A bumpy year of highs and lows for Nat influx
There was jubilation for the 56 newly-elected SNP MPs in 2015 but it didn’t take long for problems to start.
Impressive: Mhairi Black, Callum McCaig and Angus Robertson. alleged love triangle between Stewart Hosie, Angus MacNeil and a female journalist.
It was a particularly embarrassing episode for the First Minister, whose close friend and health minister Shona Robison is now separated from the Dundee East MP.
Mr Hosie has since said he will not seek re-election as deputy leader at the SNP’s autumn conference, opening the door for the party’s Westminster heavyweight Angus Robertson who has announced his candidacy.
Unlike some of his colleagues he has had a brilliant year in the Commons. He promised to lead his MPs in serving the people of Scotland and holding the UK Government to account. In both those tasks he has measured up impressively.
Week in, week out, he has taken the Prime Minister and others to task, in the absence of any meaningful opposition from Labour. Had it not been for the SNP, David Cameron’s government would have got off very lightly indeed.
There were also notable performances from several of the new MPs, including baby of the house Mhairi Black – who wowed with her interventions on pensions – and Callum McCaig.
He became one of the youngest council leaders when he took up the helm of Aberdeen City Council in 2011 aged just 26 and keeps going from strength to strength.
He certainly seems to have many of the skills required for a career in the upper echelons of politics.
Highland MP Drew Hendry is another stand- out player for his work in securing the Inverness City Deal and – as transport spokesman – his relentless campaigning for a decision on airport expansion in the south-east of England.
So the lows – while spectacular – are far from the full story when it comes to the SNP’s year at Westminster.
Of far more significance is the day-today work of Mr Robertson and his team.
But going forward there is a risk some of the veterans could start to consider themselves, as the Artful Dodger put it, “part of the furniture” or even the establishment.
There are a few who look like they enjoy this place – and its perks – just a little too much.
Ultimately, the SNP is working to do its MPs out of a job and it’s clear some would miss the lifestyle if it all came to an end – an increasingly likely prospect in the context of the UK’s vote to leave the EU.
A second independence referendum would not happen overnight, however, and there are no guarantees – despite some suggestions of a rise in support since last month’s poll – that the SNP would win it.
The 54 may therefore have to endure the hardships of Westminster a while longer. SNP ministers are coming under pressure to intervene in a stalemate between striking train workers and ScotRail.
Passengers have endured months of chaos with a series of strikes over the use of train guards on train services.
Scottish Labour’s transport spokesman, Neil Bibby said: “The transport minister should publicly intervene and meet with the parties in dispute in order to reach an end to this stalemate, to the satisfaction of all parties and passengers in particular.” NEARLY half of Scotland’s councils do not hold records on incidents of homophobia in schools.
New figures from the Lib Dems show a patchy picture of the problem being recorded and have called for more to be done.
Lib Dem education spokesman Tavish Scott said: “We need to ensure that Scotland’s schools are inclusive – to get there we need to have a clear picture of the scale of homophobic bullying in schools and in many areas we are not getting this at present.”