for that reason, but it broke new ground
:09:38. > :09:43.in other ways as well. Not just the first woman to hold the role, Tricia
:09:44. > :09:48.Marwick is first to have reached the office of Presiding Officer without
:09:49. > :09:50.a university degree or a private school education, something which
:09:51. > :10:01.she and her family should be proud of. You have left a lasting
:10:02. > :10:07.Parliament. You've innovated at every turn. Whilst you'll be missed,
:10:08. > :10:13.there is a legacy to proud of. It is fair to say that my fellow Fifa has
:10:14. > :10:28.brought her unique style and approach. She's at the heart of our
:10:29. > :10:31.Parliament, the Fifer. You've fulfilled the job with distinction
:10:32. > :10:37.and my colleagues and I have been pleased to support you in your work.
:10:38. > :10:41.The radical reforms you connected to make our Parliament stronger and
:10:42. > :10:45.more effective, not least on topical questions, will stand as a permanent
:10:46. > :10:49.legacy in this place. You can be proud of the path you have taken and
:10:50. > :10:53.the change that you have brought. Thank you.
:10:54. > :10:55.Just before we came on air I spoke to Tricia Marwick
:10:56. > :11:09.Tricia Marwick, lots of warm words from across the party lines. First
:11:10. > :11:15.Presiding Officer that was a woman. First not privately educated... What
:11:16. > :11:20.to these firsts mean to you? Well, the seal has been broken in a number
:11:21. > :11:25.of ways. The first woman Presiding Officer, didn't go to a private
:11:26. > :11:31.school, very working class background. I often think of myself
:11:32. > :11:34.as actually representing the vast majority of people in Scotland.
:11:35. > :11:39.Quite apart from way you have come from, there has been a lot of praise
:11:40. > :11:43.for what you have done in the job as Presiding Officer. What did you want
:11:44. > :11:50.to change when you took the job up five years ago? I was clear I had a
:11:51. > :11:54.reform agenda. I've been in this parliament since 1999, and I've been
:11:55. > :12:02.not uncritical of it in that time so the opportunity in 2011 lent itself
:12:03. > :12:06.to me in trying to make reforms in the Parliament so that we could do
:12:07. > :12:09.our business better. Which of these reforms was the most important to
:12:10. > :12:15.you? The most important which opened up everything else was the working
:12:16. > :12:20.week, changed it from just a Wednesday and Thursday to Tuesday
:12:21. > :12:24.Wednesday Thursday. By opening up to Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday, it
:12:25. > :12:29.allowed me to introduce topical questions, which means that any
:12:30. > :12:35.questions that arise, any big issues that arise from Thursday onwards can
:12:36. > :12:38.get an airing in the Chamber on the Tuesday afternoon. And that has been
:12:39. > :12:46.a fantastic examination of ministers. There was one particular
:12:47. > :12:52.topical question where the Justice Secretary was questioned by 13
:12:53. > :12:56.separate MSPs and Sheriff Court closures. That has never happened
:12:57. > :13:00.before, so I'm very pleased about it. Have you met much resistance to
:13:01. > :13:03.the reforms you've tried to introduce, like trying to change the
:13:04. > :13:09.way the committees work, for example? It is fair to say that
:13:10. > :13:16.reform isn't easy. And, you know, if you're going to do this, you have to
:13:17. > :13:21.take everybody with you. It's no secret that changing the working
:13:22. > :13:24.week and topical questions took a considerable amount of time in
:13:25. > :13:27.convincing the business managers they should go forward. I wasn't
:13:28. > :13:34.successful in convincing them about the changes that were needed to the
:13:35. > :13:37.committees and the committee structures, but I think from the
:13:38. > :13:41.comments you heard today, reform is still on the agenda, it is very much
:13:42. > :13:46.on the agenda, I have placed it on the agenda and it is for others to
:13:47. > :13:49.take it forward in the future. Have you any regrets about things as you
:13:50. > :13:55.leave the job that you haven't been able to achieve? No, I think I've
:13:56. > :14:02.done as much as I can do. I think, sometimes, you know, if you look at
:14:03. > :14:13.the House of Commons, the right report to pay long time, and the
:14:14. > :14:16.reforms took a long time. We need to look at ourselves and examine
:14:17. > :14:20.ourselves and I am sure the reforms will come because they have to come.
:14:21. > :14:24.Watching First Minister's Questions today, it is still pretty tribal in
:14:25. > :14:30.the Chamber, is that a disappointment to? I don't think it
:14:31. > :14:34.is going to change. The last First Minister's Questions before an
:14:35. > :14:40.election, of course it is going to be tribal and rowdy. You expect
:14:41. > :14:44.that. Politics, after all, is about passion. If you take the passion out
:14:45. > :14:52.of politics, there is absolutely no point in it. But, having said that,
:14:53. > :14:55.a difference between passion and just being downright bad to each
:14:56. > :15:00.other, so I think we need to keep the passion by git rid of some of
:15:01. > :15:05.the insults that fly back and forth. How difficult was it for you as
:15:06. > :15:09.Presiding Officer when you have to remain neutral to be neutral right
:15:10. > :15:14.throughout the referendum campaign? The referendum campaign I think was
:15:15. > :15:18.my biggest challenge. It was so important that has Presiding Officer
:15:19. > :15:22.I had to protect the institution, which meant I had to stop the
:15:23. > :15:27.parties from using the Parliament from one side or the other, so we
:15:28. > :15:33.had bands on any campaigning in the campus. Of course, it was difficult
:15:34. > :15:41.for me. I believed in independence of my life. When I would go home at
:15:42. > :15:46.night and my husband was out campaigning, my daughter and my son
:15:47. > :15:49.and everybody that I know, I used to watch all the television programmes
:15:50. > :15:53.and I used to cry myself to sleep because I couldn't go out and
:15:54. > :15:58.campaign. Any tears leaving the job? No, surprisingly enough. I had tears
:15:59. > :16:05.earlier on when Duncan McNeil and Alex Salmond had their speeches.
:16:06. > :16:10.Duncan blindsided me. I didn't expect to be so emotional and I just
:16:11. > :16:14.completely lost it. I lost it a few days ago listening to their
:16:15. > :16:18.speeches. I was determined I wasn't going to lose it with my own speech.
:16:19. > :16:21.It was quite good because I had a practice run and got it out of my
:16:22. > :16:26.system. Tricia Marwick, thank you, and all the best for the future.
:16:27. > :16:28.If Scotland had voted "Yes" in the referendum 18 months
:16:29. > :16:30.ago, then tomorrow might well have been Independence Day.
:16:31. > :16:35.The 24th of March 2016 was the date nominated by the Scottish Government
:16:36. > :16:40.Of course, Better Together won the vote but, as we know,
:16:41. > :16:43.that was far from the end of the story.
:16:44. > :16:47.I'm joined now by Joe Pike, whose new book delves behind
:16:48. > :16:50.the scenes of what came to be known as Project Fear.
:16:51. > :17:11.Good evening. In the book, you quote a Better Together source comparing
:17:12. > :17:15.its campaign to a bright focused on her wedding day, while Yes Scotland
:17:16. > :17:19.was focused on her marriage and the life afterwards. How true was that?
:17:20. > :17:24.I think it was completely true. There were people in Better
:17:25. > :17:27.Together, certainly at the start, who thought it would be an
:17:28. > :17:32.opportunity to gain glory. They thought it would look good on their
:17:33. > :17:38.CV. In fact, it was far more difficult than that. The story
:17:39. > :17:44.behind-the-scenes is one of infighting, arguments, tears and
:17:45. > :17:48.swearing, and then in the final weeks, with DS ahead, there was a
:17:49. > :17:55.huge amount of financial mismanagement. And amusing example
:17:56. > :18:01.was that ?27,000 was spent on the victory party that Better Together
:18:02. > :18:08.held in Glasgow. They spent a lot of money on 64 cases of white wine, 50
:18:09. > :18:14.cases of red wine, and a few cases after the referendum- a feud weeks
:18:15. > :18:18.after the referendum, they realised they had a considerable shortage of
:18:19. > :18:24.money. The long term was not in their sights. After the referendum,
:18:25. > :18:28.from all the people you have spoken to, 60 different sources, how well
:18:29. > :18:34.do you think that Scottish Labour has understood its decline? It was
:18:35. > :18:39.going to be very difficult for Jim Murphy. 2011 was so tough for
:18:40. > :18:44.Scottish Labour. It was so far from success that some of them had
:18:45. > :18:53.expected, even a couple of days before that election. John Lamb and
:18:54. > :18:59.left the election with a grenade saying that it was being treated as
:19:00. > :19:02.a branch of the UK party. But Jim Murphy started with one strategy and
:19:03. > :19:13.finished with another. He started to try to convince Yes tours they could
:19:14. > :19:16.go with Scottish Labour. The two strategies were no help at all, and
:19:17. > :19:21.the squeeze message that the Conservatives were using, talking
:19:22. > :19:27.about the danger of a coalition with Nicola Sturgeon really did for them.
:19:28. > :19:31.There is a new leadership now, and I think maybe they don't understand
:19:32. > :19:36.the historical context. Kezia Dugdale is only in her early 30s,
:19:37. > :19:41.but they understand that things were bad for them and they need to
:19:42. > :19:46.rebuild. In your books, you mention a surprising number of pro-UK
:19:47. > :19:52.politicians that you spoke to taking a pessimistic view of the future. If
:19:53. > :19:56.you look at the big names we saw taking part of the referendum
:19:57. > :20:02.campaign, yes. It's hard to think they will play such a big role in
:20:03. > :20:07.the next time around. Gordon Brown -- Gordon Brown has retired. Others
:20:08. > :20:13.have lost their seats and are no longer in that world. If there is
:20:14. > :20:18.another referendum, which looks possible, there could be a new
:20:19. > :20:22.generation of campaigners. A lot of that political knowledge and
:20:23. > :20:28.political history, that experience, will not be available to call upon,
:20:29. > :20:33.although some will argue that the problems between Alistair Darling
:20:34. > :20:36.and Gordon Brown, and the not particularly positive relationship
:20:37. > :20:43.between Douglas Alexander and Jim Murphy did not help in the campaign.
:20:44. > :20:47.Many will be familiar with the term Project Fear in the EU referendum
:20:48. > :20:53.campaign. What lessons have either side of the European debate learned
:20:54. > :20:59.from the negative campaigning in the independence referendum? Before it
:21:00. > :21:03.got busy on the campaign trail this spring, senior strategists of both
:21:04. > :21:07.campaigns were looking to Scotland and trying to learn the lessons. The
:21:08. > :21:17.lesson for David Cameron is not to be as negative. The key messages for
:21:18. > :21:22.him are risk and uncertainty. The risks of leaving the EU and the
:21:23. > :21:26.uncertainty that good cause. It's very difficult to use messages of
:21:27. > :21:31.risk and uncertainty and be positive at the same time. That's a big
:21:32. > :21:40.challenge. The Leave side realise that Project Fear is an effective
:21:41. > :21:45.term. They have talked about David Cameron, about him talking down the
:21:46. > :21:50.United Kingdom, about Britain. That has a familiar tone. He's talked
:21:51. > :21:55.about the EU and the UK staying in it as giving the best of both
:21:56. > :22:00.worlds. He's talked about leaving as being a leap into the unknown. It is
:22:01. > :22:03.deja vu with Scotland. Thank you for coming in this evening.
:22:04. > :22:05.And joining me tonight in the studio is the Times journalist,
:22:06. > :22:09.Lindsay McIntosh, and Liam Kirkaldy, who writes for Holyrood Magazine.
:22:10. > :22:20.Welcome. It might have felt like we were into campaigning with the
:22:21. > :22:24.Holyrood election already. Today, Parliament dissolved and it starts
:22:25. > :22:30.in earnest. How are the main battle ground shaping up? Is starting to
:22:31. > :22:34.look interesting. Politics in Scotland have been defined along
:22:35. > :22:38.constitutional lines for so long. But with new powers coming to
:22:39. > :22:42.Scotland on tax, we are starting to have a more traditional right and
:22:43. > :22:48.left the bait in Scotland again. It's going back to what you want to
:22:49. > :22:53.do with your tax powers and your public spending. It is shaping up to
:22:54. > :22:59.be a tax and spend election which talks about income tax, council tax
:23:00. > :23:04.and investing in health and education. The Scotland Bill passed
:23:05. > :23:08.today. Lots of new powers coming to the parliament. Will we see a
:23:09. > :23:16.difference in Holyrood and the role of MSPs when they return next term?
:23:17. > :23:19.It has changed the political landscape a bit. The Tories will
:23:20. > :23:25.feel they have a bit more of an opportunity. They have traditionally
:23:26. > :23:29.been hamstrung by the fact that they were not in charge of gathering
:23:30. > :23:37.revenue. There's no real incentive to vote for a party that promises
:23:38. > :23:42.low spending if they are not going to tax you less. That will help a
:23:43. > :23:48.bit. It will change the nature of it across-the-board. We have seen a
:23:49. > :23:56.fairly steady as you go approach. Is the emphasis going to be on the fact
:23:57. > :24:02.they are a safe pair of hands, the SNP? Absolutely. Nicola Sturgeon
:24:03. > :24:08.held a rally today for her candidates. She said, when I get
:24:09. > :24:13.these new powers, if I am First Minister come me, I will use them
:24:14. > :24:18.wisely not recklessly. She is living up to that rhetoric. With council
:24:19. > :24:23.tax, she has just fiddled at the top end of it and not done anything
:24:24. > :24:30.rhetoric. She has offered a very small tax cut to people on the 40p
:24:31. > :24:33.tax rate, but she has refused to pass on the more generous cut that
:24:34. > :24:39.George Osborne is offering. There really is merit to that at the
:24:40. > :24:43.moment. This is the first time the Scottish Parliament has these
:24:44. > :24:46.powers. There is an economic argument for steady as she goes, but
:24:47. > :24:52.it does not match up to the rhetoric we were hearing from the SNP in the
:24:53. > :24:57.run-up to the independence referendum. Alex Salmond said today
:24:58. > :25:01.it is time to look again at the currency options for an independent
:25:02. > :25:08.Scotland. The shadow of the referendum lives on. He says the
:25:09. > :25:13.independence case needs refurbishment so it cannot be
:25:14. > :25:17.gazumped by opponents in any future referendum. It is an interesting
:25:18. > :25:24.choice of words. Is it his way of saying he got it wrong? I am not
:25:25. > :25:28.sure what he is saying. There was a widespread argument at the time that
:25:29. > :25:35.much of the Yes campaign, the currency wasn't the way to go. The
:25:36. > :25:40.answer produced by the SNP in the White Paper, that is. He isn't
:25:41. > :25:45.coming up with a new argument, just saying that he will argue it better.
:25:46. > :25:50.Nicola has announced she will come up with some sort of past forced
:25:51. > :25:56.come up with a new argument for independence in the summer, so maybe
:25:57. > :26:02.we will find out later. How essential was the currency issue to
:26:03. > :26:06.the outcome of the referendum? It was absolutely crucial. The SNP were
:26:07. > :26:12.not able to convince a lot of people that they knew what they were doing
:26:13. > :26:18.with the currency come tomorrow, come the Independence Day as it
:26:19. > :26:23.would have been under the SNP. I think the options that were open to
:26:24. > :26:29.the SNP at the time, the currency union, the euro, the new currency,
:26:30. > :26:35.neither of them were particularly palatable. Alex Salmond has
:26:36. > :26:40.recognised that, and he is going to try, either himself or within the
:26:41. > :26:46.SNP, to make a stronger argument. I think he may be shifting towards
:26:47. > :26:49.using the pound without agreement. He has had some bolstering for that
:26:50. > :26:54.from the likes of Mervyn King, former governor of the Bank of
:26:55. > :27:01.England. He said this year he thought that was the best option.
:27:02. > :27:07.This is interesting timing. Nicola Sturgeon is raising the issue of
:27:08. > :27:11.referendum again. Is this to keep the party faithful onside? Do
:27:12. > :27:16.ordinary voters have the stomach for this? I think a lot of people in the
:27:17. > :27:20.SNP would want to hear some sort of strategy on how they will move
:27:21. > :27:23.forward for independence. There is a widespread acceptance that they
:27:24. > :27:29.cannot afford to lose another referendum. There is a chorus within
:27:30. > :27:34.the party wondering why they didn't come up with another answer before
:27:35. > :27:39.now. The outcome will be linked to the outcome of the EU one. I think
:27:40. > :27:47.it is down to public opinion. They need 50 plus in the polls or 60 plus
:27:48. > :27:52.in the polls to be sure of winning. Before we go. There were fond
:27:53. > :27:58.farewells to Tricia Marwick as Presiding Officer today. Did she
:27:59. > :28:05.make a difference? Yes, into particular ways. One, who she is,
:28:06. > :28:10.female, state educated, not a University graduate, and she has
:28:11. > :28:14.reached the high echelons of the Scottish Parliament. The other is
:28:15. > :28:18.the reforms she has made, giving more time to backbenchers and
:28:19. > :28:25.introducing topical questions. She can be proud of the changes she made
:28:26. > :28:33.in her tenure. People really like kosher Marwick. She was seen as
:28:34. > :28:41.down-to-earth. -- Tricia Marwick. A lot of people feel closer to the
:28:42. > :28:43.Scottish Parliament in a lot of ways, and I think that's thanks to
:28:44. > :28:44.Tricia Marwick. Tomorrow night, the Scottish Leaders
:28:45. > :28:50.Debate is over on BBC One Scotland Join me here afterwards
:28:51. > :28:54.with reaction and