Days after it emerged that Scotland's National Investment Bank posted losses of £137.5million in 2025-26, this Daily Mail opinion piece argues the episode typifies a wider culture of unaccountability among SNP ministers, MSPs and public sector officials. The bank's chief executive, David Ritchie, is nonetheless in line for a £34,000 performance bonus on top of his £214,000 salary, prompting the piece to accuse Scotland's political and administrative establishment of insulating decision-makers from the consequences of failure.

The article notes the bank was launched by Nicola Sturgeon in November 2020 with a pledge of £2billion in taxpayer support over a decade, billed as one of devolution's most significant developments. It cites Scottish Conservative spokesman Craig Hoy's criticism that taxpayers are "stomaching" £138million in losses while executives still collect bonuses, and draws a parallel with the case of former NHS Fife chief executive Carol Potter, who announced early retirement shortly before an employment tribunal ruling in the Sandie Peggie case concerning changing-room facilities at Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy.