Is George Osborne too clever? Alex Salmond’s Courier column…

“No one disputes the Chancellor’s cleverness,” writes Alex Salmond as he muses over the summer Budget.

But before anyone gets too much of a shock about the former First Minister discovering a newfound admiration for George Osborne, there are caveats. Quite a few, actually.

The numbers don’t add up to a pay rise, says the ex-SNP leader, and Scotland in particular isn’t going to do all that well out of the plans.

Salmond’s argument is, the Budget may have been initially headline grabbing but it is struggling under scrutiny. “Too clever by half,” apparently.

Fancy a break from monetary matters? Well, how about a restaurant recommendation with a bit of politics thrown in?

Or, if you’d prefer, a rather acerbic take on the BBC and worries about the “terminal decline” of Auntie?

Lucky you because all these topics are covered in Alex Salmond’s column, only in today’s Courier.