Salmond cancels first south of border appearance

Alex Salmond is licking his wounds up north in the wake of his defeat in the Scottish referendum. After describing being booed by golf fans at the Ryder Cup as a ‘peaceful and joyous’ protest, the outgoing First Minister promptly pulled out of his first public appearance south of the border, which had been pencilled in for Friday afternoon. Salmond was due to address the suits gathered at the Royal Albert Hall for the Institute of Directors’ annual convention, but was a no show.

What exactly was it that spooked the once pugnacious Salmond? ‘I don’t know why he got cold feet about coming down to the capital,’ whispers a suited source. ‘If nothing else it would have been a chance to speak directly to the London media, London businesses and the London-based establishment that he railed against so much in the campaign.’

Amusingly the IoD invited YouGov pollster Peter Kellner to fill Salmond’s slot, and he seemed to relish walking the 2,000 business delegates through exactly why Eck lost in great detail.