Scotland at a Crossroads
Across the world, politics is shifting. There is a growing unease that I hear more and more frequently on doorsteps, in community centres, and at events across Stirling: a deep sense that politics is no longer working for people. And I understand it.
That disengagement isn’t down to apathy. It’s a response to a system that too often feels closed or distant. It’s what happens when people don’t feel heard, when debate becomes more about point-scoring than progress. When politics grows so polarised, so angry, that there’s no room for compromise or understanding.
More and more people are saying it doesn’t matter who they vote for, as all politicians are the same. This is reflected in the plunging turnout since the highs of the 2014 independence referendum and the 2015 General Election. This is a challenge to democracy itself. And it supports the status quo.
The election of Trump in the US and his open disdain for democratic norms was fuelled by economic stagnation, inequality, and the erosion of trust in institutions. That same mix is taking root here.
Since the 2008 financial crash, ordinary people have paid the price for the mistakes of the powerful. Billions were spent bailing out banks, and the cost was passed on through austerity, wage stagnation, and cuts to public services. Meanwhile, the wealth of a tiny number of individuals and corporations has soared. The UK remains trapped in the failed narrative that we must keep taxes low, avoid upsetting the super-rich, and accept inequality as the price of growth. But that is a political choice, not an economic necessity.
The British public voted for change in the General Election. But that hope has already crumbled. The Labour government’s first actions were to remove winter fuel allowances, cut support for disabled people, abandon promises made to the WASPI women, and retain the two-child benefit cap that they themselves once described as cruel and as entrenching child poverty. Most alarmingly, they are fuelling the narrative that people fleeing violence or economic hardship are the biggest problem facing the country.
It is a very worrying situation when, in times of economic strain, the most disadvantaged and vulnerable are scapegoated. And it is deeply concerning that Labour refuses to stop selling arms to Israel or call out the genocide in Gaza, for fear of offending their biggest donors.
In this climate, disillusionment becomes fertile ground for hate and division. And it will keep growing unless we change course.
One reason Scotland has not seen the kind of unrest and riots that have plagued parts of England is because, so far, there has been a shared political commitment across all parties in the Scottish Parliament—one of the most democratic institutions anywhere in the world—to the principles of equality, dignity, and social justice. That consensus has helped preserve respect in public discourse and a basic sense of social cohesion. But I fear that consensus is now at risk.
There is a better path. This week’s debate on deliberative democracy offered a rare glimmer of it. A report on People’s Panels, made up of randomly selected citizens tasked with discussing complex issues, showed participants left with a more positive view of politics and were more open to changing their minds when presented with evidence. That kind of thoughtful engagement is all too rare today, and we need more of it.
We didn’t vote for Brexit. Yet we live with the consequences: soaring food prices, labour shortages, pressure on public services, and the slow erosion of the social contract. Westminster continues to block Scotland’s right to choose a different future, but that choice should be ours. The SNP offers the most credible and progressive vision for Scotland’s future, and it is the only party that can deliver independence. Support for independence consistently remains above 50 percent. That’s because more and more people know the UK system is broken, and doesn’t work for Scotland.
Independence offers the only real opportunity for democratic renewal. For real accountability. For building a fairer, greener, more equal Scotland. On our terms.
