THE notion that politics and comedy are closely related has only grown stronger since Donald Trump entered the Presidential candidacy race. From outrageous plans to build walls to quips about his member, “The Donald” is taking satire to the brink of destruction as comics struggle to find ways to lampoon a man who writes his own knob gags.

On our side of the pond, politicians don’t fare much better in the comedy stakes. In the last 12 months we’ve had Miliband’s EdStone – the two-ton brick that helped sink the Labour Party is now in an undisclosed location, much like Ed himself. Comedians then had a field day as our Prime Minster refused to “dignify” allegations made about his university high jinx, indicating the story was a porky! Finally, with Al Murray’s Pub Landlord standing for MP in the last General Election it’s fair to say the lines between politics and comedy are well and truly blurred.

At home our politicians don’t escape the sharp tongue of the nation’s comic wit. The popularity of shows like BBC Radio Scotland’s Breaking The News – now in its third series – show the growing popularity of Scottish-based political satire. However, perhaps the strongest link between comedy and politics in Scotland is in the parallel moving of women to the forefront.

Like politics, comedy has traditionally been a bit of a boys’ club. Where 10 years ago a female comic may have been an oddity on a bill – something to be endured before the male headliner arrived – we now regularly have bills featuring an abundance of talented, funny women. Being “female” in comedy is no longer an adequate description. We are no longer merely distinguished purely on our lack of penis but on the nuance of what we say and how we choose to present it. From the whimsy of Eleanor Morton to the brashness of Fern Brady, from the elegant dysfunction of Jojo Sutherland to the sheer gallusness of Susan Morrison, the diversity of style and content in our female comedy canon is every bit as exciting as our political one. Perhaps at last we are reaching a time where we can truly say funny is funny and political is political.

Tuesday’s leader debate highlights a new-found parity in Scottish politics. We have a proud history of strong women in Scottish politics from the incomparable Margo to the innate likeability of Annabel Goldie. But Tuesday saw three dynamic women representing three very different views flanked by two men struggling to keep up with their charisma.

Where once both political parties and comedy clubs could be rightly accused of tokenism, now talent is more important than chromosomes. In Scotland, women are not political or comedic padding. It’s women that are leading the political parties and headlining our clubs.

So are we doing well in Scotland? Should we be patting ourselves on our non gender-specific backs? Well maybe, but there’s still quite a way to go.

As a female and a comic, I’ve never once received a review that hasn’t mentioned my physical appearance or wardrobe choice, often instead of focusing on the content of my set. There’s so many online articles about Nicola Sturgeon’s wardrobe she gives the IKEA catalogue a run for its money. The amount of web space devoted to her wellies alone is something usually only achieved by a naked Kardashian. With 60 per cent of the leaders in Tuesday’s debate being non-male, keep an eye on the column inches following the event and let’s see together whose attire is deemed more important than their policies. And when you see their choice of clothing mentioned in the papers, judge the journalist, not the politician.