There has been some complaint that Alba are not standing in the Rutherglen by-election, with some suggesting that Alex Salmond should have stood in the constituency. Personally, I’m glad that Alex Salmond is not standing in Rutherglen, simply because he would be viewed as a carpetbagger with no connection to the area.
The whole offer by Alba not to stand came across to me as insincere and political theatrics, as I felt they weren’t going to stand anyway; had they done so they would be painted as the bad guys who cost the Yes movement a seat. I’m fairly certain that the SNP can manage that on their own, and a catastrophic loss there may hasten the departure of Humza Yousaf, allowing the SNP to finally face up to the position they have put themselves, and by extension, the Yes movement.
Alba must now look to the next Westminster election, and while concentrating on electing Hanvey and MacAskill may be a priority for some within the party, Alba must be considering standing in other seats at the next Westminster election. From my own experience, in this area, the party are trying not only to run before they can walk, but are expecting to take gold in the process. It’s all very well folk attending various Nation Council’s and assemblies, but if you cannot even hold a quorate LACU meeting, who exactly are you representing? We have to get the foundations right, and at this time, in this area at least, the foundations which were laid have not been built on. If we cannot get those basics right then we cannot raise funds, organise activists or campaign. In short, we cannot win.
I suppose the last question we have to consider going in to the Rutherglen by-election is: will Alba encourage their voters to “hold their noses” and vote SNP?
Given the reasons why people moved from SNP to Alba, a dignified silence would be welcome.
An Independent Scotsman 