Why are Scottish Greens the 'natural home for the left in Scotland'?
Only the Greens can offer left-wing opposition, Ellie told us. While I find no fault with her criticism of the 'usual suspects', when it came to actual policy I noticed (cue tumbleweed) an ominous silence.
Perhaps, then, we should examine the Greens' achievements when they were in government with the SNP between 2021 and 2024. What were some things they did to improve the lives of working-class people during that time?
They tried to ban gas boilers. And there was the deposit return scheme. Oops!
A natural home for the left in Scotland?
On the other hand, the Scottish Socialist Party in Holyrood put forward a bill to abolish poindings and warrant sales. There was our bill for free school meals. And our bill to end prescription charges – later enacted by the SNP, to their credit.
Today the SSP are campaigning on the streets to save our NHS from the worst crisis in its history, and for a genuine National Care Service built on the founding principles of the NHS.
These, Ellie, are policies. This is activism.
Choose a party that will work to materially improve the lives of working-class people in Scotland. Choose the SSP.
Michael Davidson
Edinburgh
SALLY Wainwright suggests (Letters, May 14) that it is compassionate to require trans people to use the new gender-neutral toilets at Holyrood.
Of course it is a good idea to provide such facilities in addition to women's and men's, for those who prefer to use them. But that is a very different thing from enforced segregation.
Is it compassionate to refuse to accept that trans people are trans, calling their identity a 'lie', as Ms Wainwright does, and referring to trans men like parliament staff member Dylan Hamilton as 'trans-identifying women'? Is it compassionate to ignore the fact that for decades trans people have been using toilets matching their gender identity, without incident, and to now insist that they somehow pose a risk so must be excluded completely?
READ MORE: UK ranked second-worst in western Europe for LGBT+ laws
And how will this be policed? Earlier this month there were media reports of a lesbian couple being thrown out of a women's toilet because one of them had a fairly masculine appearance, and was 'suspected' of being trans.
This harassment is likely to happen more and more. Policing this policy is impossible, unless you're going to require all trans people now to wear a coloured triangle so they can be identified and segregated.
Ms Wainwright writes that no-one should be 'forced to use a facility which does not align with the way they feel about themselves'. I very much agree, but that is exactly what she is supporting. I suggest that we should go on as we happily did before, with no enforced exclusion, and trans people's privacy and dignity respected and maintained.
Tim Hopkins
Edinburgh
YOUR recent article on the number of Orange Walks due to take place in our country should remind everyone of the part our fellow Scots play in keeping us under the thumb. They are only the visible tip of a huge iceberg of entrenched Unionism endemic in Scotland, where roughly half of our countrymen and women (those who can be bothered to vote, that is) are happy to exist as an ignored minority in the wider UK.
READ MORE: Over 100 Orange Walks to take place in Scotland in one day
There is something very wrong in our small country, and has been for centuries. Cultural Unionism, resistant to factual evidence, might take years to die out. As an oldie myself, I've always resisted the claim that it's an older generation that keep us thirled to Westminster, but I'm coming round to accepting that it could be true. Only the passage of time will tell.
Jim Butchart
via email
ISOBEL Lindsay's letter in Tuesday's National put me in mind of a visit my primary school had in the 1950s from a man from Chapelcross power station, whose cooling towers used to be a landmark from the A74 (now M74) south of Lockerbie.
I vividly remember holding a uranium core to feel how heavy it was. In those days we were told nuclear-generated electricity would be so cheap, it would not be worth billing! How's that worked out then?
Of course we were not told that the core purpose (pun?) of the nuclear programme was not electricity at all, but to produce fuel for the nuclear weapons programme. There is no justification at all for new nuclear power stations in Scotland.
Robert Moffat
Penicuik
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Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Reform in ‘cat fight' with SNP and Labour to win Scottish by-election
Reform UK is in an 'absolute cat fight' with Labour and the SNP to win a bellwether Scottish by-election this week, Richard Tice said, ahead of a campaign visit by Nigel Farage. Mr Tice, Reform's deputy leader, told The Telegraph that the SNP remained 'hot favourites' to win Thursday's contest for the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse seat in the Scottish Parliament. But, speaking ahead of a joint visit with Mr Farage, the Reform leader, to the constituency on Monday, he said they were 'chuckling at the apparent desperation' of Labour and the SNP over what to do about Reform. Between them, he said both parties had 'completely dominated' Scottish politics for decades and now appeared 'terrified'. The by-election is being viewed as a bellwether for next year's Scottish Parliament contest. First Minister John Swinney claimed last week that the Labour campaign had collapsed and the by-election was a straight fight between the SNP and Reform. However, Mr Tice said there was a 'lot of management of expectations' going on and Mr Swinney's ploy was to try and get Labour supporters to vote tactically for the SNP. The Boston and Skegness MP also said that he and Mr Farage would use a press conference in Aberdeen on Monday morning to provide more details on Reform's plan to scrap net-zero targets. Sir Keir Starmer's ban on further exploration in the North Sea is deeply unpopular in the north east of Scotland, where thousands of oil and gas workers are based. Mr Tice said Reform wanted to 'drill, Scotland, drill' and to 'change the course of direction for the Scottish oil and gas industry, and therefore the prospect of jobs and wealth creation.' Mr Farage's trip to Aberdeen and the by-election are his first campaign visits to Scotland for years, with Mr Tice saying he hoped it was a significant moment for the party. Although he failed to make a single trip north of the border during last year's general election, Reform still attracted seven per cent of the popular vote. Its support has surged over the past year and one poll has predicted it will be the second largest party at Holyrood after next year's election. Victory in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse would be Reform's first election win in Scotland. However, even a second-placed finish for Mr Farage's party would be humiliating for Labour. The by-election was supposed to be a straight fight between the SNP and Labour when it was called in mid-April, following the death of Scottish government minister Christina McKelvie. But both parties' activists have been left surprised by the strength of support for Reform on the doorsteps and are worried that it could pull off an unlikely win. Mr Tice said: 'Obviously the SNP are hot favourites but we've also noticed a lot of chat (Reform could win). I know our team, are working very hard and let's see. 'These things work in riddles. For all we know there could be a lot of deliberate managing expectations by the SNP and Labour. It's hard to tell.' He said Reform has had a 'really good campaign' and it is 'about getting the vote out on the day.' However, he added: 'We're sort of chuckling at the apparent desperation from two parties that have completely dominated Scottish politics for the last three or four decades. And all of a sudden they're in an absolute cat fight. And they both seem to be terrified of Reform.' Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar had accused Reform UK of 'dog whistle' racism over a campaign advert claiming he wants to 'prioritise the Pakistani community.' However, Reform has denied it is racist and insisted it was merely highlighting Mr Sarwar's own words, with Mr Farage accusing him of introducing sectarianism into Scottish politics. Mr Swinney said: 'Be in no doubt, Nigel Farage doesn't care about Scotland. He poses a threat to our values and must be stopped, and only the SNP can do that. 'In this by-election, the SNP is the only party investing in Scotland's future, delivering for families and confronting Farage. On Thursday, vote SNP to stop Farage.' Stephen Flynn, the SNP's Westminster leader and Aberdeen South MP, added: 'He won't like the comparison, but it's the one he deserves - Nigel Farage is just as dangerous to Scotland's long-term energy and economic future as the activists who would shut down the oil and gas industry tomorrow. 'Those who work in the energy sector understand that there is an obvious path to follow that protects the oil and gas jobs of today whilst at the same time developing the net-zero jobs of tomorrow – and by doing so you can secure skills and investment for generations to come.'
Scottish Sun
an hour ago
- Scottish Sun
Nigel Farage to campaign in Scotland today for first time in six years as Reform UK targets Hamilton by-election
Mr Farage laughed off the suggestion that there would be a spike in support for independence if he ever became Prime Minister CAMPAIGN TRIP Nigel Farage to campaign in Scotland today for first time in six years as Reform UK targets Hamilton by-election NIGEL Farage is set to visit Scotland today for the first time in six years in a bid to drum up support for Reform UK in the Hamilton by-election this week. The party leader will visit Aberdeen before he travels down to South Lanarkshire for an afternoon of campaigning in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse. 2 Nigel Farage is set to visit Scotland today Credit: Getty 2 It comes as the First Minister said Mr Farage 'doesn't care about Scotland' Credit: Alamy It's the first time the Clacton MP has ventured north of the border since 2019, when he was campaigning for The Brexit Party. A recent survey by Norstat revealed that there has been a rise in support for Reform UK, according to the Daily Record. New data shows that one in five Scots are now planning to vote for the party as support for Labour collapses. However, despite this, Mr Farage talked down Reform's chances of winning in the crunch by-election in the Lanarkshire constituency, which is entering its final days. But he did urge pro-union voters to rally round their candidate Ross Lambie in the battle with SNP's Katy Loudon. The SNP and Labour were seen as frontrunners in the seat in the contest, but Reform UK entered the mix ahead of the vote. The survey also found that 58 per cent of Scots said they would support independence if Mr Farage ever became Prime Minister. However, speaking exclusively to the Scottish Sun, Mr Farage laughed off the suggestion there would be a spike in support for independence if he took over from Sir Keir Starmer. Mr Farage said: 'I've heard all this before. I heard that if people voted Brexit, the UK would be gone by 2020. But it seems to me it's just about still there. 'The Scottish establishment can hold me up to be the bogeyman, they'll go on doing all those things. Farage goads 'terrified' Starmer & says Tories are 'finished' 'But if people actually listen to what I have to say, they will not draw the conclusions that Swinney has drawn that this is somehow a racist, intolerant movement. 'They'll not draw the conclusion that I want to destroy the planet. What I'm offering people actually is down-to-earth pragmatism.' It comes as the First Minister said Mr Farage "doesn't care about Scotland", as party rivals ramp up their attacks on Reform UK ahead of his visit. The party has come in for criticism for how it has campaigned in the seat, with attack ads on Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar being branded racist. Both of the frontrunners for the Hamilton by-election have also turned their attacks on Reform, with Mr Sarwar describing Mr Farage as a "poisonous little man" and John Swinney accusing him of bringing "racism and hatred" to the South Lanarkshire race. As campaigning enters its final days, Mr Swinney warned of the potential threat from Reform, saying: "Things remain tough for too many families who feel let down by Labour - who have given up in this campaign - and the deeply concerning rise in support for Farage. "Be in no doubt, Nigel Farage doesn't care about Scotland. He poses a threat to our values and must be stopped, and only the SNP can do that. "In this by-election, the SNP is the only party investing in Scotland's future, delivering for families and confronting Farage. On Thursday, vote SNP to stop Farage." Mr Swinney touted his own Government's record, including free prescriptions, free tuition and free bus travel for the young and the elderly, as well as plans to scrap peak rail fares and mitigate the two-child benefit cap. He said: "On the final week of campaigning in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse, it's clear which party is on Scotland's side. 'TRUST GONE' IN SNP FIVE weeks ago Mr Swinney hosted a cross-party summit on locking the far right out of Scots politics — with Reform specifically excluded. Blasting the SNP leader, Mr Farage said: 'He can't be a democrat if he cuts out a party that is polling at 20 per cent in local council by-elections in Scotland. 'His behaviour with the summit and his weekend comments suggest he's very, very worried indeed.' He also accused Mr Swinney of being one of a group of politicians who make promises at elections but 'haven't even got the slightest intent of actually carrying them out'. Mr Farage added: 'It's saying to the electorate, we will do X, Y, Z, and them believing you will. That's where the trust has gone missing. 'The SNP promised competence in government and haven't delivered it.' Mr Swinney's comments come as his party's Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said Mr Farage was "just as dangerous to Scotland's long-term energy and economic future as the activists who would shut down the oil and gas industry tomorrow". The comments sparked fury from Mr Farage, who said they were 'highly, willfully provocative'and also accused the Nats of 'anti-Englishness'. In 2013, the then-Ukip leader was forced on four occasions to flee a group of protesters in Edinburgh as he faced a tirade of abuse. Attacking the late ex-SNP leader Alex Salmond's lack of apology at the time, he added: 'That was the really ugly face of nationalism.' Mr Farage said he hoped there won't be any repeat on Monday, adding: 'Swinney's words are deeply provocative, which suggests the SNP leadership has learned nothing. 'It suggests there is still that sort of quite unpleasant anti-Englishness. 'WE'RE ON A ROLL' AS support for Reform UK increases in Scotland, Mr Farage has said hopes they will "become a fully-blown political party in Scotland He said: 'We're definitely on a roll, there's momentum. "I hope after Thursday we become a fully-blown political party in Scotland. 'This is our growing-up moment. In the by-election, we're probably well ahead of Labour. 'We'd encourage Conservative and Labour voters who don't like what the SNP have done in government, and don't want separation, to vote for us in what is a two-horse race.' He also called on the UK to spend more on defence to keep US President Donald Trump onside — claiming Sir Keir Starmer's push to spend three per cent of GDP by 2034 was 'not quite enough'. Reform's chief insisted that target should be hit by 2030 'if we are to command the continued respect of our American friends, without whom we are defenceless'. 'Why on earth would the top man in Scottish politics come out with those sort of insults?' The first real test of Reform's strength in Scotland is on Thursday in a vote sparked by the death of SNP MSP Christina McKelvie. A weekend Norstat poll suggested the SNP would win 54 seats, Labour 20, Reform 18, Tories 17, Lib Dems 11 and the Greens nine. It will be a key indicator a year out from Holyrood's next election. Mr Farage has long been an opponent of net zero, while his deputy Richard Tice told the PA news agency one of his party's key policies ahead of the Holyrood elections next year would be to push for increased oil extraction. Responding, a spokesman for Reform UK said: "The SNP's hostile environment to oil and gas has been holding Scotland back for decades. "From standing idly by whilst the Grangemouth refinery closed, to opposing oil and gas exploration in the North Sea, the SNP have not only failed to realise the countless jobs that could be created in the sector, but also sacrificed hundreds of jobs on the altar of their net zero obsession."
Daily Record
an hour ago
- Daily Record
First Minister urges voters to back SNP in hotly-contested Hamilton election campaign
John Swinney now says the June 5 election is between the SNP and Reform - and is urging Labour voters to back his party John Swinney had described next week's Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse by-election as a 'three-way contest' as he made his latest visit to the constituency on Monday – but now says it is a 'straight contest between the SNP and Reform'. The First Minister, making his third visit in eight days to the battleground constituency ahead of next Thursday's Scottish Parliament by-election, says his party is 'working very hard' to retain the seat held for the last 14 years by Christina McKelvie for the SNP. Soon after his latest canvassing session, he told the Daily Record in a letter to constituency voters that 'Labour have collapsed' and asked their supporters to vote SNP to 'unite behind our shared principles, defeat Nigel Farage and refuse to be divided by a man determined to destroy the values we hold dear'. Mr Swinney had this week visited Hamilton Central railway station as he and candidate Katy Loudon highlighted the Scottish Government's forthcoming abolition of peak rail fares, which they say could save the line's regular commuters up to £900 per year, and where they were joined by a host of Holyrood ministers. The First Minister told the Hamilton Advertiser of the vital by-election, a forerunner of next May's full Scottish Parliament contest: 'The people of Hamilton will see a level of intense political activity, which demonstrates that their support matters, their community matters and political parties are engaging round about the issues they're concerned about. 'Not for the first time, it's put Hamilton on the political map of Scotland – it's been there a number of times in the past and it's there again in 2025.' He told constituents: 'Their votes matter and how the people of Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse vote will be very influential. If people want to be certain that they will be able to see off the threat from Farage they should vote for the SNP. 'It's the only guaranteed way of defeating Farage and by voting for the SNP they'll have a local campaigner in Katy Loudon who will build on the work of Christina McKelvie – much respected, admired and loved – but also will be able to be influential with the Scottish Government in taking forward the priorities of the people of Hamilton on the cost of living or improving access to healthcare.' He added of the controversial Reform leader – who is expected to visit the constituency ahead of the election: 'Nigel Farage has got to explain himself and the politics he represents. I've made no secret of the fact I am entirely and wholly opposed to his politics and I'll reflect that in what I say to the wider public.' The SNP this week joined Labour in lodging an official complaint with Facebook and Instagram publisher Meta about Reform's paid social media election adverts claiming Anas Sarwar would 'prioritise the Pakistani community', featuring a 2022 video in which the Labour leader does not make that statement. Both Mr Swinney and Ms Loudon condemned the posts as 'blatantly racist' – echoed by other parties in the by-election including the Lib Dems and Greens – with the First Minister saying: 'There are actions that Meta can take, which are to remove that advert because it is a distortion of Anas Sarwar's message. 'It serves none of us; it's what I've been concerned about for some time and why I took the steps I have in confronting this disinformation agenda. It's debasing our politics and people can't make informed judgments because it's being peddled.' SNP candidate Ms Loudon said: 'The advert in question is a blatantly racist attack which has no place in Scottish politics, and now Ross Lambie has admitted it's also completely misleading. This is totally unacceptable and shows that people cannot trust anything Reform UK says.' Mr Swinney was joined on his third constituency visit in eight days by Scottish Government figures including Neil Gray, Jenny Gilruth, Mairi McAllan and Jamie Hepburn as they joined Ms Loudon to campaign and to highlight September's end of peak rail fares. Noting that a peak return from Hamilton Central to Glasgow costs £9.20 compared to the off-peak £6, Ms Loudon said: 'The SNP is taking action to cut costs for when times are incredibly tough and Labour have repeatedly let folk down. Scrapping peak fares is a vital part of John Swinney's cost of living guarantee and will save commuters hundreds of pounds. 'The SNP is tackling the issues that matter to people in Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse, supporting households during a cost of living crisis and bringing costs down with policies like free bus travel for 2.3 million people and bringing back the winter fuel payment.' The full list of 10 candidates in the Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse by-election is: Collette Bradley (Scottish Socialist Party); Andy Brady (Scottish Family Party); Ross Lambie (Reform); Katy Loudon (SNP); Janice MacKay (UKIP); Ann McGuinness (Green); Aisha Mir (Liberal Democrats); Richard Nelson (Conservative); Davy Russell (Labour); and Marc Wilkinson (independent).
