I WAS greatly relieved to read the principled letter in Saturday’s National headed “Bringing an end to the Bute House Agreement is long overdue” by Niall Christie.
I wonder if he is one of the only 60 or so brave souls who attended the recent Scottish Green Party conference. The SNP certainly have had their own troubles recently but the reason for much of their electoral decline has to be laid at the door of the Bute House Agreement and more specifically at the doors of Ms Slater and Mr Harvie, who both appear to live on another political planet. That political planet does not have countries like India and China currently building a couple of coal-fired power stations every week. At the 2021 Scottish Parliament elections 2,706,683 people voted. Ms Slater received only 6116 votes and Mr Harvie 9077.
READ MORE: Scottish Green and SNP members on the future of the Bute House Agreement
The incorporation of the Greens into government was simply a mechanism to ensure the government wins every vote in the Scottish Parliament – a mechanism to make life a lot easier for the business managers. If the Greens wish to collapse the government and force a Scottish general election, so be it – bring it on. If the SNP had any political sense they would fight that election as a referendum on independence and if the opinion polls are anywhere near right they might actually win it!
The letters page of The National is not nearly big enough to list the policy disasters which have plagued our parliament in recent years. From a failed bottle deposit scheme to plans for a heat pump for every Scottish home at a cost of more than £33 billion.
Mr Christie states “We have seen the effectiveness of MSPs such as Maggie Chapman”. Yes we certainly have. The vast majority of the Scottish public is horrified by her views on small children and their ability to change sex.
READ MORE: 'Moral disgrace': Scottish Greens react to PM's pledge to keep two-child benefit cap
The final irony came when Mr Christie mentioned “Gillian Mackay, fighting for the rights of women”. All the women I know would like the right and ability to go to the toilet or a changing room without the lurking presence of a biological man.
I sincerely hope that the Greens vote to end the Bute House Agreement as soon as possible and that the two Green ministers resign from the government. The long-term cynic in me says the thought of giving up their large salary supplements might perhaps enter into their decision-making process – but who knows.
Brian Lawson
Paisley
WHAT exactly is the point of having the Greens in coalition with the SNP Scottish Government? Did they really sign up to – and did the SNP allow – a coalition agreement where the Greens could walk away any time they threw their toys out the pram?
To be fair I’m surprised the SNP have put up with this coalition for so long. It’s clear the current First Minister Humza Yousaf doesn’t have to look far for problems, but politically the SNP have drifted away from independence and are simply repeating the word without having a credible plan to achieve it, which is dragging down confidence in the SNP delivering our independence.
READ MORE: Humza Yousaf reacts after man charged over car incident at Scottish independence rally
Instead of focussing on the core aim of the party – independence – we’ve seen a slew of absurd policy ideas including obsessions with gender reform (turning many women against the party), the failure to implement recycling plans which most other countries can do in their sleep, and of course the ludicrous hate crime bill. In each case the SNP have been subject to so much negative press that you really have to wonder if there is a press team within the party or anyone with any experience of handling the press.
I’m sure SNP members would have ditched each and every one of those policies for a focus on independence and getting rid of the Greens from fouling up the SNP’s reputation for good governance.
Alex Beckett
Paisley
I WILL have to check my calendar to make sure it is not Christmas. The Scottish Greens may be about to hand the SNP and the whole independence movement a golden ticket. If the Greens ditch us then an opportunity will arise.
We were denied a referendum by the Supreme Court, but if we are brave enough to take this chance we could maybe just get over the line.
It is nuts to try and run a minority government as it will only end up in disaster. Our backs are severely against the wall, nothing is going right for us, so why don’t we just take charge of the situation and call a Scottish election if the Greens ditch us?
READ MORE: Scottish Green and SNP members on the future of the Bute House Agreement
If we have a Scottish election before the General Election it would be the referendum we all want but are never going to get until 2026. This may seem stupid, but think about it this way. We know we have around 50% of the voters who would back indy so it must surely be worth a shot.
Think about it: no manifesto, no promises on this or that, just one line: this is a vote for Scottish independence. Can you imagine the furore it would cause? Westminster would be crying foul. Anas would have to show his true colours and Wee Dougie would be scrambling about for a red card. Our poll ratings would shoot up and things would be looking up.
No debating about anything other than indy. Let all the rest of them stew in their own juice and talk among themselves. Make it clear we are only going to talk independence.
This could be our time. Please, Humza, if you get this chance, take it and trust the people of Scotland.
Old John
Ayrshire
RISHI says it is the “fundamental duty of government to make sure that hard work is always rewarded” and he wants to prevent fraudsters from exploiting the natural compassion and generosity of the British people. All laudable ambitions. Perhaps he could set a good example by weeding out the shirkers and MASSIVE fraudsters in the House of Commons, starting with his own party.
Barry Stewart
Blantyre
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