SNP campaign chief Jamie Hepburn reacts to Hamilton by-election loss
Hepburn, MSP for Cumbernauld and Kilsyth, who previously served as Scotland's first independence minister before First Minister John Swinney scrapped the role last year, said the SNP has "no sense of terror" in the face of Reform UK's rise.
The campaign co-ordinator appeared on Good Morning Scotland on Friday, after Labour won in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse.
READ MORE: What it was like in the room on the night the SNP lost Hamilton
The party have been heavily criticised for its lack of focus on independence by the wider movement, with Keir Starmer this week telling the press that the First Minister had not raised it directly with him in conversation and rejecting the idea of another referendum during his tenure as Prime Minister.
When asked whether he believed independence was high on the agenda for voters after a "pro-union vote seen yesterday", Hepburn said: "I think that's a fairly simplistic analysis of the campaign.
"Clearly a by-election campaign has a life of its own.
"Next year, we're going into a general election for the Scottish Parliament and it'll be a very different context.
"The fundamental question will be who's forming the Scottish Government? Who's going to be the next first minister? That's clearly going to be either John Swinney or Anas Sarwar.
"I think when we get into that context, people will be thinking differently and independence will be part of that campaign."
Hepburn added: "We'll need to consider the proposition that we've laid out at this by-election, and how that may influence the propositions we lay out at the coming general election next year that we know is ahead of us.
"It's just the morning after the night before, so we'll take some time to consider that."
READ MORE: LIVE: Labour win Hamilton by-election in shock upset for SNP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Glasgow Times
41 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Rayner faces Labour backbench call to ‘smash' existing housebuilding model
Labour's Chris Hinchliff has proposed a suite of changes to the Government's flagship Planning and Infrastructure Bill, part of his party's drive to build 1.5 million homes in England by 2029. Mr Hinchliff has proposed arming town halls with the power to block developers' housebuilding plans, if they have failed to finish their previous projects. He has also suggested housebuilding objectors should be able to appeal against green-lit large developments, if they are not on sites which a council has set aside for building, and put forward a new duty for authorities to protect chalk streams from 'pollution, abstraction, encroachment and other forms of environmental damage'. Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner is fronting the Government's plans for 1.5 million new homes by 2029 (Jordan Pettitt/PA) Mr Hinchliff has told the PA news agency he does not 'want to rebel' but said he would be prepared to trigger a vote over his proposals. He added his ambition was for 'a progressive alternative to our planning system and the developer-led profit-motivated model that we have at the moment'. The North East Hertfordshire MP said: 'Frankly, to deliver the genuinely affordable housing that we need for communities like those I represent, we just have to smash that model. 'So, what I'm setting out is a set of proposals that would focus on delivering the genuinely affordable homes that we need, empowering local communities and councils to have a driving say over what happens in the local area, and also securing genuine protection for the environment going forwards.' Mr Hinchliff warned that the current system results in 'speculative' applications on land which falls outside of councils' local housebuilding strategies, 'putting significant pressure on inadequate local infrastructure'. In his constituency, which lies between London and Cambridge, 'the properties that are being built are not there to meet local need', Mr Hinchliff said, but were instead 'there to be sold for the maximum profit the developer can make'. Asked whether his proposals chimed with the first of Labour's five 'missions' at last year's general election – 'growth' – he replied: 'If we want to have the key workers that our communities need – the nurses, the social care workers, the bus drivers, the posties – they need to have genuinely affordable homes. 'You can't have that thriving economy without the workforce there, but at the moment, the housing that we are delivering is not likely to be affordable for those sorts of roles. 'It's effectively turning the towns into commuter dormitories rather than having thriving local economies, so for me, yes, it is about supporting the local economy.' Mr Hinchliff warned that the 'bottleneck' which slows housebuilding 'is not process, it's profit'. The developer-led housing model is broken. It has failed to deliver affordable homes. Torching environmental safeguards won't fix it—the bottleneck isn't just process, it's profit. We need a progressive alternative: mass council house building in sustainable communities. — Chris Hinchliff MP (@CHinchliffMP) June 6, 2025 Ms Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, is fronting the Government's plans for 1.5 million new homes by 2029. Among the proposed reforms is a power for ministers to decide which schemes should come before councillors, and which should be delegated to local authority staff, so that committees can 'focus their resources on complex or contentious development where local democratic oversight is required'. Natural England will also be able to draft 'environmental delivery plans (EDPs)' and acquire land compulsorily to bolster conservation efforts. Mr Hinchliff has suggested these EDPs must come with a timeline for their implementation, and that developers should improve the conservation status of any environmental features before causing 'damage' – a proposal which has support from at least 43 cross-party MP backers. MPs will spend two days debating the Bill on Monday and Tuesday. Chris Curtis, the Labour MP for Milton Keynes North, warned that some of Mr Hinchliff's proposals 'if enacted, would deepen our housing crisis and push more families into poverty'. He said: 'I won't stand by and watch more children in the country end up struggling in temporary accommodation to appease pressure groups. No Labour MP should. 'It's morally reprehensible to play games with this issue. 'These amendments should be withdrawn.'
South Wales Argus
an hour ago
- South Wales Argus
Rayner faces Labour backbench call to ‘smash' existing housebuilding model
Labour's Chris Hinchliff has proposed a suite of changes to the Government's flagship Planning and Infrastructure Bill, part of his party's drive to build 1.5 million homes in England by 2029. Mr Hinchliff has proposed arming town halls with the power to block developers' housebuilding plans, if they have failed to finish their previous projects. He has also suggested housebuilding objectors should be able to appeal against green-lit large developments, if they are not on sites which a council has set aside for building, and put forward a new duty for authorities to protect chalk streams from 'pollution, abstraction, encroachment and other forms of environmental damage'. Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner is fronting the Government's plans for 1.5 million new homes by 2029 (Jordan Pettitt/PA) Mr Hinchliff has told the PA news agency he does not 'want to rebel' but said he would be prepared to trigger a vote over his proposals. He added his ambition was for 'a progressive alternative to our planning system and the developer-led profit-motivated model that we have at the moment'. The North East Hertfordshire MP said: 'Frankly, to deliver the genuinely affordable housing that we need for communities like those I represent, we just have to smash that model. 'So, what I'm setting out is a set of proposals that would focus on delivering the genuinely affordable homes that we need, empowering local communities and councils to have a driving say over what happens in the local area, and also securing genuine protection for the environment going forwards.' Mr Hinchliff warned that the current system results in 'speculative' applications on land which falls outside of councils' local housebuilding strategies, 'putting significant pressure on inadequate local infrastructure'. In his constituency, which lies between London and Cambridge, 'the properties that are being built are not there to meet local need', Mr Hinchliff said, but were instead 'there to be sold for the maximum profit the developer can make'. Asked whether his proposals chimed with the first of Labour's five 'missions' at last year's general election – 'growth' – he replied: 'If we want to have the key workers that our communities need – the nurses, the social care workers, the bus drivers, the posties – they need to have genuinely affordable homes. 'You can't have that thriving economy without the workforce there, but at the moment, the housing that we are delivering is not likely to be affordable for those sorts of roles. 'It's effectively turning the towns into commuter dormitories rather than having thriving local economies, so for me, yes, it is about supporting the local economy.' Mr Hinchliff warned that the 'bottleneck' which slows housebuilding 'is not process, it's profit'. The developer-led housing model is broken. It has failed to deliver affordable homes. Torching environmental safeguards won't fix it—the bottleneck isn't just process, it's profit. We need a progressive alternative: mass council house building in sustainable communities. — Chris Hinchliff MP (@CHinchliffMP) June 6, 2025 Ms Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, is fronting the Government's plans for 1.5 million new homes by 2029. Among the proposed reforms is a power for ministers to decide which schemes should come before councillors, and which should be delegated to local authority staff, so that committees can 'focus their resources on complex or contentious development where local democratic oversight is required'. Natural England will also be able to draft 'environmental delivery plans (EDPs)' and acquire land compulsorily to bolster conservation efforts. Mr Hinchliff has suggested these EDPs must come with a timeline for their implementation, and that developers should improve the conservation status of any environmental features before causing 'damage' – a proposal which has support from at least 43 cross-party MP backers. MPs will spend two days debating the Bill on Monday and Tuesday. Chris Curtis, the Labour MP for Milton Keynes North, warned that some of Mr Hinchliff's proposals 'if enacted, would deepen our housing crisis and push more families into poverty'. He said: 'I won't stand by and watch more children in the country end up struggling in temporary accommodation to appease pressure groups. No Labour MP should. 'It's morally reprehensible to play games with this issue. 'These amendments should be withdrawn.'
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Family SUVs face road tax hikes under new proposals pushed by Labour politicians
Family SUVs could be targeted with hikes in road tax and parking permits under proposals being pushed for by Labour politicians. The call for higher levies on large SUVs, often chosen by families for their space, came from Labour and Green party members of the London Assembly. The motion was passed this week amid concerns about 'car-spreading' – where more road space is taken up by larger vehicles – and calls on London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan to write to the Treasury and ask for vehicle excise duty (VED, or road tax) to incorporate a 'progressive' element that includes the vehicle's weight. If introduced, this would mean SUV-driving families in the UK face being hit with much larger road tax bills. Many SUV drivers already pay £600 for the first five years on new models under the premium car tax fee, which levies more against vehicles worth over £40,000. The standard road tax rate is £195 per year. The motion also asked London councils to look at hiking the cost of parking permits in the capital for SUVs, so as 'to account for pressure they put on road space and local parking spaces'. But critics accused Labour of declaring war on drivers, with AA president Edmund King, saying: 'It is up to Londoners to choose the type of vehicle that best fulfils their needs.'
