Nationalists who ditch the SNP are basically giving up on Scottish independence – Helen Martin

George Foulkes and Jackie Baillie may now be satisfied that Nicola Sturgeon is about to opt out of the daily coronavirus briefings which they tried to ban.

Supporters of Scottish independence should vote for the SNP, says Helen Martin (Picture: John Devlin)

Briefings will now be held by health officials as the First Minister has to deal with the upcoming election, plus other government business. She has a lot to deal with.

The combination of trans “equality” when it comes to women’s loos etc, along with the Alex Salmond/Harassment Committee split, the controversial Hate Crime Law, and doubts that the SNP are planning to go ahead soon with an indyref, has led some voters to declare they are ditching SNP and switching to other, minor, independent parties.

But the risks of doing so should terrify those who used to vote for the party. Without a massive vote for the SNP and a majority, the chances are we could be locked into Brexit and the UK, blocked from any chance of returning to the EU, left with no independence referendum ever taking place, exploited even more by Westminster, and our devolved powers lost.

In that case, there’s every likelihood that SNP decisions and benefits, including free university education, no payment for prescriptions, free personal care for the elderly, and lower council tax than England, could be written off, as would the SNP’s plans to raise pensions.

It’s reasonable that some don’t agree with absolutely everything the SNP has done and some support Alex Salmond’s accusations and want him back. But taking votes back from the SNP simply means giving up on independence.

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