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The Herald Scotland
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
So now you know, SNP: indy is not what people care about
There may have been little talk of independence in the campaign but Katy Loudon, the SNP candidate, put out a Facebook video on the morning of the by-election which made clear it's all about separating us from the rest of the UK. The unionist parties' share of the vote at the by-election was just short of 66%. If that doesn't send a clear message to the SNP and the Greens that independence is not what is important at the moment, I don't know what will. Maybe if the SNP improved our NHS, our education system, housing, our infrastructure, managed to build ferries and dual our roads on time and improve our economy, it might get more support. That would be novel, would it not? Jane Lax, Aberlour. Nothing short of humiliation It wasn't only the kitchen sink that the SNP flung at the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election. It threw the washing machine, tumble drier and dishwasher as well. Anyone who saw on social media the gangs of SNP enthusiasts roaming the constituency, saturating it with MSPs including ministers, as well as foot soldiers, with a massive intensity, for weeks and especially in the last two weeks, must have imagined that it was a seat they could not lose. I wondered, in the last days, whether the SNP was not engaging in overkill, that the good folk of the constituency might be saturated with SNP propaganda to the point of apathy. The turnout, at 44 per cent, suggested that as a partial possibility. In this by-election, it was possible to utilise all the party's resources, and it did. That would not be remotely a possibility in any one constituency in a General Election. The result was nothing short of humiliation for the SNP. It is also a personal humiliation for John Swinney, who spent much time in the last week campaigning in the constituency rather than attending to First Minister's business. Nothing much will change at Holyrood, of course, but Mr Swinney's insistence that Scotland does not welcome Reform UK looks a bit hollow after it scooped up 26 per cent of the vote. Perhaps we can have a break from his preaching about Scotland being allegedly more moral than England. Ah well, one can but hope. Jill Stephenson, Edinburgh. Read more letters For many, politics is not working It is alarming that, in Thursday's by-election, Reform UK came third with 7,088 votes, a mere 1,471 behind Labour. The victorious Labour candidate, Davy Russell, is quoted as saying that 'this community has [also] sent a message to Farage and his mob tonight. The poison of Reform isn't us – it isn't Scotland and we don't want your division here.' I suspect Mr Russell was speaking from within the excitement of winning and did not realise the significance of Reform UK winning so many votes. The party of Nigel Farage, that enthusiastic Trump supporter, was understood to hold little attraction for the Scottish voter compared with his standing with the English electorate. The Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse voters have demonstrated otherwise. The UK political establishment, Labour in particular, has one important lesson to learn, that being that politics in our country is not working for a significant element of our population. The vote for a disastrous Brexit was the first warning sign of a significant discontent with the inequalities and injustices in our society and economy. Uncontrolled neoliberalism has done untold damage to our social contract with our politicians accepting unquestionably the words of Mrs Thatcher, 'there is no alternative'. John Milne, Uddingston. Reform will be a Holyrood force The most interesting thing about the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election for Holyrood is not who won, Labour, nor the fact that the voting was a three-way split between it, the SNP and Reform UK, but where Reform's votes came from. Compared to its vote share in the constituency in the last Holyrood election four years ago, the SNP vote dropped by almost 17% of the votes cast and the Tory vote by 11.5%. Labour's vote share actually went down by 2% as well. This means that Reform UK's 26% of the vote came more from parties of the left than the Tories. Clearly Reform is not just a threat to the Conservatives. In the climate of dissatisfaction with the established parties, Reform is on track to be a force at Holyrood next year. Otto Inglis, Crossgates, Fife. • After all the ballyhoo, the result is in and the real winner is Reform UK. John Swinney talked Reform up too effectively. Labour's candidate was nearly invisible. The result speaks volumes. The SNP lost. Labour just limped home despite being helped a huge amount by the SNP's travails. Reform UK came from a near-zero base to gain over 7,000 votes and run both other parties close. This by-election was a real test of public opinion for the shape of Holyrood in 2026. Reform could still founder given frequent party in-fighting. Equally the Tories could re-assert their desired position as defenders of the Union. John Swinney has made another major SNP blunder and released the genie from the bottle. Is he going to be the architect of the SNP's downfall? Dr Gerald Edwards, Glasgow. Labour far from home and hosed While Labour's victory in the Hamilton by-election seemingly points to the party winning the Scottish Parliament elections next year, if I were Anas Sarwar, I wouldn't be sizing up the curtains of Bute House just yet. The seat was won comfortably by the SNP in the last Scottish Parliament election in 2021 and is just the sort of seat that Labour needs to win if Anas Sarwar is to become Scotland's next First Minister. The SNP has made little progress in restoring its fortunes following its heavy defeat in last summer's Westminster election, with polls suggesting that the party's support across Scotland is still 15 points down on its tally in 2021. In the event, the fall in the party's support in Hamilton was, at 17 points, just a little higher than that. However, Labour's own tally was also down by two points on its vote in 2021, when overall the party came a disappointing third. That drop was very much in line with recent polling, which puts the party at just 19 per cent across Scotland as a whole, while the SNP has around a third of the vote. In addition, Labour is losing somewhere between one in six and one in five of its voters to Reform since last year's election. After nearly two decades in the political wilderness, there is little sign that Labour, as it currently stands, is set to regain the reins of power at Holyrood. Alex Orr, Edinburgh. Now flesh out the policies All the pundits initially claimed the Hamilton by-election would go to Labour, given local circumstances. Now a Labour win is described as a 'shock' after even some in Labour were describing their own candidate as not up to the job. But Labour needs to up its game for the next election. Criticism is easy, but Labour needs more fleshed-out policies for government, beyond centralising health in Scotland. The SNP needs to drop all the 'student politics' stuff; it was embarrassing to see a squabble over £2 million when it should be asking why Scotland does so poorly on defence procurement and jobs. Formulate a proper industrial policy for Scotland, and back any project that would enhance jobs and prosperity for Scotland. Refuse nothing and put the onus on unionists to explain their plans in detail. Trident: are the unionist plans for keeping Trident in Scotland similar to those for Diego Garcia? Nuclear power: why do they think Scotland should have it, given its high-cost electricity and the extensive lags on construction? What of waste disposal and site security? The SNP should be in favour of local pricing for electricity as a draw to attract jobs, and for North Sea oil/gas production (until Scots are empowered to decide its future). A Labour/SNP coalition? It looks like the only feasible outcome. GR Weir, Ochiltree. • For all the fuss about the Hamilton by-election, it should be noted that almost 56% of the electorate really don't care who represents them in the Scottish Parliament. Malcolm Parkin, Kinross. Russia claim is baseless Brian Wilson ("Yes, we should stand firm over Putin, but let's not make Russia our implacable foe", The Herald, June 5) tells us today that the rights of the former Soviet republics to seek security (membership of Nato) should have been balanced against Russian fears of encirclement. This raises two issues. Firstly, the Soviet Union consisted of 15 republics: the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russia itself) and 14 others. Of these, only three (the Baltic states,which were independent between the wars) have joined Nato. I am unclear as to how this constitutes encirclement. Does Mr Wilson envisage the Central Asian former republics (Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan etc) expressing a wish to join the alliance at some point, thus making encirclement a reality rather than a baseless claim? Secondly, does Mr Wilson not wonder why these small countries wished to be under the umbrella of the Nato alliance? To avoid the current fate of Ukraine perhaps? Alan Jenkins, Glasgow. • Brian Wilson expresses the hope that we should not categorise the Russian people as being inevitably in the enemy camp. He concluded his article by observing that narratives about Russia should have "due regard to past history and also future potential for peaceful co-existence". Such narratives should certainly not fail to take account of the contribution made by Russian armed forces and the civilian population during the Second World War, which is estimated to have resulted in some 25 million Soviet deaths. It is clear that the Russian effort during that war was profoundly influential in assisting toward the eventual defeat of Germany. The Russian people at the time called upon impressive levels of love of country and perseverance in the fight toward victory over a formidable enemy. Once we were allies. While Russia remains in the firm grip of the dictatorial, ambitious and ruthless Vladimir Putin, it is difficult to see to what extent meaningful steps can be taken to pursue the "potential for peaceful co-existence". Ian W Thomson, Lenzie. A Pride rally in Glasgow (Image: PA) Pride needed now as much as ever Gregor McKenzie (Letters, June 6) suggests that LGBT Pride has had its day. In fact, since the end of the pandemic restrictions, more people have been going to more Pride events across Scotland than ever before. Why? I think it's in part because people see how, after several positive changes in the law for LGBT people in the past 25 years, things are now starting to get worse again. Mr McKenzie asks why we can't all just let people be, and I wish we could. But the increased restrictions being introduced on trans people in the UK are quite the opposite of that. Trans people just want to get on with their lives, but the new rules make that much more difficult. And trans people are constantly maligned currently by some parts of the media. So Pride events are needed as much now as ever. They are a celebration of how far we have come in the 30 years since the first Pride Scotland, and they are a protest against the regression we're seeing now. One day perhaps Pride will be solely a celebration, but that day still seems some way off. Meanwhile people join together in the streets to say "Not going back". Tim Hopkins, Edinburgh.
The Herald Scotland
26-04-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
What will it take to get John Swinney to say sorry?
The Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre failed to provide women-only spaces for 16 months as per the National Service Standards. Who believed that women who had been raped and required support should have to accept dealing with a man who insisted on she/her pronouns? Can you imagine how it must have felt for an already victimised woman to have to be let down again? The SNP has enabled state organisations, charities, schools and businesses to remove women's rights to single-sex spaces. The very least we deserve from Mr Swinney is an apology, but I fear this will never materialise. Jane Lax, Aberlour. • How on earth did we manage in the BT (Before Trans) days if caught short when out and about? Personally, I knew instinctively that it was unthinkable to visit a public lavatory provided for the opposite biological sex. Why shouldn't a trans person accept that, despite their personal decision to trans, biologically their sex remains unchanged and they should therefore continue to respect those of the opposite sex and follow the same discipline as they did before when using public toilet facilities? As for those arguing that the answer would be to provide additional separate public toilet facilities for trans users, there is the bigger problem which needs to be addressed. That is those councils all over the place closing public toilet facilities as a cost-cutting exercise which means no one, irrespective of sex, has anywhere to go. Fix that first. Alan Fitzpatrick, Dunlop. Please, no more empty promises The alarming results of the poll indicating that Scots feel exhausted and angry with politics ("Angry, anxious Scots say no to 'strong man' politics", The Herald, April 26) reveal a striking lack of effective leadership from the SNP. John Swinney's Government appears disconnected from the everyday lives of citizens, focusing instead on divisive politics rather than the pressing issues facing Scotland. Adam Smith observed: 'No society can surely be flourishing and happy, of which the far greater part of the members are poor and miserable'. The Scottish Government must pivot towards tangible policies that address the real concerns of the people – their trust is at rock bottom. We cannot afford more empty promises or political games. Leaders must prioritise genuine engagement with communities and respond to their needs. Only through honest governance can we hope to rebuild trust in our political institutions. Our future depends on a government that proves it values the voices of all Scots. Alastair Majury, Dunblane. Read more letters • I note with interest your front-page lead story. We must differentiate between politics and party politics, just as we should between religion and organised religion, the latter bringing the former into disrepute in both cases. Parties in power go rotten, but there are always new, small ones with fresh ideas. Independents offer another alternative to voters, but since 2000 they have been prevented by the Electoral Commission from adding a description for ballot papers, for example independent socialist. This is especially detrimental to their chances when there is more than one independent candidate, as happened three times in Scotland at the General Election. George Morton, Rosyth. The split between SNP and Greens The motion tabled concerning removing Maggie Chapman from Holyrood's equalities committee ("MSPs make bid to oust Chapman over "bigot" remarks", The Herald, April 25) appears to have support even from the SNP, hence it ought to go through to a vote of the full parliament. This is a real test of how strong the bond is between the SNP and Greens. Given the disasters the Greens have wrought on the SNP this may be the final chance before the Holyrood 2026 election for the SNP to find clear waters between the parties, but will this bite back after the election? Dr Gerald Edwards, Glasgow. Trump right to act on tariffs Roz Foyer ("Trump's tariffs are only one piece of the chess set and our industries shouldn't be his pawns", The Herald, April 21) rightly critiques the chaos surrounding Donald Trump's tariff policies, but I take issue with the suggestion that he simply favours corporations over workers. His tariffs – though far from perfect – were aimed at reversing the damage of globalisation and reviving US industrial regions. For all the bluster, his administration encouraged domestic manufacturing investment, and jobs did return to some neglected areas. The stock market's recent response – declines in large corporate shares – actually undermines Ms Foyer's claim that his policies favour corporate elites. Yes, President Trump's approach often resembles a blunt instrument. But breaking from a deeply entrenched global order was never going to be tidy. Expecting a smooth transition during such a structural upheaval is, in my view, naive. The disruption may be messy, but it signals a willingness to rethink an economic model that has hollowed out industrial communities in both the US and the UK. Simply repackaging globalisation with token government intervention – as we've seen in the UK – won't revive industries like steel. Crucially, the chances of success for interventionist policies are far higher in the US than in the UK. Mr Trump at least recognises that energy-intensive industries require competitively priced energy to survive and thrive. With US industrial energy costs around four times lower than the UK's, America enjoys a significant head start. The UK's failure to address this – largely due to a rigid Net Zero framework – leaves our manufacturing sector at a huge disadvantage before any strategy can even begin. Finally, the UK should consider a carbon tax on imports from countries like China, where we've outsourced emissions and lack trade reciprocity. Revenue from such a tax could be used to support sustainable heavy industry and help place a viable UK industrial strategy on a firm footing – but only if we tackle our high energy costs first. Ian Lakin, Aberdeen. US is nastily divided I have just returned from a month in North America: two weeks in Southern California and two weeks in British Columbia. It was interesting to see both sides of North American politics. Canada is now united as never before. As my daughter is now Canadian, in shops in Palm Springs, shop staff were apologising to her for the actions of Donald Trump. In a British Columbia liquor store a huge black cover concealed empty shelves along with a sign proclaiming "USA wine not for sale". Donald Trump has attempted to control directly the universities, trying to place "his people" to supervise courses and staff; some book topics have been proscribed, he has tried to impeach judges ruling against him, has successfully stifled several legal firms taking cases against his decisions, and shortly before I left a US broadcaster was advising visitors not to bring in their mobile phones unless there is no anti-Trump or anti-Israeli information in it. It can be inspected as you enter without explanation, you can be detained, again without explanation, and you have no legal rights. Sadly, the US is nastily divided and care has to be taken in some areas over whom you speak to and how. One can only hope that next year's Senate elections, where it seems Republicans will be wiped out, can restore values we all thought the US had. Jack Taylor, Dunlop. We should look to Eastern Europe The American military seems to make a habit of fighting full-scale wars against poor and weak (on paper) countries: North Korea, Vietnam and now Yemen, where hundreds of thousands die with no winners in sight. History can judge if a 'bomb them back to the Stone Age' strategy works or enhances the reputation of the American armed forces. What we do know is that against Yemen, the world's poorest country, the United States now has two aircraft carrier groups, B2 stealth bombers, and dozens of fighter planes and drones. They have launched hundreds of missions and the cost is now expected to reach $2 billion in May. This against Houthi drones which cost a few thousand dollars apiece yet have downed half a dozen expensive Reaper drones. America recently transferred to Yemen an entire Patriot missile defence battalion from Japan and South Korea. It took 73 cargo flights and has left the Indo-Pacific region less well protected. What has that to do with us? Well, we are sending one of our aircraft carriers, HMS Prince of Wales, to the Far East, to fill the gap (presumably). The UK lacks enough sea-going warships to form a protective flotilla, so a rag-tag bunch of ships is joining in the fun. America under Donald Trump wants to confront China, and so it should do so, and the UK should look to eastern Europe where our real enemies are. GR Weir, Ochiltree. Keir Starmer (third left) and Defence Secretary John Healy (third right) talk with naval officers on the flight deck of HMS Prince of Wales before her deployment to the Indo-Pacific (Image: PA) Might priests be allowed to marry? I wonder whether or not the new Pope when elected following the conclave will be in tune with the observation of Pope Francis in relation to the question of celibacy. Francis, when Archbishop of Buenos Aires, commented that celibacy "is a matter of discipline, not of faith. It could change". Could it be that major changes are to come for the Roman Catholic Church and its priesthood with the priests being permitted to marry and women being permitted to take up the priesthood? Ian W Thomson, Lenzie. Mower excuse to do less I was somewhat amused reading your article regarding a proposal before Argyle and Bute Council to reduce the amount of grass cutting in May ("Move to reduce grass mowing", The Herald, April 19). Who do they think they are kidding? In my view this is just another ruse for local authorities to hide behind and avoid their civic responsibility to keep the public spaces in our towns and villages in a condition that is pleasing to the eye and that provides the feel-good factor for the people who live and work there. Do they really imagine a very few acres of uncut grass in residential areas will make the monumental difference to wildlife that they claim? I am all for helping nature thrive and survive, but are there not many thousands of wild acres in Argyll and Bute and indeed Scotland where the natural world could and should survive undisturbed. Dare I suggest, if those responsible for the wilderness areas were to maintain the water courses and clear the scrub undergrowth, reducing fire fodder, wildlife of every description would most certainly benefit. Dan Edgar, Rothesay. Much ado about nothing Sorry, Alison Rowat ('BBC Scotland closing River City is cultural vandalism', The Herald, April 23), BBC Scotland inflicted 23 years of cultural vandalism on us in the shape of River City and finally it has put us out of our misery. River City made EastEnders look almost Shakespearean. Next stop, please "do a Lineker" on Tam Cowan and Stuart Cosgrove's once-brilliant "Off The Boil". Allan Sutherland, Stonehaven.
