Sturgeon ‘putting ideology ahead of Scottish people’
SCOTTISH First Minister Nicola Sturgeon’s focus on ideology risks harming the economy north of the border, she is warned in a stinging attack today.
Cabinet Minister Michael Gove says the Scottish Nationalist Party’s new pact with the Greens will do nothing to improve people’s lives.
Ms Sturgeon has claimed that the deal makes a fresh independence referendum “undeniable”.
But Scots-born Mr Gove said it “reinforces the sense that the SNP are putting the constitution ahead of everything else… rather than trying to think about economic recovery. The Greens have a record on growth, the economy, investment, the oil and gas sector, which is particularly worrying.”
The move came “just as we contemplate what we need to do in order to make sure that Scotland plays its part in the vanguard of our economic recovery”. Mr Gove also said support for independence is waning because of the success of the Government’s vaccination rollout. He told The House magazine: “Over the course of the last 12 months, we’ve seen how Scotland benefits from being part of the United Kingdom. The success of the vaccination programme, UK-wide, was an example of how our broad shoulders carry all our citizens forward. I actually think the case for the United Kingdom is stronger every day.The Scottish Government is going to bang the drum as much as it can on this particular issue.
“But there is no discernible appetite at the moment, amongst a settled majority of the Scottish people, for an independence referendum.”
Ms Sturgeon yesterday insisted she is “confident” of a “Yes” vote for a second referendum despite mixed polls. She told Sky News: “Of course, some polls right now do suggest that ‘Yes’ would win and others suggest that ‘Yes’ is slightly behind that.
“I am very confident that when this question is next put, people in Scotland will vote ‘Yes’.”