STEPHEN Flynn is widely tipped to be Ian Blackford’s replacement as the SNP’s Westminster leader following the Skye MP’s announcement he will stand down.
The Aberdeen South MP has previously made headlines with his contributions in the Commons and strong stance on issues like carbon capture.
With that in mind, here’s a look at some of the issues and moments that have stood out in Flynn’s time in Westminster.
READ MORE: Who is Stephen Flynn? The MP who's favourite to replace Ian Blackford
His breakdown of the Brexit disaster
Flynn’s demolition of the pro-Brexit arguments coming from the Conservative benches laid bare the snake oil that was being sold to Scots by the Westminster establishment.
He’s not been afraid to call out leading Tories
At an AUOB rally back in January, he was happy to brand Boris Johnson a “charlatan” over the Downing Street parties scandal – showing that he is not one to mince his words.
WATCH as SNP MP Stephen Flynn waves goodbye to Boris Johnson 👋 pic.twitter.com/VemzREWzag
— The National (@ScotNational) January 19, 2022
He went further by poking fun at Johnson in the Commons by waving goodbye after jibing the former prime minister over his government’s understanding of its own lockdown rules.
His picking apart of 'Global Britain' rhetoric
In one of a number of his appearance on Politics Live, Flynn gave short shrift to rhetoric over the UK’s place in the world following Brexit.
His takedown of the language was widely praised online at the time and is worth a second look now.
And in another of his performances on the show, he called out the UK Government’s appalling Rwanda scheme, calling it an attempt to appease “heartless and xenophobic” Tories.
He’s not afraid to disagree with anyone, regardless of their politics
When debate raged over proposals for the Cambo oil field, Flynn showed that he wasn’t afraid to disagree with anyone, regardless of which party they belonged to.
Flynn asked Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie to “tone down” language over the future of the oil industry as it pertained to the employment of thousands of the Aberdeen South MP’s constituents.
Behave. Your lot have raked in £375billion from the North Sea; refused to create an oil fund; didn’t lift a finger when the price plummeted last year and thousands of jobs were lost; and just turned down Carbon Capture in the North East - for the second time. https://t.co/9EqvgJUCKc
— Stephen Flynn MP (@StephenFlynnSNP) December 3, 2021
When the Tories jumped on the tweet as a sign of division between the SNP and Greens, who operate in government together, Flynn wasn’t afraid to tell them to “behave” either.
Holding Westminster to account on carbon capture
Flynn branded Westminster’s decision to prioritise carbon capture projects south of the Border over a site in the north-east as a “complete betrayal” and accused the UK Government of bandying about “empty words” and “broken promises”.
He described the move as a “catastrophic blow”.
What do you want to see from Flynn should he take over from Blackford?
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