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The Herald Scotland
21-07-2025
- The Herald Scotland
Here's how I've stayed healthy since my heart attack
The first presentiment of something not quite right was some breathlessness when I stood to wrestle something from the aircraft's overhead luggage rack. And then, as I made my way through Perth airport it felt like I was walking up a down elevator. I ascribed it to a touch of anxiety about long-haul flights (never liked them). And so I downed a large Bacardi at an airport bar and nipped outside for a smoke … just to calm everything down and re-capture my equilibrium, you understand. By the time I reached Melbourne to be greeted by our Clare, I couldn't lift my own luggage. 'Dad, you're as grey as death,' she said. 'I think I should take you to hospital.' Read more Kevin McKenna: 'Behave yourself,' I replied. 'It'll be a touch of that thrombosis everyone gets on these flights. It'll sort itself out.' For the first few nights I was staying at the apartment of my friend David Dick, then an executive at the Melbourne Age and now editor of the Daily Record. There's a picture of me somewhere on Facebook at his place, sipping a large glass of red wine just an hour later. It was only when I went to bed that it occurred to me this could be something serious. I began to feel some unruly activity in my chest and realised that this wasn't good at all. Worse: it was probably too late to do anything about it and that I should probably accept my fate and ask God's forgiveness for being a daft fud. I also made a mental inventory of all those people I'd hurt or slighted and asked for mercy. And then I made my peace with those with whom I still had some unresolved issues. What with all that and three Hail Marys, a Glory Be and an Our Father I might yet have a wee chance of a fair hearing should I wake up dead in the morning. Fortunately (or not, depending on your point of view) I woke in the land of the living and my daughter immediately whisked me to St Vincent's Hospital in downtown Melbourne. They took one look at me and began kitting me out in the hospital gear and a drip. I love Australians' propensity for plain speaking. 'How did you not know you'd had a heart attack,' asked the consultant, astonished that I hadn't immediately popped in following the flight. Glaswegians also like to speak plainly. 'Well, not having ever had a heart attack, how was I supposed to know,' I asked him. It's not as though I'd had the falling-down-while-clutching-your-chest type of event you see on the telly. After the scans and a wee angiogram they concluded I didn't need the hacksaw and staples routine. Some tablets and a couple of stents would do the trick. 'Is it because I'm quite a healthy specimen that I don't need a bypass,' I asked the consultant. 'No, it's because you're one lucky b****** and you need to be taking better care of yourself,' he said. And besides, he pointed out, there was some old scarring on an artery, indicating I'd had some kind of 'cardio event' several years ago. It was only later that I learned that many of the male McKennas have been going down like skittles with heart failure since we first got off the boat from Ireland in the 1890s. My Glasgow consultant would later tell me that, in all probability, I was destined to get a heart attack at some point and that getting it when I was 'relatively' young and 'relatively' fit was preferable to falling over later in life. I was working for The Observer at this time and they were keen that I write one of those arse-clenching pieces about kindness and being more appreciative of wur planet. But that's not really me. So they settled instead for a lighter, self-mocking piece about my delinquent life choices. Read more Kevin McKenna: 'Give us your blueprint for surviving a heart attack ten years on,' absolutely no-one has ever said. But here it is anyway. My handy lifestyle guide to living responsibly after a heart attack. Alcohol. Rather than deny yourself the delights of the swally, maybe try putting an extra slice of fruit in your gins, vodkas and Bacardis. Kevin McKenna won't deprive himself of time in the pub. (Image: Newsquest) Sex. When men write about sex there are no good outcomes, but the doctors kept mentioning it. So, based on anecdotal research among other heart attack survivors, I'd advise using the approach favoured by our international football team. Just leave all the fancy stuff to the continentals and only venture over the halfway line when absolutely necessary. Pray. If you're an atheist, don't kid on you don't get worried you've backed the wrong horse whenever you start feeling fragile and vulnerable. My Godless chums always ask for proof of The Almighty's existence. But if you're ever in a life-threatening situation, can you be absolutely sure he DOESN'T exist? So try a bit of praying now and again. Swearing. Do lots of this. And if you recoil at the use of profanities, get over yourself. Read these f***ing sentences aloud minus these f***ing asterisks. You'll feel better for it. Try to be a decent c*** and not a w***er. You only get one f***ing shot at this, so stop f***ing around. There: that's better, isn't it? Silence. We're always told to share our problems and open up more as a means of mental self-medication. B*******. You'll just worry about over-sharing and that'll make you more anxious. If you want to unburden yourself, get a dog. Be cardio-smart. You're going to have a dickie ticker for the rest of your life, so turn it into an asset. Need to make a last-minute cancellation for a party or an event full of sanctimonious rockets discussing climate change and pronouns? Just use your heart condition. To add depth to your little white lie, memorise all the terminology around heart health: the arteries, the valves, the ventricles and all the other tubes and chambers. If you're really desperate, just say you need to have another cheeky wee stent put in. I'm up to about six, but I've only got the two. It's the wee changes that make all the difference. When you're in the pub, choose a seat furthest away from the bar and volunteer to fetch all the rounds. That way you can get in your 10k steps a week in no time. Kevin McKenna is a Herald writer and columnist. He is Features Writer of the Year and writes regularly about the working-class people and communities of Scotland
The Herald Scotland
16-07-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Glasgow and Edinburgh need our governments to step up on devolution
The vast majority of the powers to be devolved are, indeed, in the gift of the Scottish Government – and I've made no secret of my view that they need to put more pace behind commitments to empower Scotland's city regions. However, the devolution of powers without funding would still leave city regions in all of our devolved nations without the economic tools available to our English counterparts. Glasgow City Region partners are clear that we require a flexible integrated settlement, equivalent to those already provided and pipelined for our English peers. These have not generated Barnett consequentials and no equivalent funding has ever been provided to the Scottish Government – therefore it is clear that the resourcing of any devolution deal remains the responsibility of the UK Government. Across the country, leaders of the UK Core Cities are calling on the UK Government to provide parity of funding support for Glasgow, Cardiff, Belfast and Edinburgh. They agree that we are being disadvantaged and that the recent UK Spending Review was a missed opportunity to begin to address that inequity. The inclusive growth proposition that the Glasgow City Region has put to government is as compelling as any that can be made across these islands – and Glasgow and Edinburgh City Regions are among the most economically productive in the UK. But as David Waite points out in his thoughtful and nuanced article ("Should Glasgow and Edinburgh follow Greater Manchester's lead?", The Herald July 14), we are at risk of losing out by being made a political football. I'm happy to take the Secretary of State up on his offer to write jointly to the First Minister – but that letter needs to go to the Prime Minister and Chancellor too. Glasgow – and Edinburgh, for that matter – need both of our governments to step up on devolution. Cllr Susan Aitken, Chair, Glasgow City Region Cabinet, Leader of Glasgow City Council. Read more letters A scorching denunciation We are now well into the 21st century and Kevin McKenna may no longer actually dip his pen into gall, thereby putting any parchment at risk, but it would not be surprising to hear that his computer had burst into flames as he composed his denunciation of NHS Fife ("Sandie Peggie's case against NHS Fife is more important than Supreme Court judgment", The Herald, July 15). Such forensic condemnation and an examination of the potential implications of the outcome of Ms Peggie's tribunal do him great credit. Not for the first, nor probably the last time, one is left with head-shaking incredulity at the lengths that organisation and similar publicly funded bodies will go to in order to endorse current politically correct dogma. Bob Scott, Drymen. • Kevin McKenna's article on the case against Sandie Peggie is one of the most powerful I have read in years and to which I completely extend my support, along with my support for Ms Peggie. It is a complete and utter disgrace that the tribunal still goes on and many of Scotland's "governing class" and cowardly, line-toeing unions should be ashamed. Angus MacEachran, Aberdeen. Colour call It's interesting that England women's football team's kit is red, white and blue. Sadly Scotland didn't qualify for the Euro finals and Wales didn't progress from their group but the Lionesses proudly carry the colours of the United Kingdom. Did the kit designers predict England would be the only team to carry the hopes of the UK forward or was there some confusion over the difference between England and the UK? Stuart Campbell, Moffat. Bing is a thing, honest I have a little niggle re the Word Wheel. I am addicted to this puzzle, but find that the word "bing" seems to be ignored constantly. Although it is present often in the wheel, it is never included in the solutions – nor does it even appear in my wee dictionary. However, most people in the central belt were familiar with the spoil-heaps adjacent to coal-mines. It IS a word. Elspeth Russell, Hamilton. Well above par In response to Alan Fitzpatrick (Letters, July 15) and much as I love the views from Shiskine golf course, may I suggest as an even stronger contender for "best golf course view": that from the 6th tee at Kingussie? The Monadh Liadh to your back, the Feshie hills and the Cairngorms in front, and Strathspey to left and right. Add in the deer and an occasional eagle: beautiful! Brian Chrystal, Edinburgh. England's Lionesses in red, white and blue (Image: PA) Ground the wet blankets Now that Scotland's weather has reverted to type, with rain forecast for the next 10 days, might I suggest that those who complained about our recent brief spell of Mediterranean-style weather should have their passports confiscated? Steve Brennan, Coatbridge. Sweet innocence The discussion about the merits or otherwise of the Scots language ('Are Scots speakers poorer and less educated? Or could we just be missing an opportunity?', The Herald, July 14, and Letters, July 15) brought to mind an incident about 40 years ago. My sister was living in London at the time and my mum, dad and I went to see her. We waited outside as my mum went into my sister's local newsagent and asked for 20 cigarettes, a box of matches, four bars of chocolate and a packet of mints. Mum came out of the shop looking somewhat bemused and told us that the gentleman behind the counter suddenly looked "awfy embarrassed" and had blurted out for no reason at all that he had a wife. We quizzed her on what she had said to him, to which she informed us that she had simply asked for her items and then added: "Any chance you could give me a poke, son?" Gordon Fisher, Stewarton.
The Herald Scotland
09-07-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Budget gaps, Chancellor? Why not save £500m a year on the royals?
Extending the thought, in these days when we're urged to give up 5% of GDP for defence, are cavalry regiments, state coaches, troopings of colours and bearskin hats appropriate things to ask those on low incomes and highly-taxed pensions to pay for? Palaces and properties, duchies (Lancaster and Cornwall), and the seabed to 12 miles from the shore are all income generators. Is it too much to suggest that they belong to us, not the Windsors? Taxing the rich rather than the poor might well be a popular policy. AJ Clarence, Prestwick. Wealth should not matter I wonder if Kevin McKenna writes for The Herald on a Tuesday ('How Scotland's satnav socialists abandoned working-class people', The Herald, July 7) without first reading the Monday paper? This is the second time that he has attacked Roz Foyer's position as STUC General Secretary purely on the grounds of her purported financial status and, by extension, her social class. If he read her articles purely on their merit, he would surely see that she bats on the side of outsiders of all descriptions in the UK and beyond, and does not appear to have bought into establishment thinking on homelessness, wealth distribution or anything else. How much property you own or how much money you have in the bank should have no bearing on whether someone can or does stand up for compassion, freedom, justice, and equality. I suggest that so to do is, adapting one of Mr McKenna's phrases, 'to be authentically Christian in public life'. Jesus did not require cynicism from his followers; he said: 'go and do likewise'. David Rogerson, Bridge of Allan. Read more letters A small price to pay There has been grumbling about pensioners being "dragged" into paying income tax for the first time with the Government freeze on the tax threshold. The current threshold for income tax is £12,570 in one year. The current maximum state pension is £11, 973. The triple lock could mean that the pension will rise by 5.2% (£622) next year to £12,595.60. This is £25 over the threshold, meaning pensioners on the maximum state pension would pay 20% tax on that £25 (£5) – an extra 10p a week. Those receiving smaller pensions would still not pay tax. While I appreciate this creates a precedent surely it's a microscopic price to pay for our share of improved NHS and defence of the country. I can't understand why Keir Starmer doesn't explain this. It's simple, reassuring, arithmetic. Allan Sutherland, Stonehaven. Make enterprise No 1 priority Scotland receives around £10,000 more per family of four in public spending than England, thanks to the Barnett Formula. On top of that, middle earners face significantly higher income tax than their UK counterparts. So where does all this extra money go? Not into productivity or investment, but into politically motivated consumption: free prescriptions, free tuition, baby boxes, and much more. Now, the SNP is considering an eye-watering £8 billion-a-year Minimum Income Guarantee – as if the money tree (those with the 'broadest shoulders') can be shaken indefinitely. This isn't a path to prosperity; it's a blueprint for dependency. Tellingly, there's little serious discussion of how to grow Scotland's economy, because meaningful reform is complex, politically demanding, and doesn't deliver instant results. The true drivers of growth – entrepreneurs, investors, job creators – are ignored or penalised. These are the people who risk their capital, work long hours without guarantees, and expect fair reward if successful. Crucially, they are mobile – as demonstrated by the growing exodus of wealth creators to other European countries that welcome them with open arms. Scotland's increasingly punitive tax regime and populist handouts only accelerate this drain. With fewer wealth producers, the tax base shrinks, leading to more borrowing or heavier taxes on an already stretched population. And here lies the central irony: a debt-fuelled, welfare-heavy Scotland, reliant on Westminster subsidies, is hardly the mark of a nation preparing for independence. You cannot credibly claim sovereignty while running an economy on excessive borrowing, oppressive taxation and unsustainable welfare. Until the SNP prioritises enterprise over entitlement and growth over giveaways, it demonstrates only one thing: it is not serious about independence. Ian Lakin, Aberdeen. Biggest sinner is Westminster John Gilligan (Letters, July 8) declares 'it's the economy, first, last and always, stupid' and then proceeds to berate road signs and ferries. The big picture appears to have eluded him. We remain part of a UK economy which is currently in such a parlous state that cuts to winter fuel allowance and disabled benefits have been attempted and there are now plans to scrap support for special educational needs in England. The Children's Commissioner has declared that young people in England are living in 'almost Dickensian levels of poverty' where deprivation has been normalised. If Mr Gilligan really wishes to add up the billions wasted, I would suggest he directs his calculator to the oil revenues squandered, HS2, which may or may not reach Birmingham saving commuters 20 minutes, tanks which can't be driven and one aircraft carrier being laid up so as to be used to supply spare parts to keep the other afloat. Should he prefer to focus on minutiae, perhaps he could consider the ink that, although barely dry, is wasted when this Labour Government performs yet another U-turn? Whatever the Scottish Government's faults, and I agree they are legion, Westminster is in a league of its own. Alan Carmichael, Glasgow. Definitions of separatism While I agree with Mark Smith ("Independence declaration has the same old problems", The Herald, July 7) that 'commissions' are a way of kicking embarrassing issues into the long grass, the rest of his rambling article is, to put it politely, mince. It is noticeable that as usual, British nationalism is not nationalism at all, and must not be mentioned. Unfair? Why were the terms 'nationalism' and 'separatism' absent from the EU referendum, and how can politicians who opposed and still oppose membership of the European Union be 'unionists'? Mr Smith thinks that 'working closely together' in the case of the SNP joining the EU would undermine that concept. Sorry, that does not compute, nor does Scotland joining other independent nations of the world constitute separatism. The UK is not a fair and equal union: England with its huge population dominates the other countries, exploits their assets for its own benefit and uses that population density to slew investment to its country. Devolution has proved to be power retained with fiscal control remaining in London, and Westminster politicians desperate to interfere and overrule the elected legislatures of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. An example this week is the English Health Secretary putting down his marker for Labour's next leadership campaign through an ad hominem attack on the elected First Minister of Scotland ("Streeting calls Swinney an 'analogue politician in a digital age' over NHS app", The Herald, July 8). There is a democratic deficit; an elective mandate in Scotland is treated differently from an Anglo-British mandate, is it not? The right of self-determination, supposedly the first principle of international law, by-passes Scotland, though not Ireland. Westminster refuses to compromise its alleged sovereignty over the rest of us, and virtually never consults or seeks common ground on any issue with other UK nations. GR Weir, Ochiltree. Does Holyrood adequately cater for the needs of rural areas? (Image: Gordon Terris) Rural Scots are being ignored Andy Anderson ( Letters, July 7), writing about the right to call a referendum on public policy, says that "there is a petition on the Holyrood website calling for this particular UN Human Rights covenant to be put into Scots law". I contend that the SNP, which centralises all power in Scotland into Edinburgh, will never implement such a demand. Prior to the May 2021 election, the then SNP Communities Secretary, Aileen Campbell, pledged that her party would implement a bill, drafted by Andy Wightman of the Scottish Greens, to give councils European-style safeguards over a raft of new powers and financial controls. Note that, once again, the SNP shows that it cannot be trusted to implement pledges given to the people of Scotland. Phillip Norris (Letters, July 4) should also recognise that his request for "the SNP to take note" (over the desecration of rural Scotland by wind turbines) will simply be ignored. After all, there was not a single response from any SNP politician to my letter of June 30 pointing out that there's a parliament for the Central Belt but not for the rest of us. Rural Scots are ignored by the SNP. Ian Moir, Castle Douglas.
The Herald Scotland
08-07-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
How Scotland's satnav socialists abandoned working-class people
The Tories' worst nightmare was the egalitarian society imagined by the early socialist thinkers and Labour leaders. It was where good health, a long life, decent housing and a high-quality education could be accessed by those whom they'd always viewed as the lower orders. After two world wars in which the mass sacrifice of those lower orders had preserved Britain's way of life, the Tories and the UK Establishment which relied on their protection had been forced to concede the territory they'd fought to keep for themselves. Inevitably, that also meant accepting other little improvements in the lives of ordinary people: maternity leave, paid holidays, sickness benefits and the right to withdraw your labour in pursuit of fair pay and conditions. Read more by Kevin McKenna It was only when Margaret Thatcher gained power that the British Establishment began to recoup some of its historical losses. Even then, the fightback had to rely on several lies. The assets of North Sea oil were used to find the billions to pay off the miners. MI5 agents infiltrated the leadership of the NUM. The right to buy your council house was portrayed as a means of social mobility for the working-class instead of the greatest confidence ever played on them and one which would haunt their descendants a generation later. Corporate predators were invited to first prey on Britain's public assets and then enrich themselves rather than invest in infrastructure. Mrs Thatcher's ruinous legacy would even contaminate the early years of Tony Blair's government when the Bank of England was gifted ultimate control of the UK economy by being appointed to set interest rates. However, the genie released by the post-war socialist reformers could never fully be recaptured. The class struggle was still being fought and won at a local level by the children and grandchildren who had benefited from the post-war social improvements. They had become lawyers, doctors, journalists and politicians and retained many in their ranks who could achieve small victories on behalf of disadvantaged communities. The struggle for working class dignity was evident in thousands of local collectives: the housing associations; the women's health groups; the community action forums; the sports organisations. It was reinforced by publicly-funded initiatives to help those whom multi-deprivation had left on the margins: the drug addicts; the elderly and infirm; vulnerable young people. Crucially, working-class children were given free access to art and culture and encouraged to seek full expression of their experience. Those seeking refuge here from lands British had ransacked and rendered unstable were much more likely to be welcomed in places where social activism and human compassion had replaced ancient suspicions. And then something curious happened. Without having to move a muscle or deploy any of its old, dark stratagems, the British right and its corporate acolytes are once more dreaming of establishing the world of their dreams. They have looked on in delighted wonder as the left in Scotland and the UK has begun to implode. The seemingly never-ending struggle for social justice has been replaced by Pride flags and workplace witch-hunts. The new left loathes working-class people more than the Tories ever did. Your progressiveness is now measured by the number of colours you can cram into a flag. Scotland leads the world in vexillologist activism. These affluent frauds couldn't locate an authentic working-class community without the aid of a geo-positioning device. They are satnav socialists. They spend so much time on the Buchanan Street steps that they'll soon be getting their own Council Tax band. A cohort of boutique young reactionaries who benefited directly from the activism of older feminists and trade unionists are using the tactics of the right wing that their grandparents had fought: cancelling, no-debate, hounding and intimidation. It's as though the struggle for working-class rights is too much like hard work and risks interrupting their TikTok activity. Much easier to get yourself a pair of pronouns and fish for likes on BlueSky. The Scottish Trade Union Congress is led by Roz Foyer, a millionaire property tycoon. No one in the STUC thinks her position is untenable. It means no Scottish union official can speak with any authority about homelessness or wealth re-distribution. The movement she leads and the Labour Party and the Scottish Greens and the Liberal Democrats have created a hostile environment for older feminists and real working-class activists. 'The popularity of Reform UK in Scotland is the inevitable consequence of abandoning real working-class people' (Image: PA) This is the principal cause of all the civic failures for which the Scottish Government is responsible: the vast overspends, the spiralling waiting-lists, the incalculable reputational damage of their persistent refusal to accept biological reality. If you've hounded a large number of talented people from your organisation because they speak the truth about men and women then you're left with scarecrows and rockets. Being authentically Catholic in public life is once more a risky enterprise: just as it was in the 18th century. Their loathing of the people they pretend to represent is evident in their response to Scotland's appalling drugs death crisis. They spend millions on a facility that feeds addicts more drugs instead of trying to help them fully recover. They actually believe that killing them slowly in a room with designer wallpaper is progressive. They locate this walk-in mortuary in a neighbourhood miles away from where they or their apologists live. When local people complain about the inevitable scenes of desolation in their neighbourhood they get accused of being right wing by the satnav socialists. The popularity of Reform UK in Scotland is the inevitable consequence of first abandoning real working-class people; then excluding them; then telling them they're bigots for asking too many questions. Next year, Reform will have several MSPs after the Holyrood elections. Not all of them will be as reasonable as Thomas Kerr and Ross Lambie. Inevitably, there will be far-right, British supremacists in their number. And the blame for that is all on Scotland's new, indolent boutique left. Kevin McKenna is a Herald writer and columnist. He is Features Writer of the Year and writes regularly about the working-class people and communities of Scotland.
The Herald Scotland
01-07-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
We are being softened up to no longer believe in the sanctity of life
Our priest told us: 'The broken body of humanity is presently not far from our eyes, including last week in the Westminster Parliament which has just passed legislation that an abortion up until birth is no longer liable to criminal prosecution: a beautiful baby expecting life but broken and killed. Or again, the bill to legalise assisted suicide being passed in the House of Commons, breaking the Hippocratic Oath that a doctor is called to save lives and comfort the dying.' Read more by Kevin McKenna As this priest was re-iterating a basic Church teaching, his bosses – the bishops – were living the high life while choosing to cower in the soft folds of their social media account. At Parliament last month, a majority of those we elected to represent us decided that the state could sanction assisted dying with little or no safeguards to prevent vulnerable people – especially those with mental health challenges – being coerced to end their lives. No matter that we have the resources to ease suffering at the end of life: the state had decided that their deaths would be more convenient and less costly than easing their pain. Almost all of the UK's main disabled groups opposed this. The state has effectively said to them that if you require state assistance to live then you are considered a legitimate target. The message to these people and their families is clear: your disability means you are a little less equal than us. It inadvertently highlighted one of the problems that authentic Catholicism has with abortion. If you justify it by saying that an aborted foetus can't exist independently of its mother then what does this say about those in society who are also unable to exist without the assistance of a third party? It begins to encroach on the same territory occupied by eugenics, the purest and most sinister form of capitalism: that you can arbitrarily be classed as undeserving to live if you don't garner enough points on a subjective scoring system in this human perfection procurement exercise. Perhaps it's only a curious quirk of history, but this inhuman and repugnant erosion of human dignity has occurred at a point when – for the first time in what we might loosely call civilisation – human beings are being forced to consider questions about what it means to be fully human. How much value do we set on this when machines can now replicate much of what we once believed to be indisputably and irreplaceably human? The development of Artificial Intelligence is in its infancy and growing faster than our ability to process it and to control it. It's thus reasonable to venture that we are the first stamp of human civilisation to be confronted with a question none before us has had to consider: how much value do we place on being human for its own sake? We are at the beginning of the post-work age and already some have decided that being fully human is now a privilege that must be earned and that a high bar must be set. Anti-abortion protestors pictured outside an Edinburgh clinic (Image: Newsquest) If you want to ask why the richest people and corporations on the planet are spending billions exploring the possibility of human settlements on other planets (for the right sort of people, of course) then perhaps you need to look about you and start paying attention. In truth, the softening-up process has begun. We are already being primed to accept this new normality. Part of this was in accepting that healthy babies can be killed in the womb. Meanwhile, elderly and infirm people must now live with a new jeopardy: that the state's patience and forbearance about their physical and mental state is finite and that when their government decides that critical measures must be taken to protect the economy then they'll quickly become an expensive indulgence. After this, who knows who else the state will deem to be a luxury it can no longer afford? The German philosopher, Karl Jaspers, who was himself persecuted by the Nazis, wrote after the war: 'that which has happened is a warning. To forget it is guilt. It was possible for this to happen and it remains possible for it to happen again at any minute.' Kevin McKenna is a Herald writer and columnist. He is Features Writer of the Year and writes regularly about the working-class people and communities of Scotland.
