Now Salmond offers a virus recovery plan
ALeX Salmond has launched a direct challenge to Nicola Sturgeon’s coronavirus strategy by publishing his own blueprint for economic recovery.
The former First Minister warned that failure to act quickly will lead to a ‘tsunami’ of job losses.
It was his first major political intervention since he resigned from the SNP – and sparked speculation he could be plotting a comeback.
Mr Salmond teamed up with SNP MSP Alex Neil, a former health secretary, to publish a plan to get the economy back on track.
They called f or ‘ action now’ to prevent ‘a tsunami of job losses’ in the coming months.
Mr Salmond and Mr Neil said: ‘There now seems little doubt that a tsunami of job cuts and business closures are about to hit Scotland and the rest of the UK. Some forecasters estimate that the level of unemployment could double in Scotland over the next few months. This is unacceptable.
‘The human and financial costs of high unemployment are avoidable if we take action now.’
Scottish Tory economy spokesman Maurice Golden said: ‘The SNP civil war between t he Salmond and Sturgeon camps has become visceral but is of little interest to the people of Scotland as they deal with the devastation wrought by Covid.
‘While the former First Minister is entitled to his opinion, it is inappropriate to use the pandemic to settle scores with his former friend and protege.’
Among the recommendations to mend the battered economy are the rollout of mass testing with reduced turnaround times for results, tackling the problem of ‘super-spreaders’, and early intervention to stop the most vulnerable people catching Covid-19.
The plan focuses on the economy, where critics say the SNP has failed.
It calls for a zero-interest loan scheme for businesses and warns: ‘The most urgent task is to help those businesses that have been badly affected by the coronavirus crisis with their immediate cash-flow problems.’
Asked if the First Minister would be meeting Mr Salmond and Mr Neil, a Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘We are determined to do everything within our powers to protect jobs and to help Scotland’s economy on its path to a strong and lasting recovery.
‘Our recent launch of the Scottish National Investment Bank will be a key part of that, helping to tackle some of the biggest challenges we face. every decision we take has the sole objective of trying to keep the country as safe as possible and get it through what we hope is the final stage of the pandemic.’