This week we saw the continuation of an unusual but welcome trend at the petrol pumps.

 

The price of our fuel has started to drop and is set to fall even further in the coming months.

According to analysts the price of petrol could fall below £1 a litre in the next few months, reaching a 10-year low.

Worldwide, oil prices have halved since June this year.

This should lead to lower utility bills as the impact of cheaper oil prices are passed on to the consumer.

While so many of us will see a positive effect from falling oil prices, not everyone will welcome their arrival.

Thousands of contractors working in the oil industry in the North Sea are facing pay cuts of up to 10%, as prices tumble.

A study published just a few weeks ago by the oil and gas industry UK estimates that in the next five years some 35,000 jobs could be lost in the sector.

If the price of oil remains at current levels it will also stoke political disagreement ahead of next year's Westminster elections.

During the referendum the Scottish government published a white paper outlining their plan for an independent Scotland.

Future oil revenue was an important component in the consideration of these future plans.

Some 15% of Scotland's tax income is received from North Sea oil.

It may therefore prove a rather difficult task to fulfil a range of spending commitments if this percentage continues to fall.

There is little opposition to the conclusion that Scotland's North Sea oil sector is shrinking. Similarly, there is little disagreement that our oil resources are finite, and will eventually run out. With a potential long-term decline in oil revenues, we need to consider carefully both the future of the North East, and in particular Aberdeen, once our oil industry is no longer viable.

We also need to manage the effect of this decline upon Scotland's economy.

While the arguments over Scotland's oil will have changed little since the referendum, the landscape surrounding it most certainly has.

Plenty of material therefore, to fuel political discussion, in time for next May's general election.

I see that the immaturity surrounding activity at the statue of Wellington in Glasgow's Royal Exchange Square has, unfortunately, reached new heights.

Someone with an axe to grind, allegedly as part of the Fathers for Justice campaign, dressed up as Santa Claus and proceeded to climb the statue and sit on the horse.

Following a range of unsuccessful attempts to persuade the individual to dismount, the police service had little option but to call on colleagues from the Scottish fire and rescue service. Firefighters from Cowcaddens attended and successfully escorted the individual down a ladder to safety.

Cowcaddens is Scotland's busiest fire station.

They have much to do and could well have been engaged in more meaningful work with people who actually needed their help, had this idiot not embarked upon his Christmas folly.

I am sure that the bizarre images of this particular father will prove to be a continuing source of inspiration for his children, whether they believe in Santa or not.

In the meantime, to all those who chanted "Free Santa" as he was led away, I say "Bah Humbug".

In the world of austerity, within which we currently live, nothing is free - not even Santa!

The images beamed across our television screens from Pakistan this week, were horrifying and distressing.

Taliban gunmen burst into a military school in Peshawar, killing 132 innocent children.

It is evident that at least part of the gunmen's motive was retaliation at the Army's crackdown on Taliban strongholds in the area.

Certainly, another motive, may well have been the awarding of the Nobel peace prize to Malala Yousafzai.

In 2012 Malala was shot in the head by the Taliban for promoting education for young girls in the same region.

Scotland has long-standing and well-developed relationships with Pakistan.

I have visited Pakistan and witnessed the strength of those relationships at first hand.

For decades, Scotland's Pakistani communities have added huge value, both to the economic and cultural prosperity of our country.

Those communities have supported the election of leading Pakistani politicians in the Westminster and Holyrood parliaments.

Together we need to speak with a unified voice on the importance of education.

Education is a right, not a privilege.

All children have a right to a decent education.

Our voice needs to unify with the strength of Malala's voice.

It is a voice of reason, of hope and of common sense.