In an interview with the Scottish Catholic Observer, the cardinal said he had originally been enthusiastic about the newly instituted parliament but now felt “ashamed” of what the politicians had done and described their term of office as “an utter failure.”

“I have defended them for months and months in different parts of the media and have said they needed 5 or 10 years to give them credibility,” he said. “I still think that, but I don’t think the achievements of the last year are anything to be proud of.” He continued: “They can talk as much as they like about what they have achieved, but in the big issues they have achieved nothing. They have given me the impression that there is a very liberal agenda out there and come hell or high water they are going to see it through.” Cardinal Winning was particularly critical of the parliament’s decision to revoke “Section 28,” a provision that had forbidden the promotion of homosexuality in the nation’s schools.

The cardinal’s comments were not well received by the Protestant Church of Scotland. A statement issued by that denomination’s Church and Nation Committee reads: “It would be a pity if the comments in the Scottish Catholic Observer by Cardinal Thomas Winning were to play directly into the hands of those who delight in the culture of contempt which the assembly sought to oppose.” The statement continued: “He seems to have judged the parliament on the basis of a very narrow agenda which does not reflect the breadth and depth of what the parliament has been doing.”