Wendy Alexander has form for doing the unexpected in Scottish devolutionary politics. In the early days of the first Scottish Executive she let it be known that the Labour Liberal Democrat coalition administration, in which she was a minister, intended to repeal Section 28. The selective leaking of the policy contributed to making the ensuing debate and changing the law more controversial and difficult for the executive than it should have been. Ms Alexander, now Labour's leader at Holyrood, is engulfed in another Section 28 moment, only this time the ramifications extend beyond the issue of Scotland making its mark as a modern, inclusive country having no truck with intolerant legislation.

Fast-forward nearly 10 years and Ms Alexander becomes the architect of a Labour policy U-turn on holding a referendum on independence, which has backfired on her and piled another problem on Gordon Brown's heavily burdened shoulders. Labour has had a bad year in opposition at Holyrood and Ms Alexander hoped she could finally land a punch on Alex Salmond by demanding an earlier referendum on independence than the timetable set out in last year's SNP manifesto. Any hope on the Labour leader's part of the First Minister being discomfited by a bluff being called evaporated yesterday, for two reasons.

First, it emerged that Labour could not move a bill to trigger a referendum through the Scottish Parliament's standing orders because the government had already signalled its intentions to do so in this parliament. Did no-one think to check the procedures? Or were so few privy to the U-turn announcement that there was no time to investigate? Secondly, and of greater significance, Mr Brown, under pressure from David Cameron in the Commons, yesterday declined to back Ms Alexander, fuelling speculation that the announcement had taken him by surprise. The Prime Minister would await the outcome of the Calman Commission review on devolutionary powers, due to report next year.

Is this what Ms Alexander meant by "bring it on"? Surely not. On Sunday, she insisted Mr Brown had endorsed her decision to call for a referendum. Yesterday, when asked repeatedly if she had his backing, she declined for her part to give a clear answer. Ms Alexander was correct in her assessment of there being political capital to be made from the referendum issue. But neither she nor Mr Brown is a beneficiary. Her lack of judgment has ensured that Mr Cameron and Mr Salmond were handed the role of points-scorers.

Mr Cameron can point to Labour being at worst in disarray, at best disjointed on the future of the Union. Mr Salmond will seek to drive home an advantage over Ms Alexander in the Holyrood debating chamber today. She has supplied him with the ammunition to do so. She faces another gruelling test in a forum where she has been found wanting by the First Minister. Section 28 was a bruising episode for the Labour leader. Compared with her present difficulties, it might eventually seem like a walk in the park.