I turned 45 yesterday. This is not a request for comments or letters to the editor to wish me many happy returns, although, reader, you are of course most welcome. Rather, its significance to me is that it marks the point in my life that I have been in and around Scottish politics for as long as I have not.

My 22-and-a-half years in this game have largely desensitised me. I no longer get particularly exercised by events, or debates, or comments, or the everyday to and fro of party politics. I’m a little cynical now, I’m sorry to report, so it takes an uncommonly troubling development to locate one of my few remaining raw nerves.

That rare event occurred last Friday, though, when I saw six North Macedonian soldiers carrying the coffin of former First Minister Alex Salmond, with a handful more lining either side of the red carpet that the government of this small country, with less than half the population of Scotland, laid out in honour.

The contrast as the coffin arrived at Aberdeen Airport, on board an aircraft paid for by Sir Tom Hunter, could scarcely have been starker. I am not a nationalist, nor am I a supporter of any particular political party. But I am a Scot. As a Scot, Mr Salmond was my First Minister just as much as he was anybody else’s. And I found myself angry, and more than a little embarrassed at the tawdriness of his repatriation.

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Readers of these pages will know that I, from time to time, will question Scotland’s performance and ambition, and our tendency towards unwarranted Scottish exceptionalism. But we are still a relatively oversized global force, how we behave in front of the world still matters, and our failure to ‘own’ the repatriation of our former leader was beneath us.

Now, it is important to exercise some caution here. It seems clear that there were numerous conversations between a combination of the Scottish Government, the Alba party and friends and family of Mr Salmond. The outcome may have reflected the wishes of the latter.

However, the whiff of hangover from the internecine warfare within the SNP and the wider nationalist movement is not far away. Whether or not this has played a role is a moot point, but it is scarcely in doubt that the in-fighting is at least perceived to have impacted the judgement and actions of those involved.

But red faces and hurt feelings, and any elements of doubt, could have been avoided had there been some simple protocol in place. To some degree, the Scottish Government might be forgiven for not having such a protocol for the death of a former First Minister, let alone a death overseas. This was uncharted territory; but we must collectively ensure that, as a nation, we never bungle it again.

In the final analysis, this is about respect. It is about respect for the office of the First Minister, irrespective of the individual involved. Those nationalist opponents of Mr Salmond, who appear unmoved by the events surrounding his repatriation, should ask themselves whether they might have felt differently had the former First Minister been Nicola Sturgeon or Humza Yousaf. And those unionist opponents of Mr Salmond who looked the other way last week should consider whether they think this would have been appropriate treatment for Henry McLeish or Lord McConnell. We know the answer, don’t we?

There is a wider problem here, to which this plays in. Our blurring of the boundaries between respecting the office of First Minister and its holder is indicative of us having blurred the boundaries between respecting the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Government and respecting the individuals within those institutions.

I understand it. Devolution has underperformed. Scottish Parliaments and Scottish Governments have underperformed. At least two polls this year - including one conducted by the podcast I co-host, Holyrood Sources - revealed that one in five of us want the Parliament abolished; it used to be one in 10. Confidence is low. Voters feel scunnered by what they see as collective incompetence which is doing precious little to improve their lives.

However attaching this lack of confidence to the institutions rather than the politicians is corrosive. Devolution is here to stay, and it would actually have the breathing space to perform better if we revered it a little more and reviled it a little less.

Our attitude towards politicians has created an atmosphere in which by default we consider them to be fair game for poor treatment, and in which we consider that they are servants of the people, who have little or no entitlement to decency or privacy, let alone to basic allowances or perks. And whilst I am not suggesting there is a direct correlation with this episode, I fear the consequence of this general malaise is that our institutions no longer have the political permission to treat our politicians with an appropriate level of dignity. It’s no good.

North Macedonian soldiers carrying the coffin of former First Minister Alex SalmondNorth Macedonian soldiers give a respectful send-off to the coffin of  Alex Salmond (Image: Videograb)

The United States can offer us guidance here. Americans have a long-standing and heavy dislike for their politicians, but - at least before the Trump era - they have deep respect and love for the institutions. They are psychologically capable of simultaneously hating the President but loving the Presidency.

When Richard Nixon, perhaps the most controversial and discredited President in our lifetime (before Trump), died in New Jersey, the US Air Force flew his body to California for a funeral which was attended by all former Presidents. Sitting President Bill Clinton, who most likely would not have shared a stage with President Nixon in life, respected the Presidency in death, delivering the eulogy.

President Trump, in decades to come, will be remembered as the American President who came closest to dismantling the Founding Fathers’ democratic dream. But when he dies, wherever in the world he is, the US Air Force will bring him home, and every other President will be waiting. Disrespect for the man; respect for the office.

I am not seeking to compare Mr Salmond to Presidents Nixon or Trump. On the contrary, his record as First Minister is widely considered to be very solid, by nationalists and unionists alike.

The controversy which has engulfed him in the decade since - from Russia TV to the High Court - has divided opinion on the person. That is fine. It is healthy, in a democracy, to have divided opinion on the office holder. But it does none of us any favours to have divided opinion on the office.

We have embarrassed ourselves here. Let us never do it again.

Andy Maciver is Founding Director of Message Matters, and co-host of the Holyrood Sources podcast