Reasons to be Cheerful

Thousands of people of all ages took to the streets of Edinburgh this afternoon on what has become the annual "Pedal on Parliament" event. Great to see young and old out on their bikes. And the policing of the event done very well by policemen on bikes. When everyone got to the parliament, using the big open space as it was designed to be used - a place for the people to congregate and demonstrate - the speeches started with the 'ordinary people' and the politicians had to wait their turn. In fact the first speakers were all children, having their say about why making our roads safer for cyclists is so important for future generations. And then there were politicians from all political parties in the Scottish Parliament, from the SNP's Transport Minister 'down' to the Greens and the Tories. For me, just as heartening as that was to see so many politicians taking part in the event - walking and cycling down the Royal Mile, and listening to the speeches just like everyone else. Politicians having common cause with the people, standing with them and not hiding behind tinted windows in limos that race past protestors standing behind barriers. This is an alternative politics, different from Westminster.