Sillars brands Sturgeon ‘out of her depth’ on Brexit
Nicola Sturgeon has been branded “out of her depth” as SNP leader and lacking “political nous” by the party’s former deputy leader Jim Sillars. The former Govan MP accused Ms Sturgeon of a “fundamental political misjudgment” in pushing for a quickfire second independence referendum after the Brexit vote, blaming this for the party’s heavy losses in this year’s UK election.
He even called for the independence movement in Scotland to extricate itself from the SNP – as it is too tied to the party’s electoral fortunes.
Mr Sillars has always been an ardent critic of the EU, which said an independent Scotland would face a lengthy wait to re-join the Brussels bloc, during the referendum three years ago.
The Nationalist veteran has hitoutatamotioninthisweekend’s SNP conference which praises the EU.
“As long as the EU are there, denying Scots membership, we have fatal uncertainty injected into our debate,” he said in a newspaper article.
“The independence movement must reconsider their relationship with the SNP, especially in light of the errorstrewn course taken by leaders with no strategic nous, out of their depth.
“They lunged into an exercise in monumental political misjudgment–thedemandfor a premature second referendum, leading to loss of majority at Holyrood and a near wipeout in the North-east, Borders and Galloway in the Westminster election.”
Ms Sturgeon is firmly against Brexit, and had called for Scotland to be given a second vote on independence when the terms of the UK’S departure deal are known, proposing a timetable of between autumn 2018 and spring 2019. The prospect of another ballot was widely seen as a key factor in the SNP losing 21 of its Westminster seats earlier this year.
Although she has since delayed her plans to introduce legislation for another referendum, Ms Sturgeon remains committed to Scotland having a choice on its constitutional future at the end of the Brexit process.