Humza Yousaf fails to make the economic case for independence

Try to start a speech with a joke to warm up your audience. That’s always good advice. And so Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, began his speech at the London School of Economics this week by light-heartedly pointing out that the LSE might be a world-class institution but it only came fourth in a recent newspaper ranking of Britain’s best universities. Scotland’s St Andrews University, on the other hand, he said, came out in first place.

He went on to say he was reminded of a ‘famous saying’ that there are two types of people in this world: ‘Scots, and those who want to be Scottish’. I’m guessing you’ve never heard of this famous saying, mostly because it isn’t a famous saying, but, whatever, it got a smattering of a laugh.

His next line though must have sounded odd to a London audience.