SNP’s big secret: ‘what they really want is a Tory win’
Nicola Sturgeon accused of ‘trash talking’ Ed Miliband because she doesn’t really want a pact with Labour
Are the SNP “trash-talking” Ed Miliband because they really want David Cameron re-elected?
One of the more intriguing encountesr in tonight’s seven-way will be that between Labour leader Ed Miliband and Scottish Nationalist leader Nicola Sturgeon.
The anti-Tory rhetoric of Sturgeon and her predecessor Alex Salmond is regarded with deep distrust by Labour.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
They believe the SNP really want a Cameron government because that’s their best route to independence. (Remember - with no Scottish seats upsetting the maths, the Conservatives would have the chance to rule at Westminster for the foreseeable future.)
The risk of any pact between Labour and the SNP is that it would diminish the argument that Scotland can only prosper by cutting its ties with Westminster.
The view is summed up on the Labour List website by regular blogger Sonny Hundal who points out that in a recent interview Nicola Sturgeon labelled Miliband as “slightly weak” and said later that the SNP would “keep [Labour] honest”.
“Who goes into serious negotiations by slagging off their potential partner as ‘weak” and dishonest’?” asks Hundal. “In the US they call it ‘trash talking’ – insulting your opponent ahead of combat. It’s almost like the SNP want to antagonise Miliband and create a bad atmosphere before any talks take place.”
Why? Because the Nationalists want to give the impression to Scottish voters that they oppose the re-election of the much loathed (north of the border) Tories but actually have no desire to team up with Miliband’s party.
Says Hundal: “The SNP aren’t serious about working with Labour – this is a charade so they can later walk away from any deal and blame Miliband for not offering everything.”
In a similar vein, Ed Balls, the shadow chancellor, bracketed the SNP and the Tories in a speech in Glasgow. They shared a consensus, he said, that no new investment is required in Scotland to end austerity in the coming year. By contrast, his first Labour budget would end "Tory austerity".
The hostility to the Scottish Nationalists extends across the Labour Party. Left-wing Labour MPs have sharply rebuffed overtures from the SNP for a progressive bloc with the Greens and Welsh nationalists after the general election.
According to The Guardian, the SNP would seek to make alliances opposing fracking, Trident and austerity. But Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell, of the socialist Campaign Group in the Commons, dispute the SNP’s left-wing credentials.
Corbyn said the SNP government in Edinburgh had handed ScotRail to a private contractor, and their proposals to cut corporation tax were hardly an act of redistribution.
“I do question the assumption that they’re a massive left-wing force," he says. "Yes, they do oppose Trident and yes they’re against austerity, but the idea they’re a socialist party is far off the mark, actually.”
McDonnell said: “Given its track record in Scotland in supporting cuts in public spending, a race to the bottom on tax and privatising rail and ferries, there is a huge divide between what socialists in the Labour Party stand for and SNP nationalists.”
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Magazine interactive crossword - May 3, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - May 3, 2024
By The Week US Published
-
Magazine solutions - May 3, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - May 3, 2024
By The Week US Published
-
Magazine printables - May 3, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - May 3, 2024
By The Week US Published
-
Peter Murrell: Sturgeon's husband charged over SNP 'embezzlement' claims
Speed Read SNP expresses 'shock' as former chief executive rearrested in long-running investigation into claims of mishandled campaign funds
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Will Aukus pact survive a second Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question US, UK and Australia seek to expand 'game-changer' defence partnership ahead of Republican's possible return to White House
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
It's the economy, Sunak: has 'Rishession' halted Tory fightback?
Today's Big Question PM's pledge to deliver economic growth is 'in tatters' as stagnation and falling living standards threaten Tory election wipeout
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Why your local council may be going bust
The Explainer Across England, local councils are suffering from grave financial problems
By The Week UK Published
-
Rishi Sunak and the right-wing press: heading for divorce?
Talking Point The Telegraph launches 'assault' on PM just as many Tory MPs are contemplating losing their seats
By Keumars Afifi-Sabet, The Week UK Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
How the biggest election year in history might play out
The Explainer Votes in world's biggest democracies, as well as its most 'despotic' and 'stressed' countries, face threats of violence and suppression
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published