Politicians are expert in the art of contortion.

Arguments are constructed then distorted to suit a particular point of view. When one day it suits to argue black is in fact white a change in circumstances and black is quickly back to being indisputably black again.

This week at First Minister’s Questions, Nicola Sturgeon was asked by Labour leader, Richard Leonard, how many families were affected by the rise in childcare fees at Glasgow City Council.

Now, Ms Sturgeon is never going to answer that and she knows that in his second question Mr Leonard is going to tell her, and it is not going to be good news for the SNP.

When the Scottish Government is spending £1bn over five years to double the availability of free childcare across the country, something which the SNP campaigned on and which the First Minister personally championed, I doubt she is jumping for joy at the SNP in Glasgow City Chambers landing thousands of parents who do have to pay with an eye watering price hike.

But she can’t condemn it. Had it been a Labour council, remember those, doing the same Ms Sturgeon, you can be assured, would be telling everyone that they were hammering parents with bills while the SNP was trying to protect their incomes.

Had it been a Labour council, Richard Leonard wouldn’t be raising it in Holyrood, but a SNP back bencher most probably would.

It makes it all the more difficult that the council is having to cut services and increase charges on services like childcare because of a continuing budget cut from the Scottish Government.

Behind all of this politics there are 5000 families in Glasgow who are having to find in some cases another £220 a month for childcare than they did a few months ago.

Families who will be wondering if it is financially worthwhile working.

The council has made changes to help families earning below £30,000 a year, but even on an income of £30,000 a year an unexpected increase in expenditure of more than £200 a month is still one that few could absorb.

All three and four year olds qualify for a certain amount of hours free childcare and it is increasing year on year up to 1140 hours by 2021.

Those with children under three who don’t qualify for free childcare must be feeling hard done by. Why should they not only pay but pay a whole lot more, when others get it for free, whether they can afford it or not.

The same goes with free school meals. It not acceptable to have p1 to p3 children going hungry at school so they get free school meals, but for children a year older if their parents are outwith the free school meals eligibility they get nothing. There are P1 kids whose parents can afford lunch money and parents in p4 to 7 who can’t.

It is the same with the bus pass. Plenty of 60 to 65 year olds are getting free travel to work when many could afford it while younger workers on lower incomes and insecure employment are forced to pay and struggle every time the fares go up. In this system of part universal benefits, part eligibility criteria and part means tested there is always going to be winners and losers.

For too many people though it will seem very unfair.