DAN MACKAY: Sturgeon was getting in the way – but who will take advantage of the vacuum?
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The Real MacKay by Dan MacKay
What an extraordinary time for Scotland! Maybe even the ‘best yet’.
It was a nightmare start, of course, conceding twice in the opening minutes and having a player red carded. But my, what resilience of character, those flashes of genius, the magic and determination till the very end.
You’d be right for not confusing these opening remarks with the SNP leadership contest. If only those three contending politicians could learn something from the national rugby team and head coach Gregor Townsend’s resolve and strength of leadership.
Instead, it’s been a period of shock and awe. Not least the unexpected resignation of First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, for so long a titanic force in Scottish politics. She all but admitted she’d become a Marmite figure through whose lens the growing legions of critics would condemn her every policy stance regardless of the rights and wrongs. She was, frankly, getting in the way.
Though just weeks before had insisted she still had ‘plenty in the tank’.
So, what now?
Scottish politics, and the SNP especially, have now lost two colossal leaders. Will the mud-slinging Humza Yousaf, Kate Forbes and Ash Regan redeem themselves in the coming weeks?
Certainly, Kate Forbes got off to an absolute howler of a start by unwittingly offending the entire LGBTQ community on issues of gay marriage and transgender identification and all those parents who had their children out of wedlock. All in a botched attempt to explain her Free Presbyterian Christian beliefs. I don’t doubt she never intended any harm to others but many, none the less, have taken grave offence.
In an ironic twist, some of those who wish to live in a more liberal and tolerant society have rallied to her defence. They might not share her values but respect her right to hold views others might deem out-of-kilter in a modern progressive society.
Whilst Regan, a former cabinet minister, had previously resigned her post following disagreements over the badly handled transgender debate.
Yousaf, for his part, has also come under scrutiny to explain how his own Islamic faith informs his approach to politics. What happened to New Labour’s Blairist ‘we don’t do God’ mantra?
Talking of Labour, who can now smell blood, will Sturgeon’s departure provide a fresh opportunity for a political comeback from a once dominant party who boasted their votes were easier to weigh than count! Keir Starmer will doubtless hope so.
A strong Labour Party in Scotland will bolster his own hopes of a Westminster majority. Their polling is looking good.
And what now for the independence movement?
Ash Regan is distancing herself from the party’s de facto general election stance. Th SNP spring conference to plan its referendum strategy has been put on hold. Regan is certainly right to suggest that good governance is needed to persuade more Scots of the benefits of independence.
Too much time has been wasted on referendum technicalities and not nearly enough on selling the benefits of an independent nation state.
Yet the Ferguson shipyard fiasco, our overwhelmed NHS, striking public service workers, the cost-of-living crisis, the transgender divisions and all those potholes suggests someone took their eye off the ball and it’s time to get back to basics.
Therein lies an opportunity, only who will be first to grasp the nettle?
