DOWNING Street is one of the biggest Covid crime scenes in the UK, with 126 fines for breaches. While people across the country were missing funerals and were stopped from visiting loved ones, the Prime Minister and his colleagues were using the most powerful office in the country for parties.
The Sue Gray report was a shocking and damning new low, even by the terrible standards that we have come to expect from Boris Johnson. It was unforgivable. And, with the weight of public opinion firmly against him, it is no wonder so many of his colleagues have finally been forced to accept that enough is enough.
Partygate has been disgraceful, but, when it comes to the failures of his government, it is only the tip of the iceberg.
The government that Johnson leads has been characterised by cruelty, contempt and incompetence – whether it is the malice that underpins the hostile environment agenda that has been inflicted on migrant communities, or the runaway inflation and skyrocketing prices that are hurting so many.
His government has overseen soaring inequality and the biggest fall in living standards on record. It has forced millions of people into poverty, while the terrible Brexit deal it has pursued has fuelled instability and had a devastating impact on households and businesses across Scotland.
It may have been Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak who fronted up these policies, but they could not have done it without the backing and support of their Cabinet and parliamentary colleagues. MPs such as Douglas Ross may be trying to disassociate themselves from the PM now, but they have voted for every one of these measures and backed every single one of his punishing policies.
They voted to cut Universal Credit, taking £1000 a year away from many of the most vulnerable people in our society. They lined up to support plans to attack the rights of refugees and begin deportations to Rwanda. They have talked about climate leadership while backing Johnson’s environmental vandalism and supported even more drilling for oil and gas during a climate emergency.
Right now the papers are full of rumours, speculation and gossip about who will be the one to succeed him. But if the answer is Jeremy Hunt, Liz Truss or Sajid Javid then we are asking the wrong questions.
Rather than wasting energy debating which prospective Tory leader would be the least awful or would do the least damage, we should be building a future without any more reactionary and unaccountable Tory governments. We can do so much better. We can take a different path and build a country and an economy that works for our communities rather than Tory donors.
With Greens in government, we are leading the change and building that better future. In the last nine months alone we have secured record investment in renewable energy, wildlife, recycling and active travel. We have introduced free bus travel for everyone under 22, mitigated the cruel and unfair benefit cap and doubled the Scottish Child Payment. We have made the biggest investment in new teachers for a generation and are delivering a new and better deal for tenants, including rent controls.
These are all crucial changes, and we are delivering them with a budget that is being squeezed by Westminster. There is far more that we want to do but so many of the economic levers that could make a big difference are in the hands of a Treasury that has shown a total disregard for the consequences of its actions.
Every year, the Scottish Parliament is spending hundreds of millions of pounds to mitigate the bedroom tax, the rape clause and the other brutal policies the Tories are inflicting from Downing Street. They know the human cost of the changes they are implementing, but they don’t care.
Every day I am contacted by constituents who are being stretched to breaking point. They are seeing their bills escalating at a time when they are struggling to make ends meet. They are being burnt by austerity and are worried about the future.
Scotland can’t afford another 12 months of the Tories, let alone 12 more years. That is why, with every day that goes past, the need for independence is becoming even more critical and urgent.
But independence isn’t just about escaping from Tory rule. It is also about my hope for a better future. It is about giving us the powers and the chance to work together as a modern and progressive European democracy. Independence would ensure that the decisions impacting Scotland are made here in Scotland. It would allow us to do even more to fast track our transition away from oil and gas and invest in the green jobs of the future. We can build an economy that works for people and the planet.
I grew up in Grangemouth in the shadow of the refinery (above). I know how important a just transition will be for workers, the planet and the communities that surround it. There is vital work we are doing for that transition in Holyrood, but it is totally undermined when a Tory Chancellor is desperate to ensure maximum oil and gas extraction and is offering tax breaks to polluters.
Communities such as mine can be at the heart of our recovery. They have the skills, talents and potential that we need. We are doing everything we can to build that better future. But we can’t do it with one hand tied behind our backs.
My Green colleagues and I have never had any confidence in Boris Johnson, and will be delighted when he is finally forced to resign. But replacing him with another Tory is not enough.
It is only with independence that we can ensure we stop the cycle of unaccountable Tory governments that we can’t remove and break from the cuts, austerity and misery that he represents.
