ALONG the way this new column YES DIY will touch on unhappy subjects and one of them is that we have to report the death of John Jappy, a weel-kent face and voice to many in the pro-independence movement.

John was a retired civil servant who made a telling contribution to the Yes cause with memorable blogs and video posts on Youtube which can still be seen.

He was an insider who really knew the UK Government’s accounts achieving high office in the General Accounting Division, with links to the Treasury.

John was in post when oil was discovered in the North Sea and in his most memorable contribution to Newsnet Scotland he wrote: “Being part of the establishment, I always accepted the general view that an independent Scotland would not be able to survive on its own without financial help from the London Exchequer.

“However, when in 1968 I was able to examine the so-called ‘books’ for the first time, I was shocked to find that the position was exactly the opposite and that Scotland contributed much more to the UK economy than its other partners. This was, of course, before the oil boom.”

That story went viral as did a lot of his work which others must continue for sadly, John Jappy is no longer with us though his spirit lives on.