THE SNP’s much-lauded discipline has been a constant source of frustration for opposition politicians, seemingly impervious to the external pressures to which all governments are subjected and a muzzle easily buckled on inevitable internal division.

Former leader Gordon Wilson has been a regular “critical friend” but he has been isolated as a lone voice from a past that failed to deliver the successes of the present. Similarly, Jim Sillars is brushed off as someone who fought and lost a battle with those who built a formidable electoral machine. No matter how astute their observations might be, such figures from the SNP’s pre-government past lack the authority that comes with real public office as opposed to party positions. That is changing.

All mature parties of government produce a steady stream of people who have the benefit of administrative experience but, at the end of their careers, are unwilling to disappear from public life and say nothing when they feel they still have something to contribute.

Now that the SNP has been in power for 10 years, the number of well-known figures who held high office and whose views therefore carry weight, is growing. Former first minister Alex Salmond apart, most prominent are former communities secretary Alex Neil, an effective administrator sacrificed on the altar of Cabinet gender balance, and former justice secretary Kenny MacAskill, who has always had a sharp eye for a newsworthy line.

So in these pages yesterday Mr MacAskill weighed in to criticise his party’s knee-jerk opposition to the closure of Scottish military bases. He also took the Conservatives to task over a similar approach to police stations. The criticism was pointed, given the new deputy leader and Moray MP Angus Robertson has a keen interest in defence, leading the SNP’s new support for Nato and arguing not only for the maintenance of bases but also for their expansion as part of a new defensive shield across the Arctic.

Whether it be army bases, police stations or hospitals, the issue is not the bricks and mortar but the services themselves and the jobs that go with them. All politicians know this but they also know that, in the public mind, local employment and symbolism are politically hard to beat. The SNP has form for this, particularly the U-turn on the closure of mental health provision at Monklands Hospital, implemented on clinical advice by then health secretary Nicola Sturgeon but immediately reversed when the local MSP Alex Neil succeeded her.

Similarly, a plan to merge A&E services at Ayr and Kilmarnock hospitals was shelved because of public pressure led by Ms Sturgeon. In both cases the pressure was to maintain public convenience, not improve medical outcomes.

Then we have the Government takeover of the essentially redundant Prestwick Airport, an SNP wheeze supported by local Conservatives into which public money is poured to subsidise services better provided at Glasgow or Edinburgh.

Similarly, the argument for keeping all military bases is, as Mr MacAskill points out, not supported by army requirements. The closure of Glencorse Barracks will be hard for Penicuik but, with Dreghorn Barracks just up the road and adjacent to the Pentland Hills training ground, it makes operational sense. As for jobs, the sale and redevelopment of Redford Barracks will keep planning lawyers in business for years.

Police Scotland, too, will face wars on many fronts as it seeks to divest itself of up to 58 buildings, leaving towns like Ayr without a police station and provoking outcry. While closing Leith Police station might affect fans of tongue-twisters with Fettes and Gayfield Square up the road, it’s unlikely the general public will notice.

The big battleground will be council reorganisation and the Scottish Government faces accusations of power grabbing at the expense of local accountability, in particular the proposal to remove schools from council control. Judging by the disastrous birth of Police Scotland, effective public oversight is a legitimate concern. People just expect local services to be excellent and convenient; they don’t really care who runs them as long the services are efficient and they know whom to contact if there is a problem that is then speedily rectified.

Political scrutiny is essential, as is the public awareness provided by an independent local press. So spare a thought for the people of Langholm this week, where not only is the police station under threat but the Eskdale & Liddesdale Advertiser is also about to close. Who will police the police, the council, the local school and the health board when the paper has gone?