1 Oct 2015

SNP should get on with the job and forget the Neverendum

The neverendum debate rages on. I thought that last year Scots had said by a clear majority that we didn’t want to separate from the United Kingdom. After all, if it had been a one vote majority to separate that would have been a mandate and we would have been preparing for the big split next May. And what about the once in a lifetime/generation promise? Now all we hear about is when or if there should be another referendum. I suppose it’s convenient for Nicola Sturgeon to encourage this debate as after all, it stops the public from having a detailed look at the SNP record in power. In education we find right here in Renfrewshire and across Scotland, that the education gap continues to grow between kids from better off families and kids from poorer families. Even the half hearted attempt by Nicola Sturgeon to address this gives less money to Renfrewshire compared to Councils with a similar profile. Both Dundee and North Ayrshire could get up to 10 times more than Renfrewshire and that’s just not fair. Yet a Renfrewshire SNP MSP says the money is going to the right places. We’ve seen waiting times at A&E increase again, elderly people are being kept in hospital longer than necessary because there’s nowhere in the community for them to go. Police Scotland is in a mess because of decisions made by SNP ministers and the priority for Nicola Sturgeon is to get another referendum on Scotland leaving the U.K. Surely it’s time to start concentrating on improving schools, health, police, transport and housing? The last thing we need is another divisive referendum.