TO Whitburn, West Lothian, past the grown-over bings of Lanarkshire, there to meet Anas Sarwar and Keir Starmer on the election campaign trail at a windows factory.
After a train, another train, and a slightly ghostly coach on which I was the only passenger for around 15 minutes and allowed to ride for free – no reason was given – I found my way to a small industrial estate on the western edge of the town.
Up the stairs to a meeting room, where hot drinks, Tunnock's tea cakes and shortbread had been laid on.
Hacks were instructed to arrive at 10.30am for an 11am start. We did not get to speak with the Scottish Labour leader and his boss until nearly 1pm.
We were told Starmer (above) had been held up in traffic coming from Edinburgh by the Royal Highland Show.
Once they finally arrived, the duo were given the complete tour, then spoke with broadcasters before deigning to speak with the plebeian Scottish press pack.
Assembled on the factory floor – noisy machines are always a good way to make journalists trying to listen to answers just that little bit harder – we tore in.
Starmer dodged a question I put to him about being a “serial liar” after his flip-flopping on his leadership pledges and his past support (or was it opposition?) for his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn (below).
He ducked the question, waffling on about his “changed” Labour Party which gave Sarwar the chance to quip that so changed was the Labour Party, The National had been given the first question in a press huddle.
So far, so Starmer, as we worked through a host of questions he wouldn’t really answer.
But we did find out he would keep Westminster’s veto over Scottish transgender law reforms and that he would not enter negotiations on a second referendum, though the press pack got a more evasive answer than that given to the broadcasters.
Then Sarwar (above) was challenged on whether he would stand up to Starmer if the UK government under his stewardship did impose austerity on Scotland. Sarwar insisted there would be no return to austerity under Labour.
Tellingly, Starmer jumped in. In a decidedly convoluted and artless answer, Starmer said: “In relation to our relationship, it’s a very strong working relationship.
“We consult and talk to each other all the time. We’re on a joint project here in terms of the change that we want to bring about for the Labour Party, in Anas’s case it’s Scottish Labour, in my case the wider Labour Party, and absolutely aligned on what we want to achieve which is that wealth creation, the jobs of the future, the energy sector, rushing towards the next generation of jobs with GB Energy.
“We think alike, we work together, we’ve got a huge amount of respect for one another and I think and I hope that you can see that on display every time that we are here together in Scotland.”
Not doing a lot for the branch office allegations.
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