After all the dust has settled, it seems that through sheer lack of unwillingness by any other SNP politician, John Swinney will become leader of the SNP and in the process will become First Minister of Scotland. I’m sure that many within the SNP will be breathing a sigh of relief that there will be a swift and seamless transition of power, with no need for a contest which will reveal any splits within the party. At first glance this might seem like a good thing, but will it be viewed like that by many members of the party, and more importantly, the voting public?
Given that the Sturgeon era was brought to a halt by controversy upon controversy, one might think that a reboot of the party might send out the message that the party leadership wanted to put clear blue water between that old regime and the new one. That they were not to be tainted by events which are soon to be revealed in court. They have chosen not to do so, and by choosing John Swinney, their seamless transition to fresh government instead becomes a seamless join with a running sore that continues to damage the SNP. From Sturgeon, to Yousaf, to Swinney. As Eric Morecambe used to say: “You can’t see the join!”
In depriving the membership of the party a say in selecting who their leader should be, they have continued in the vein of Nicola Sturgeon, centralising decision making to as few people as possible. Humza Yousaf was to the SNP what Liz Truss was to the Tories, and he has now been replaced by their equivalent of John Major. Mr Swinney is undoubtedly Scotland’s dullest and least inspiring politician, and for those of us who remember his last spell as leader, he brings with him an expectation of loss. With an impending Westminster election and a Holyrood election soon after, I can think of no worse choice that the SNP leadership could have imposed on the party. On BBC Debate Night, Neil Gray MSP, campaign manager for Humza Yousaf, said he had endorsed Humza Yousaf because he was the right man for the job, and in his opinion had been a good First Minister. He then went on to say that in his opinion Mr Swinney was the right man for the job. Fool me twice, shame on me as they say.
The whole process in which Humza Yousaf departed office raises more questions than it answers. Surely I can’t be alone in thinking that the decision to end the Bute House Agreement with the Greens was not a decision made my Mr Yousaf alone, above the heads of his cabinet, and without their endorsement? If Neil Gray, as he said, worked hard to convince him to stay as First Minister, why was he railroaded out by the rest of the cabinet? One vote from Alba would have saved him and the Scottish Government from the votes of no confidence they faced, yet the SNP made it clear that they would refuse to countenance such an offer. One has to remember that probably 95% of the Alba Party membership are former SNP members, and while they are disappointed in the party’s failure to progress independence, they recognise that the SNP are at present still the major party of independence, and as such will support them to achieve that goal. I find it bizarre that Scotland’s second largest independence party’s offer of help was rejected outright, in order to cut a back room deal with the Greens, who the SNP, not Humza Yousaf alone, threw out of government. Clearly there has been a recognition at some level that a continued joint government was not in their interest, and the rejection of Alba over the Greens again indicates no change in direction from the party. It’s akin to when Marathon rebranded to Snickers. The label changed but the nuts remain.
When the Greens asked that Labour withdrew their vote of no confidence it was quite clear to every man and his dog that a deal had been done, and that the Scottish Government was safe. The vote was, by that point, pointless. Knowing that the government was safe, Ash Regan of Alba then knew that she could cast her vote of no confidence without actually ending up being the scapegoat for bringing them down. Unfortunately this was manna from heaven for those on the more tinfoil-hatted wing of the SNP, who saw this as evidence that ALBA are an MI5 construct, and all the members are secret British Nationalists. These members are, of course, the same folk who used to attend branch meetings and conferences alongside them, and who chapped doors and delivered leaflets in all weathers with them. A more sensible approach from Ms Regan would have been to abstain, sending the message that she could not endorse them, but ultimately neither would she bring down a Scottish Nationalist government in favour of a British Nationalist one. That opportunity has been lost, and it may now be harder for ALBA to reach across to the SNP membership, something that they need to do in the next Holyrood election.
There is more that unites us than divides us, and as someone who has not forgotten that independence is our ultimate goal, which I want to see sooner, not later, I must ask all our independence supporting politicians to focus on that goal in every act that they do. All our politicians have fallen into the trap of focussing on election cycles, when what we need to do is break the electoral system. We are being told by London that we cannot have a referendum. Good governance brings the confidence to take more responsibility, and we can bypass any referendum by having all independence parties stating, clear and simple that a vote for them is a vote to declare independence, not to seek permission which will always be refused. It’s time to put country before career.
Some people think that a spell out of office is required to refocus, regroup and reorganise. This is akin to football supporters facing relegation, who convince themselves that after a season in the lower leagues they will come back bigger and stronger. This is seldom the case, and for many teams, that season becomes an extended period in the wilderness. We can only hope that Mr Swinney can salvage something in time for the elections, because the Yes movement cannot afford a loss in any way, shape or form. Relegation is not an option.
Letter to The National. 03/05/24
An Independent Scotsman 