Salmond the ‘Marmite’ man

Alex Salmond stepped down after a momentous period in office as Scotland’s first minister, with glowing praise ringing in his ears - and back-handed compliments from political opponents - as he exited centre-stage at Holyrood.

He was “a towering figure in Scottish politics” or loved and loathed as the “Marmite” man. Both descriptions fit him like a glove: he dominated the Scottish political scene – and divided opinion on an epic scale.

The referendum galvanised and engaged the Scottish electorate like never before, but, far from putting the issue to bed “for a generation”, the battle continues with renewed vigour for the SNP – and dread for the “nos”.

For some, this is what new engagement with politics is all about; others fear divisions will not heal, but fester and eat away at the country. Much of the credit, or “blame”, will be laid at one man’s door: since Mr Salmond’s return to the forefront of Scottish politics, he transformed his party and country.

His charisma, political street-fighting and an unnerving ability to spot and exploit weaknesses in his opponents, turned the SNP into a disciplined force and a winning party. As if winning power in a minority government was not enough, winning an outright majority, in his second term, was astounding - – especially as this was not supposed to happen in Scotland’s voting system. His Achilles’ heel was that, even though many were happy with him running Scotland within the UK, most did not believe in him enough to run an independent country.

Many now believe Mr Salmond will not be able to resist the allure of Westminster, if he stands as an MP. Ironically, with a potential surge in SNP MPs and a tight parliament, he could become even more influential. He alluded to this yesterday when he pondered if his experience of minority government would “come in handy in another place”.

His legacy for Scotland is hard to gauge: his supporters say he has left it invigorated and confident, others that it is bitterly divided and uncertain over its future. Either way, it is too early to label him as the “nearly man” for failing to deliver. It looks as though he has not finished yet – and might well take his battle to the heart of Westminster.