Indy not always the answer

Dear sir So SNP MP Margaret Ferrier wants us all to believe that a second independence referendum will not be the SNP’s fault (Reformer, February 8).

She must think our heads are buttoned up the back.

The SNP’s whole purpose is independence. Scottish schools decline, the NHS have problems, police centralisation grossly overspends, but none of this really matters to them.

The SNP are paralysed by the independence issue.

Barely a day passes without Nicola Sturgeon or Alex Salmond telling us that a second referendum on independence will or won’t happen within a specified time frame.

Everyone knows that the only constraint is whether they think they would win it.

The stakes are high. A second referendum that results in a renewed vote in favour of the United Kingdom will mean top level resignations in the SNP and the consigning of independence to the dustbin of history.

But the SNP have a problem – because the biggest single chunk of Scottish support for leaving the EU was made up of SNP voters.

Quite naturally from their point of view, they see no point in leaving the United Kingdom just to sign up to the European Union.

So Europe too is a second order issue for the SNP – which is why their language is changing back to their grievances against Westminster rather than a full commitment to the EU.

Their Scotland in Europe policy was always part of a positioning strategy - in the first European referendum in 1975, the SNP voted against Europe.

The 2014 referendum was pretty decisive. So, if a second one comes about, it will very definitely be the SNP’s fault.

The only choice for people who want to stay in the United Kingdom and stay in the European Union is the Liberal Democrats. Liberal Democrat councillor for Rutherglen South not halted. With Labour in a complete mess and the SNP and Tories seemingly more interested in fighting battles from 2014, one wonders if our council representatives have been sleeping at the wheel while the heart of the Main Street is ripped out.

At the end of the day, issues like this are what actually affects your average person on the street. Name and address supplied