ALEX Salmond has announced he wants to return to Holyrood – but won’t stand in the upcoming Westminster election.
The Alba leader said he would contest the Banff and Buchan Costal seat at the 2026 poll, but said he did not want to run in July’s General Election.
Speaking at a press conference in central London on Wednesday, Salmond also said “it is agonising” to see the SNP poll behind the Labour Party, saying they had “thrown away” his work in replacing them as the dominant force in Scottish politics.
And he blasted Tuesday night’s leaders debate between Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak saying it was “politics reduced to the lowest common denominator”.
Salmond said he had elected to run for Holyrood because Alba were more focused winning there than Westminster.
The party this week announced its ambition to “secure 20 or more seats in the Scottish Parliament” at the next election.
Salmond said: “I shall be a candidate in the Banff and Buchan Coastal seat at the Scottish elections in 2026.
“From that candidacy and from that platform, I hope to lead Alba into an independence coalition in the Scottish Parliament, a coalition which will be serious about independence and serious about the achievement of independence.”
He insisted Alba would not “split the independence vote” but instead “mobilise” it. A poll the day before showed the SNP were losing 27% of its voters to Labour and 3% to Alba.
He insisted Alba would not “split the independence vote” but instead “mobilise” it. A poll the day before showed the SNP were losing 27% of its voters to Labour and 3% to Alba.
The party will stand 19 candidates across Scotland, mostly in seats where the SNP candidate is the nominal incumbent. They will also back Angus Brendan MacNeil (below) who is hoping to keep his Na h-Eileanan an Iar seat.
Alba said this was “twice the number of candidates to qualify for a party election broadcast” and have argued to be included in TV debates.
Salmond said his party’s campaign would not split the independence vote and help Unionist parties like Labour.
He said the election in England was about “whether the Tory party may be facing an extinction event”, adding: “In Scotland there’s also going to be a political realignment which will start at this election and which will carry forward to 2026.
“That realignment will be on the national wing of politics. We are in a situation where 50% or so of the people in Scotland believe in independence but only around 30% are voting SNP.
“That means there’s 20% of independence supporters who are either currently, according to the polls, not voting or voting for Unionist parties. Alba’s not going to split the independence vote, they’re going to mobilise the independence vote.”
He said the SNP were “arrogant and dismissive” towards gender critical feminists and oil and gas workers and said he did not relish seeing the party losing popularity.
Salmond said: “Far from it being satisfying, it is agonising […] that all of that effort to replace the Labour Party thrown away no apparent reason whatsoever.”
The SNP were approached for comment.
