Scottish election 2021: Why crime and Brexit are among the SNP's failings

Nicola Sturgeon was stuck between a rock and a hard place on Brexit, with voters giving the SNP an overall thumbs-down for their handling of the constitutional divorce.

A poll shows that more Scottish voters than not believe the SNP has handled Brexit poorly, but the figures suggest that it is likely dependent on not just how an individual voted in 2016, but also their party vote.

A total of 21 per cent of Leave voters believe the SNP handled Brexit well versus 35 per cent of Remain voters, while 53 per cent of Leave voters and 26 per cent of Remain voters think it has been handled poorly.

With pro-Conservative, older voters more likely to have voted for Brexit and younger voters more likely to be angry at any failure by the SNP to prevent Scotland leaving the EU, it is likely it was always a no-win scenario for the First Minister.

First Minister and leader of the Scottish National Party Nicola Sturgeon, will be judged on her record at the election on Thursday.

On crime, the picture is more nuanced.

This is the worst policy area for the SNP’s approval with women, those most likely to feel unsafe walking the streets, and the continued rise in sexual crime, up 100 per cent since 2010/11, is likely to be a factor.

Overall crime is down since 2010/11, but there has been a steady rise in non-sexual crimes of violence (partly due to the new Domestic Abuse Bill) since Police Scotland was established in 2013.

However, minor crimes such as theft, vandalism or fire-raising are on a downward trend.

It could simply be that no party can do enough to tackle crime, though SNP struggles with the controversial Hate Crime Bill is likely a further factor.

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