But when MacAlister highlights on the campaign trail that the Tory government has “brought our public services to the brink of collapse”, voters need to realise that he had a role in this. It also has to be acknowledged that he avoided strong condemnations of the Conservative government when given the reins of the “once in a generation” review of children’s social care. Instead, during that time MacAlister actually dismissed the importance of poverty and funding cuts as “an old pattern of dialogue that I think we’re all tired of”, a comment reminiscent of Gove’s justification for backing Frontline and MacAlister almost a decade earlier. While campaigning, MacAlister has urged people to “beware false promises from the Tories… and judge them on what they’ve done over the last 14 years”. So too should MacAlister, and anyone else who facilitated the Conservatives over the last 14 years, similarly be judged.