Salmond rises, First Minister of Scotland

Pat Kane (Glasgow, Scottish Futures): An extraordinary occasion in the Scottish Parliament today - extraordinary not just for the historical precedent of an SNP government, but also for the inclusiveness of Alex Salmond's political rhetoric: "The nature and composition of this third Scottish Parliament makes it imperative that this government will rely on the strength of its argument in parliament, and not the argument of parliamentary strength", said Salmond in the chamber, and he continued, "Despite all the challenges we will face together, I welcome that as a chance to develop a new and fundamentally more reflective model of democracy". Salmond has been drawing on various jewels of Scottish literature over the last week, most notably Alasdair Gray's "let us work in the early days of a better nation". Commentators like Iain McWhirter "pinched themselves" in disbelief and relief, that he rose to the occasion - whatever else lies in store. The hope is that unlike Margaret Thatcher quoting from St Francis of Assisi when she took office in London 1979, this is not the product of spin and a press office, but draws upon the wellspring of Scotland's political culture. Salmond invokes the discursive vision of the Scottish philosopher George Davie's notion of the 'democratic intellect' – and its corollary, an intellectual democracy – as a guiding spirit of his minority government. The news that the Sunday Herald will campaign to revive the Scottish Constitutional Convention as a civic space to discuss the next evolution of national sovereignty, will hopefully reinforce this. It may well mean that the developing "process" of Scottish self-government will have vigour from bottom-up, as well as top-down. Even Gordon Brown, in current high Ukanian mode, may have to admit the resonance of these democratic forces.