To wonder why people keep voting SNP?

[Carla786]

I don't know a lot about Scottish politics and I may be missing important things they've done. However, I used to have a lot of respect for Nicola Sturgeon but her handling of gender critical issues has destroyed that. The SNP do not seem very effective at reducing drugs, poverty, or other serious issues.
My understanding was that quite a few people vote SNP not because they want independence (which most Scots appear to not want) but because they think the SNP are more committed to Scotland sorcifically than Tories and Labour. How accurate is this though..?

Since most Scots appear to not want independence, I thought the SNP was probably high achieving in other areas & Tories & Labour seen as poor by comparison. Or is it more often seen as the best of 3 bad options? Or is SNP much more positive than the impression I've got?

I am Scottish but I don't live in Scotland and therefore can't vote in the Scottish elections, which is a pity because I would love to vote the SNP out. I have spent a lot of time in Scotland over the last few years as my parents' health has declined. My view of the SNP is skewed by one very specific issue (their abysmal handling of commissioning a new ferry for my parents' island), but I think it indicates the wider point that they are really not good at the bread and butter stuff of government. No recent UK government has been either, certainly not during the chaotic Tory years, so they don't stand out there, but it makes me despair. Competence should be the absolute minimum requirement for a government.

I think a dispiritingly large number of people vote for the SNP because they hate the English and have a completely fact-free idea that Scotland is being held back. If we got our independence we would immediately join the EU (they're not keen on acknowledging that that would not be a shoo in) and everything would magically be much better all at once. The SNP could put up a serial killer in some places and he'd get elected as long as he campaigned in a kilt and plastered his campaign van with saltires.

No idea who would be any better, mind you.

Indy became cool in 2014 (it wasn't before) and people feel it was within grasp and then stolen from their fingertips by evil overlords. That is broadly true. It also reminded people of the bad faith shenanigans in the 70s. It looks bad, everyone hates Lab/Con so they're a viable alternative, just a shade less batshit than Greens.

Historically they were held back by England though, they imagine the sovereign wealth fund they'd have had like Norway if the first referendum hadn't been tinkered with.

You don't live in Scotland but don't understand why people would vote SNP?

The majority of Scots want independence. An aggregate of 2025 polls shows an overall independence majority, but neither the last Tory government or this Labour one will allow another referendum, because they would lose.

It is a violation of democracy to not be permitted an independence vote. Every other country subject to colonialism has a right to do so. NI have a right to do so enshrined in the Good Friday Agreement.

We cannot have equal rights in the UK parliament as we are too small to form a majority, so must always accept a government elected by another country. That's to say nothing of EVEL, which bans Scottish MP's from some parliamentary votes, on the premise they affect only England, something no other MP's are restricted by.
So until we have a right to an opinion, people will keep voting SNP. The only way to make them less popular as a party would be if they achieved their objective of an independent Scotland.

At the moment we will be voting SNP as a majority at both the Scottish Parliament and UK Parliament elections, getting SNP in Scotland but next election Reform in the UK- and the Reform government we didn't vote for will hold power over the government we did choose.

I used to vote SNP but I won’t anymore. They have been a disaster for education. Jenny Gilruth is incompetent. The problem is I don’t know who to vote for. I would never vote reform or Tory, Greens are crazy and Labour are making a hash of things in Westminster. So that leaves Alba or Lib Dems. 😥

I think Reform will make some surprising headway in Scotland.

The SNP have made an absolute mockery of devolution with their ridiculous pet projects, dysfunction and corruption. It hate to see it, I was a huge supporter of Independence but I wouldn't shed a tear if they wrapped up the Holyrood circus now.

Totally agree could have written this myself. The state of things there currently is awful.

They’re just a bunch of bigots, lying to their voters in a desperate attempt to get Indy. Laughably some of their supporters ask why the SNP doesn’t give them a white paper about how an Indy Scotland can be economically successful. They can’t as they know it would be an unmitigated disaster. It’s terrifying that the country could get drawn into this by lies but hey we had Brexit so who knows.

The thing is Scotland just now could be successfully run. It has huge amounts of funding compared to other areas of England - far in excess of other areas of England- but the SNP are totally and utterly clueless. This week’s example- thry spent a day today in parliament deciding that they didn’t think Palestine Action was a terrorist organisation fgs, shallow gesture politics while the country they are supposed to be running goes to shit.

I was’t surprised at all to hear that they fully support the WASPI women. They will never be in power in Westminster so will never have to pay a penny as a result of giving this support. And I’d guarantee WASPI women would be bottom of their list of priorities if they ever did get independence.

The SNP are like the lefts version of Reform, theyre only there because of one policy and are incapable of sorting all the other issues out.
No political party is perfect, but a party that concentrates it's efforts on one issue - that they haven't even thought through properly - will never make a good government.

They are dreadful and feed the pro-Indy people a lot of lies. We had a lot of money from North Sea oil & gas - and we could have more if the SNP wasn't so obsessed with Net Zero -which is pointless unless China, Russia, India & the USA get on board - spoiler alert, they don't care. Scotland could cease to exist and it would make zero difference to global warming.

The SNP are currently committed to keeping male offenders including murderers in women's prisons. They wanted to remove the right of a raped woman or man to chose the sex of their medical examiner. They are incompetent lying bigots who are running Scotland into the ground. Why anyone thinks Scotland would be financially better off independent is beyond me - there's a massive hole in our finances already. We have higher spending per head of population than England but lower life expectancy, an underperforming economy, rising violence in schools and falling school outcomes.

Whoever said Scotland has less democracy is round the bend. They have a form of proportional representation to vote their government in, so does Wales and Northern Ireland. In England we have the antiquated first past the post system. Scotland also has more funding per capita than England. So basically the English have less say and less cash.
Pinning your hopes and votes on one thing never goes well, ie: Brexit.

Born and bred, it’s an absolute shitshow. Every policy drags us down to the lowest common denominator, their legacy is appalling. The ministers they inflict on us are stunning in their mediocrity and dullness of thinking. Only family ties keep me here.

So why do so many on Mumsnet loathe them and their idea of independence when independence is so popular? Because people on mumsnet are by and large thinkers. They come for debate. People who vote for the SNP do it blindly, without logical thought. In the same way that if you’re a staunch catholic living in Glasgow you’re going to choose to support Celtic over Rangers.

I'm English born but a long time resident of Scotland.

I definitely want independence for Scotland.

I was a big admirer of Nicola. Since she has no longer been leader I have been less and less enthusiastic about the SNP. I vote Green whenever possible but will continue to vote SNP when Green is not an option becuse Scottish independence is of paramount importance for Scotland.

Why? @Daytimenighttime?
are you female? Don’t you care how much they seem to hate women’s rights and safety?

I think the SNP are the best of a bad bunch. Saying that, free university fees and a free prescriptions are such a benefit to us through them.

I want independence also.

The last referendum was a 50 50 split wasn't it? Has that changed?

That is not “broadly true”!

Somehow the idea has taken root among the losers that the referendum was a knife-edge, but it wasn’t at all. The margin was 11%, which is massive. The polls never indicated a Yes win. Only two areas voted Yes, plus the artificial Glasgow council area shorn of its suburbs (Glasgow as a whole voted No).

The fact is it was a resounding rejection.

"Scottish independence" is an ideal - the same as "Brexit".

Day one after a vote for independence and the Scottish negotiators would meet with the Rest of UK negotiators, we want this, that and some of that. You can have some on this, all of that but not the other. Yes, no, yes - have some of that.
Did those who voted Brexit get the Brexit they wanted? I doubt it. Would probably independence voters accept whatever was finally negotiated? No, " nasty English stole it from our poor deluded innocents".

If a vote for independence was followed by a "are you in favour if the independence we have negotiated for you before finally adopted?"such as John major proposed after the event for Brexit it would give the people a final choice.

The 2014 referendum was a" once on a lifetime opportunity. It was close. There was and is a lot of support for independence. Who makes the support up- a lot of Professionals and state employees who will not be adversely affected, are needed to run medicine, law and council services. A lot of people relying on the state for financial support, so nothing to lose.

2014 - a close run referendum. So if you were in charge of the losing side whom you go all out to impress the no voters? Entice and reassure investors, businesses, and people likely to set up businesses in the country. No, a ferry building contract years and years late, millions over budget. Criminal tartan todger Isla Bryson with "her" penis clear in "her" leggings going to jail. Countless other foul ups - recycling scheme. Pick the easy one, in use in the US and Canada. No, rely on the supermarkets to buy expensive machinery built at great cost to companies to run on electricity to sort waste. From a green party presumably wanting to cut use of fossil fuels.

A vote against 14 years of the conservatives or a vote against a year and a half of labour by supporting a party who has had a 19 year Reich is not a wise idea.

Yes I am a woman and I have reservations of course about various policies, including women's rights

But I can never vote Tory or Reform or for any right wing party because they are at total odds with my views. The Labour Party, which I was a member of many years ago, is a travesty of what it used to represent. So as far as I'm concerned there is no party that fully represents all my concerns.

By voting for a pro independence party i hope that at least at some point Scotland will have the independence to determine it's own future.

Yes I do know a few medics who seem to be pro Indy. How do they think they will be paid afterwards? With a country losing about 15% of its budget do they not think there will be pay cuts and redundancies in the NHS, as well as other areas of the public sector? Are redundancies such a foreign concept to them? Are they not at all worried about being paid in a new Scottish currency that will be devalued over night when their mortgages won’t be?

People vote for the SNP for two reasons. Either they still are clinging to the false hope that the SNP will get independence for Scotland or they are voting tactically to keep out Tories/reform.

I’m really fucked off with Keir Starmer as at one point it looked like Labour would overtake the SNP but he’s made such an arse of things that that hope has died.

the SNP are absolutely vile. I don’t know how anyone could vote for such a cruel party that is fighting to put male rapists in cells with vulnerable female prisoners. They’re disgusting.

They’ve made such a mess of Scotland.

Sometimes the tree votes for the axe because it's handle is made of wood

The point isn't that the UK/scotland don't produce as much Co2 as other countries, it's that every country needs to cut down, and drastically.
China is leading in sustainable tech, yes they consume too much fossil fuel but they also use a lot of solar etc.
Don't point the finger at china when you buy their products. If we included the Co2 used to produce and transport everything we buy from China our Co2 contribution would be way higher.