THE SNP leadership candidates are being urged to outline their vision for an independent “Scotland 2050” and avoid the danger of the party only “having a conversation with itself” during the contest.
The call was made by SNP MP Stewart McDonald, who said the successful pitch for the party’s future leader would be built around the "twin pillars" of good government and a convincing plan to secure independence.
He argued the resignation of Nicola Sturgeon presented the opportunity for an “upgrade” for the party, similar to when the new leadership of the party “grabbed it by the scruff of the neck” in 2004.
But he warned would be more difficult now due to having to defend the SNP’s record in government and issues such as the cost of living crisis and war in Ukraine.
So far the leadership contest - between Humza Yousaf, Kate Forbes and Ash Regan - has been dominated by issues such as gender reform legislation. Some key backers of Forbes have withdrawn their support after she said she would have voted against equal marriage laws.
Speaking during a online discussion held by Reform Scotland, McDonald said social issues were massively important.
But he added: “I think the danger we have is we end up having a debate with ourselves, we end up essentially looking at what the Tories have done in the past, looking at what Labour have done in the past and 'ah right we will have a bit of that'.
“This needs to be a conversation with the country and that means a platform that grapples with the big issues as a serious plan for government and a convincing plan to move us forward to independence.”
He added: “I want a candidate to come out with a Scotland 2050 vision and empower a team of people around them – whether they are ministers and other party figures – in order to drive that case forward to the country.”
SNP MP Joanna Cherry KC, who was also speaking at the event, warned the party had to “get its act together” to ensure it was prepared to stop voters turning to Labour in the next General Election.
She said: “I don’t support a de facto referendum at a Westminster election, the next Westminster election is going to be about whether or not people want a Labour government.
“And the SNP needs to wake up to the fact we are going to lose seats if we don’t get our act together, as a lot of our supporters are natural Labour voters.
"They are going to look at our failure to deliver independence and our failure to have any meaningful plans for it or vision, and they are going to say I would much rather have a Labour government for the next five years, thank you very much.”
She added: “I think we should be discussing alternative routes to independence if we can’t get a Section 30 order – but the bottom line is unless you bring the British Government to the negotiating table and reach agreement it is not going to be recognised internationally.”
McDonald said he disagreed with Forbes’ stance on equal marriage but had no objection to her holding her views, adding that she could have handled the situation better by addressing people’s concerns. He said has not yet decided who to back but is “not saying no” to Forbes or Yousaf.
Cherry, who is backing Regan, said Forbes was her second choice but she will “need to wait and see how matters evolve”.
She described Yousaf as a “continuity” candidate, saying the party needs a “massive reset” and if he becomes leader it will be “more of the same”.
