I want to scream at the Scottish Parliament for wasting our time - Helen Martin

Because the SNP are the government team, the other parties (except sometimes the Greens) are clipping together for Unionism.

I can understand that Conservatives, Labour and LibDem want to remain in the UK, so when it comes to Brexit or re-joining the EU, of course they have different policies they want to push forward and are right to do so, particularly with the May election or an indy ref.

But that has remained their top ambition, determined fighting and their irritating arguments throughout the whole pandemic.

Nicola Sturgeon has been admired by many countries around the world in how she has coped with Covid-19, even with her hands tied behind her back by the UK’s reserved powers.

Boris Johnson is recognised as a failure because of the vast number of deaths he has allowed to happen, his ignorance of shaking hands with victims, rejecting lockdowns, his focus mostly on economy rather than life, and his ill-informed Westminster team who don’t do what medical and scientific experts advise.

Yet when it comes to First Minister’s Questions, the opposing parties queue up to ask often ridiculous questions which waste government time and compel Sturgeon to explain what the others should, but often don’t, know.

It is often about decisions they think she has made. Time and time again she has to point out she’s a politician and a former lawyer, but not a clinical expert and a scientist. These are the experts who advise her and her cabinet for each step.

Labour’s Jackie Baillie (the one who tried to stop daily briefings), Tory Ruth Davidson (who is heading to the House of Lords) and Lib Dem Willie Rennie (who regularly demands for subjects such as care home visits and schools re-opening too soon) see all this as their role to fight with the Scottish SNP government rather than help the battle with the virus.

Why am I writing all this stuff which is pro-SNP and anti-Unionist? Because it is not a decently functioning parliament.

How does the EU work together? From all its countries it has a huge range of different parties from right to left wing – conservatives, reformists, democrats, socialists, greens and more. Its background and mental aim is not like unionists whose history and ambition is still FPTP (first past the post).

The US is the same as the UK. It’s a toss up between Republican and Democrat, as UK is between Tory and Labour.

Our Scottish element of proportional representation is not usually like the UK. It was planned (by the UK) so that parties would work together. It was remarkable that the SNP earned a majority. But even then, if Tory, Labour and LibDem wanted to succeed, contribute and play a good part rather than simply rant, rage and argue, they might have built up a few more votes in the May election.

Their behaviour, especially during the pandemic which Sturgeon has handled so well, has probably lost them even more.