THIS is going to be my last regular column for The National, at least for the time being. I plan to step back from frontline politics to take some time to reflect on what has happened to the SNP and the independence movement in the 10 years since the referendum.

For the last four years I have used this column to address issues in relation to SNP policy choices, our internal governance, and the failure to drive forward the independence cause with a coherent strategy. It has not made me popular, but it is interesting to see so many of my former colleagues who lost their seats on July 4 or chose not to stand again now agreeing with many of the points I made. I wish they had spoken up sooner.

Before I spoke out, I had attempted to address some of these problems behind the scenes and through the existing SNP structures. My attempts to do so were not successful, indeed they were deliberately frustrated, and that is why I decided to speak out in public in the pages of the only pro-independence newspaper we have.

For doing that I have received some real pelters which is fine, but the nasty personal nature of some of the responses has been hard to take.

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Lesley Riddoch always advises that columnists should never look at the comments on their columns. Occasionally, when I ignore her advice, I am surprised at the bile some readers think it is appropriate to post.

We have had a lot of lectures about hate recently. Unfortunately, a culture of hate against those who dare to disagree has been allowed to flourish in the SNP without anyone in authority having the courage to address it and it has poisoned our discourse and prevented proper debate.

This time 10 years ago, in the summer before the independence referendum, Scotland was in the middle of an extraordinary festival of democracy, which, at least for those of us on the Yes side, was a positive experience.

I find it profoundly depressing to see where we are now. The positivity is gone and some people within our movement feel they have licence to attack those with whom they disagree in the most unpleasant terms. No wonder we are putting voters off.

Back in 2014 had I foreseen the level of abuse and harassment I would have to endure as an SNP MP, simply for daring to question the direction the party was taking, I would never have left my legal career to enter elected politics.

However, I don’t regret having done so for a moment. It was a privilege to serve Scotland and I am proud of my achievements.

But for me it is now time to step back and to take a long hard look at what has gone wrong over the last 10 years. I don’t feel it would be particularly productive in the meantime to continue to write a fortnightly column in this newspaper. The story that requires to be told, and the analysis that requires to be made, needs considerably more space than a newspaper column.

The enormity of what happened to the SNP vote at the General Election must not be ignored. On September 18 2014 1.6 million Scots voted for Scotland to become an independent country. On July 4 2024 only 724,758 Scots voted SNP. Less than half of the Yes vote from 2014 and a drop of half a million from the 1,242,380 votes we got at the 2019 General Election.

The SNP need urgently to address what has gone wrong and what led to this huge drop in our vote, or we will suffer another rout at the 2026 Holyrood election.

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I don’t sense any great appetite on the part of the leadership of the party to do this properly. Fortunately, some grassroots members such as Tweeddale branch know what needs to be done. They are right to say that the existing conference agenda should be scrapped to give space for some proper soul searching. I hope they will be listened to, but I have little confidence that this will happen in the short term.

The cause of Scottish independence must not be written off and the SNP could still play a crucial role in delivering independence for Scotland. However, we cannot fulfil that role until there is a full acknowledgment of what has gone wrong and root and branch reform of the party’s internal governance and policy making processes. My colleagues in government also need to take a long, hard look at the way they govern and embrace change. The party and the Government need a break with the past and an infusion of fresh talent that brings with it experience from all walks of life rather than more time served professional politicians. If the SNP cannot govern themselves or the country well then they cannot expect people to trust them to deliver an independent Scotland.

The party also needs to look at its internal culture and the poison that has been allowed to spread because of the “no debate” mantra that was imported from identity politics and allowed to seep through the party into everything we do. Sadly, this culture has also damaged our parliament and other public institutions. It is not just the SNP which needs reform.

I am of course now free to stand for Holyrood, but eternal opposition is not for me, and opposition is where the SNP are heading at present. I went into elected politics to try and change things not to carp from the sidelines. I would have liked the opportunity to be part of an SNP government but as everyone knows, the SNP’s rules were changed in 2020 to make it as difficult as possible for me to make the move from Westminster to Holyrood. I will be pleased if recent reports are correct, and that petty and unprecedented rule change is consigned to the dustbin of history. But without reforming the NEC and some serious changes at the heart of our party that sort of convenient rule tinkering can easily happen again at another time for other reasons.

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I could not countenance standing for Holyrood as an SNP candidate unless the party addresses the culture of bullying and harassment of those who dare to put forward ideas or question policy. I know many women (and some men) who feel the same. A political party that allows male members to harass and abuse female members, including elected parliamentarians, without any censure whatsoever is not progressive. Those who run the SNP and indeed the Scottish Greens, the Labour party and the Liberal Democrats need to understand that men who abuse women and threaten violence against them often act on those threats. The conviction of former SNP branch equalities officer Cameron Downing for serious sexual assaults has underlined this eternal truth. This man was feted by some within the SNP despite repeatedly threatening extreme violence to feminists. The deafening silence since his conviction is shameful.

So now I am going to take some time away from front line politics to decide what to do next. Whatever I decide I hope to be able to continue to contribute to the debate about Scotland’s constitutional future. For the avoidance of doubt, I intend to remain a member of the SNP, but to step back from active involvement in the party a while.

I would like to thank The National for giving me space in their paper over the last four years and all the readers who have sent me good wishes. Scotland can be a great country. The independence movement of 2014 was great, and we can be great again. The SNP could and should contribute to that, but we can no longer ignore our problems. Without action we are lost