Nicola’s pledge

by Paula Smith

There is a crucial question to be asked in amongst the debate and questioning relating to Thursdays general election. What is going to be done? Thursday is just a few days away and there is a lot going on – recent attacks and Brexit. It seems accepted that the Tories will probably continue to rule the UK but what about Scotland, where do we sit with all this?

The first minister does have a manifesto, however, it seems to be getting overlooked. There are comments relating to her changing the timing of the second referendum, some believing she is playing into Theresa May’s hands. Others think she is displaying co – operation and being sensible about the impact of Brexit.

So what are the SNP’s priorities for Scotland? A second referendum is high on the agenda with the timing of it being estimated late 2018 or early 2019. Could this referendum be significant? Potentially. The residents of Scotland had their say with regards to leaving the European Union and the majority voted to stay. Is this an opportunity for Scotland to flourish as an independent country with arms open towards immigration?

Independence is the main aim of the SNP, however, many people who claim not to be SNP voters have felt more represented as a country. Nicola Sturgeon is a strong leader who seems to care deeply about the needs and requirements of Scotland. Some claim that with the general election imminent the competing leaders are overly focusing on independence in order to play on the ‘divisive’ argument.

The truth is that the SNP are well represented down at Westminster but many believe they may lose some seats. Time will tell. Ending austerity is also high on the agenda but then how to go about it? They want to increase the top rate of tax by one pence. They also wish to scrap trident, believing that other areas will benefit from the finance.

Education is a priority for the SNP and they would like to invest £750 million to improve our school standards. They would like to abolish grammar schools and continue with the free tuition places.

In a recent interview Nicola said that the SNP certainly did make a difference at Westminster. So we have Nicola Sturgeon leading Scotland and plenty of seats in London. To be fair we seem quite well represented. Are we not in an ideal situation? Probably not. Under Blair we got a devolved Parliament but something is amiss – there is a feeling of being unsettled. Maybe between now and the referendum the Scottish population can collect their thoughts. For the time being Nicola is defending Scotland’s corner.