SNP’S MINORITY REPORT
New era of consensus will see party held in check
NICOLA Sturgeon yesterday ruled out forming a coalition with another political party – and will instead run a minority government while seeking ‘common ground’ with its rivals.
The SNP’s failure to repeat its 2011 feat of a Holyrood majority is a massive opportunity for other parties to gatecrash its policy agenda.
It will also make it harder for Miss Sturgeon to force through unpopular policies, such as her party’s Named Person scheme, if the opposition parties unite against her – and means she has no direct mandate for a second independence referendum.
Between 2007 and 2011, it was the Scottish Tories who propped up the SNP in power. But yesterday, Miss Sturgeon dangled a caremphatic rot for the Greens, with climate change and the environment listed as priorities. There was, however, a sting in the tail for the new Tory opposition.
In a sign she intends to divide and rule, the First Minister said: ‘The SNP’s determination to use new powers to mitigate austerity, invest in our public services and build a social security system based on the principles of dignity and respect is, with perhaps one exception, shared by other parties in our parliament.’
The new parliament will have the power to either set or top up all benefits. However, if Miss Sturgeon intends to reverse Tory welfare cuts, she will need to raise more money.
Her own tax plans were similar to the Scottish Tories, except for her refusal to pass on George Osborne’s cut for middle earners.
If Finance Secretary John Swinney seeks support from Labour, the Lib Dems or Greens to pass his Budget, he will be negotiating with parties which proposed a range of tax hikes – Labour and Lib Dems both proposed a 1p rise on basic and higher rates, Kezia Dugdale also backed a 50p top rate, while the Greens went even further proposing a 43p higher rate and 60p top rate.
SNP sources insist there have been no behind the scenes talks yet. Miss Sturgeon said: ‘The result of the election was – the people of Scotland once again placed their trust in the SNP to govern our country. We won a clear and unequivocal mandate.
‘And I secured the personal mandate I sought to implement the bold and ambitious programme for government that I asked the country to vote on.
‘With such a large number of MSPs elected I do not intend to seek any formal arrangement with any other party.
‘The government that I lead will be inclusive.
‘It will deliver on the commitments we made to the Scottish people – but it will also reach out and seek to work with others across the parliament to find common ground and build consensus.’
However, the Tories warned that Miss Sturgeon has no mandate for a second referendum, while the Lib Dems insisted the subject must be off the table for the next five years if she wants their support.
That could leave the First Minister in thrall to the pro-independence Greens, who would extract a fracking ban and more radical land reform in exchange for supporting a referendum.
Miss Sturgeon said: ‘on the question of independence, the SNP will make our case with passion, with patience and with respect. But our aim is to persuade, not to divide. We will always respect the opinion of the people – now and in the future – and we simply ask that other parties do likewise.’
Many critics say her constant references during the latter stages of the campaign to another referendum helped build Tory support, while SNP candidates admitted encountering anger on the doorstep over what was supposed to be a ‘once in a generation’ vote.
As a result, Miss Sturgeon attempted to reach out across the Yes-No divide that continues to define Scottish politics.
‘It is the greatest privilege imaginable to be elected as the First Minister of our country,’ she said. ‘To those who voted for me yesterday, thank you from the bottom of my heart. You have given me a precious opportunity to change this country for the better and I promise to seize it with both hands.
‘To those who did not vote for me, I promise I will never stop striving to earn your trust and support.’
In recent weeks she has faced a rebellion from businesses which are being hammered by the highest taxes in the world.
Yesterday, Liz Cameron, chief executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, congratulated Miss Sturgeon and urged her ‘to put business first and get Scotland’s economy growing again’.
She added: ‘Scotland’s economic growth is lagging far behind that of the UK as a whole and action is urgently required to get it moving in the right direction again.’
Meanwhile, trade unions urged the First Minister to be more radical with the new powers coming to Holyrood.
Grahame Smith, general secretary of the Scottish Trades Union Congress, said: ‘Now is the time to be bold and to look across the parliament and seek to build consensus for radical policies, using all of the powers at the Government’ s disposal.’