Election Not So Special
Posted on June 26th, 2024
by Rab Bruce’s Spider
Mastodon: @RabBrucesSpider1@Mastodon.Scot
X / Twitter: @RabBrucesSpider
I have rarely been so disinterested in any UK General Election. It is like looking on at another country’s politics, with two extremist British nationalist parties doing their best to appeal to an increasingly right wing electorate. In fact, there are now three such parties, with Nigel Farage’s vanity project of Reform joining the fray. None of this seems to relate to Scotland at all, and none of the politicians seem interested in discussing Scotland or the main cause of the UK’s problems; Brexit.
Tory corruption continues to unravel their pathetic campaign, the media continues to give Farage a platform to spout his fascist-style rhetoric, while Keir Starmer continues to assert his dedication to Tory policies, clearly hoping to win by being the least unpleasant of the Party leaders.
In Scotland, this election is, as usual, about our right to become a normal country. Any loss of seats by the SNP will be loudly proclaimed as killing the cause of independence stone dead, and I see little to provide encouragement on that front. Quite why Yessers would switch to Labour because they are scunnered with the SNP is beyond me. This is a Westminster election, not a Holyrood one, so the SNP will still be in power in Scotland for a while yet. But voting for a British nationalist Party will only provide Westminster with yet more encouragement to dilute Devolution and weaken the Scottish Parliament. Why on earth would any Yesser want that?
Another problem is that the Yes vote may well split, with Alba putting up candidates in many constituencies. Yet, while I think it would give the Yes movement a fillip, I can’t see how they can win any seats since they lack the media exposure given to other Parties. And yet the SNP don’t show many signs of being serious about wanting independence. The rhetoric so far has merely been a repeat of failed policies from the past. And if they do lose seats as expected, you can be sure that the UK media and the new Westminster Government will treat them as an irrelevance.
So I don’t see much of value for Scotland in this election. We are between a rock and a hard place, and I see no good outcome. I know that sounds far too pessimistic, but I am pinning my hopes on the next Holyrood election where I sincerely hope that voters will wake up to the folly of voting SNP 1& 2. The voting system is designed to render List votes ineffective if a Party wins the constituency vote, so we will need to use tactical voting to ensure a majority of pro-Indy Parties. If voters can overcome their tribal disagreements and focus on gaining a super-majority of pro-Indy Parties, that is when we should see the desire for independence shine through. It will be helped by people realising that the almost inevitable Labour Government in Westminster has done nothing for Scotland, and we’ll see all their vague promises come to nothing.
All of this negativity on my part won’t stop me voting, but I’ll admit I fear for the Yes movement unless lots of Yessers decide to stick with the SNP. That doesn’t mean I think the SNP will improve our chances of becoming a normal country, but I think this election is more about standing our ground for a couple of years until we can make a genuine statement in the next Holyrood election.
In the meantime, I’ll keep watching the football and ignore all the ridiculous leaders’ debates.