Bye Bye Nicola

[malvolio]

Boris hollowed out the Tory party you (and others) love.

Really? By adding another hundred plus MPs...?

Cameron wanted Corbyn to go and Blair wanted Duncan-Smith out because they need the opposition to challenge them so they have better policies.

Nonsense. Doesn't even make sense.

Every SNP member and politician wants independence. So if it isn't Nicola, Alex, Blackford or Flynn pushing for it someone else will come out of their party and will.

Of course the SNP do - or at least, ambitious career politicians will go with the SNP as a good way to get elected to either Holyrood or Westminster but that doesn't mean they actually believe the party line. However, Scotland as a whole has realised two things: They are much worse off by any sensible measure than they were when Sturgeon took over and that they are in no fit state to make it as an independent country. If anything there will be a swing back to Labour (much to Starmer's delight of course) and they need a devolved government able to address those issues, not chase a fantasy that disregards a clear majority against their apparently single policy.

[Protagoras]

Every SNP member and politician wants independence.

Yet the Scottish electorate is happy to return an SNP government and vote against independence.

SNP represents a threat to the unionist Westminster parties, in return for which Scotland seems to do quite well in terms of per capita public spend (17% above UK average in 21/22). I reckon that voting SNP but against independence makes a lot of sense. It encourages Westminster to over-allocate resources to Scotland. Same applies for Wales (13%).

Until the SNP can deliver services in Scotland significantly better than those in England and really demonstrate benefits I can't see independence looking attractive.

If I was an SNP MP in Westminster, I'd be very happy with the status quo. Fully funded lifestyle in London would be a great benefit, while being able to spend summer months in Scotland.

[d000hg]

Yet the Scottish electorate is happy to return an SNP government and vote against independence.

Indyref in 2014 saw a 55:45 % result in favour of No with 1.6m voting yes
While SNP got 50% of the vote in 2015 this was with with 1.5m votes so broadly they align, and that 50% figure was a massive gain from 2010 (20%) and had slumped to 37% by 2017 - SNP gained popularity immediately post-indyref so it seems entirely reasonably to estimate 45% were pro independence and pro SNP in 2014.

[Zigenare]

If I was an SNP MP in Westminster, I'd be very happy with the status quo. Fully funded lifestyle in London would be a great benefit, while being able to spend summer months in Scotland.

Visits to Scottish embassies and consulates available too! A snip at ~£9m per year.

[KinooOrKinog]

Glad to see her go at last. The whole Adam Graham debacle was the final nail in her coffin imo.