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THEY seek him here, they seek him there...

But after 10 months as Scotland Secretary, Michael Moore was yesterday accused of becoming the invisible man of politics.

So far the highlight of the Lib Dem's short tenure has been a failure to turn up for a vital vote on the VAT hike.

He could argue that he was as well not bothering.

Earlier in the month he attended a crucial two-hour Whitehall summit with leaders of the devolved parliaments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland - and failed to utter a single word.

Now the Sunday Mail can reveal that the minister has yet to meet the head of Scotland's councils body - after almost a year in the job.

Moore cancelled two previous engagements with COSLA president Pat Watters in October and January, citing parliamentary business.

His inactivity has led to the 6ft 5in Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale MP being dubbed The Sleeping Giant.

And a special Sunday Mail survey found that, of 50 people asked to identify a life-size cardboard cutout of Moore, only four were able to - and one of those worked in his office.

Moore was appointed Scots Secretary in May last year following the promotion of Danny Alexander to Chief Secretary to the Treasury.

He has yet to hold talks with the COSLA president. One local government source said: "It has been a fairly arduous task setting up a meeting - believe it or not an introductory meeting - with Michael Moore. You would think he was Barack Obama.

"He's a big guy so people have started calling him The Sleeping Giant.

"He has shown complete indifference to people who you would think he would be anxious to meet.

"It's a bit of a contrast to his predecessor, Jim Murphy - whatever anyone thought of the guy, he was here, there and everywhere.

"You would think Moore would be trying to emulate that.

"I think it shows a lack of respect to Scottish local government."

Moore has previously been accused of failing to discuss price hikes with energy firms in Scotland.

He was also accused of failing to lobby the Treasury over their plans to scrap tax relief for the video games industry - which could have a devastating effect on gaming companies in Dundee.

Labour's shadow Scots secretary Ann McKechin said: "Moore is the invisible man of Scottish politics and is regularly caught asleep on the job. His role is to be Scotland's voice in the Cabinet, but he is just the Tories' salesman in Scotland.

"Nobody in Scotland voted Lib Dem to put the Tories into power, but this Scottish Secretary is propping them up every day.

"People are really angry about what the Lib Dems have done. Their Scottish MPs aren't just going along with it - they are at the heart of the cuts."

Last week, Moore was accused of hiding behind secrecy to dodge explaining why he missed a vital vote on increasing VAT to 20 per cent last year.

But civil servants refused to reveal his whereabouts at the time, using a clause in the Freedom of Information Act that says details can be kept secret if they could "endanger the safety of ministers ... or the physical or mental health of an individual".

A Scotland Office spokesman said: "The Scotland Office has made every effort to accommodate a meeting with COSLA and has been in regular contact with the organisation on the matter."

The spokesman added: "We make no apologies that the Secretary of State is more concerned with doing his job properly than obsessing about being on the TV and getting recognised.

"He is working hard on issues that matter to Scotland in government and elsewhere and that is where Scots expect his attention and effort to be focused."

Moore you anyway?

Dragons' Den star Peter Jones, a beardless Kenny Rogers or a Currys salesman called Wilfred.

Those were some of the responses when the Sunday Mail took a life-size cardboard cutout of Michael Moore on to the streets of Scotland and asked: "Who is this man?"

Our straw poll on the streets of Stirling, Edinburgh and Glasgow found he was recognised and correctly named by just four out of 50 people.

And one of them admitted he worked in Moore's Scotland Office Edinburgh HQ.

That gives the Scotland Secretary a recognition rating of eight per cent.

His colleague approached our team to ask why we were taking a cutout of his boss around town.

When we asked him to take part, he fumed: "Of course I know who he is, I work in his office."

Moore was also mistaken for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, Austin Powers star Mike Myers, former Taggart actor James MacPherson and ex-BBC Scotland newsreader David Robertson.

Former accountant Moore's grey suit prompted some people to suggest he was a politician. But they mistook him for Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg, Chancellor George Osborne and even former first minister Jack McConnell.

Deryk Egan, 22, a computing student from Barrhead, Renfrewshire, said: "He looks a bit like Kenny Rogers without the beard, but even that is a bit of a wild guess."

Bird, 23, a student from Edinburgh, said: "I'm not sure - the only person I can think of is Peter Jones out of Dragons' Den."

It teacher Kevin Grant, 26, from Glasgow, thought the Scots Secretary was Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti.

A Scotland Office spokesman said: "Appearing in Scotland's best-read Sunday paper will further raise the Secretary of State's public profile and we are grateful that the Sunday Mail is lending a hand."

Rogers Honourable mentions go to teacher David Anderson, 61, of North Lincolnshire, graphic designer Kris McCulloch, 25, of Uddingston in Lanarkshire, and social worker Duncan Hedderly, 38, of Glasgow, who got it right. And also to Moore's colleague, who didn't want to be named.