Leader in his field

The educational background of Alex Fergusson, the Scottish Parliament's new Presiding Officer, has been much in the news because he is an Old Etonian. But the Scottish Agricultural College has now highlighted his higher education, proudly claiming him as an alumnus. It lists key biographical points in a press release, including his farming of sheep and cattle in South Ayrshire and his presidency of the Blackface Sheepbreeders Association. The SAC remarks that with a minority government, Mr Fergusson's role will be of greater importance than ever before, but it stops short of suggesting that he will now have a new opportunity to demonstrate his animal-handling skills.