Author Archives: Jack Clark

The SNP will survive their crisis, and so they should

This week’s (26th April) BBC Debate Night (Scotland’s version of Question Time) discussed the question “Will the SNP survive the crisis they are in at the moment?”. With the panel made up of Labour, SNP, and Conservative MSPs, SNP supporter Aamer Anwar, and former Labour Special Adviser, Ayesha Hazarika, it lacked a liberal position on the issue. A position I hope I can articulate here.

So in my opinion, will they survive? Yes.

As a follow up question, should they survive? Yes.

This is a crisis for the SNP, undoubtedly, but it risks becoming a crisis for Scottish democracy in the medium-long term. The SNP have made a name for themselves in claiming to stand up for democracy, and for change in Scotland. A party which can take the moral high-ground over the Westminster establishment.

What happens now that they have been subject to two high profile arrests, infighting over party finances, a fridge-freezer, and a motorhome?

Polls so far have shown that SNP support is declining, but support for Labour, Greens, and Lib Dems has not risen enough to compensate. Furthermore, the latest YouGov poll, 16% of 2019 SNP voters said they don’t know who they would vote for in the next UK election. For Panelbase and Redfield & Wilton the figure was 10%, Survation 9%, and Savanta 7%.

This is especially significant when you consider that support for independence has remained stable in the aftermath of the resignation and leadership election. While the number of undecideds has also gone up, but this has always been volatile on the Indyref question.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 9 Comments

Every scandal is one of one thousand cuts to our institutions


Last Wednesday, I Whatsapp’d my mum a screenshot of a BBC Breaking News article with the headline “Nicola Sturgeon’s husband Peter Murrell arrested in SNP finance probe”, along with the message, “What a way to start the day!”.

As someone deeply involved in politics and with some strong opinions on the SNP, I will admit I was rather gleeful. The news came just a day after Donald Trump was arrested over “hush money” payments, Robert Jenrick was disqualified from driving for 6 months for speeding, and on the same day that Blackpool South MP Scott Benton was was reported to have been involved in a lobbying “sting”.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged and | 18 Comments

Electric cars are not a silver bullet, but they’re a start

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Electric cars are a phenomenon. According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, sales of electric and Plug-in Hybrids (PHEVs) increased by 131.8% and 13.8% respectively in the year to May 2020. This figure is expected to keep on going as infrastructure improves and battery technology becomes easier to manufacture, more efficient, and, most importantly, cheaper. Layla Moran MP also wrote to Rishi Sunak this week calling for electric vehicles to be exempted from VAT, which would help bring down prices and increase sales even further.

This is surely great news: no or little (in the case of PHEVs) tailpipe emissions means that we can reduce air pollution levels sufficiently and help bring about an end to the climate crisis. Presently, emissions from passenger vehicles make up 21% of all the UK’s CO2 emissions according to the latest figures from 2018 and have increased by 6% on average since 1990. Although road traffic increased by 28%, any increase is a worry and needs to be combated if we are to bring an end to the climate crisis.

Lockdown has also had a profound effect on emissions. In the UK, emissions dropped by 31% by mid-May, better than the global average of 26%.  While this is welcome, and many people will have noticed the fresher air in urban areas, this is only temporary. A report by Rohit Chakraborty of the University of Sheffield found that emissions have risen by double digits in the first fortnight in June – in Bradford as much as 116%.  Therefore, it is clear that lockdown is an outlier and a very brief dip in our ever-increasing carbon emissions.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged and | 29 Comments
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