A Week in Parliament

So the chaos continues. Parliament was suspended…in chaotic scenes. The Scottish Inner Court ruled based on evidence that the prorogation/suspension was illegal because it was intended to “stymie parliament”. Johnson’s advisors then chose to attack the impartiality of the Scottish judicial system. This was bad judgement fuelling conspiracy theories. As a sidenote, I would suggest that anyone who believes Scotland’s place in the Union is welcome across the UK to read the comments sections in papers such as the Daily Mail, Express and Telegraph. These people might not be in the majority but there were many expressions of how “outrageous” it was that Scotland was “telling England what to do” and it was time for us to be cut loose / “build a wall” etc. Worryingly though, these are the extreme UKIP/Brexit voters that Johnson and his far-right Government are trying to court which does not bode well.

Given the decision by the Scottish appeal court is a higher level than the High Courts of England or Northern Ireland then that should have been enough for parliament to be recalled in the meantime. Constitutionally, it is the UK Supreme Court that makes the final decision on this which I will be happy to abide by without questioning the judges impartiality.

Election or Not?

Johnson’s attempts for another election were blocked again. This does mean we remain in limbo – we all know a general election will come, we do not know exactly when. With the extra period at home, as well as working in my office, I am taking the opportunity to get out and about and speak to constituents. There is no doubt the current chaos has resulted in many more people coming round to the idea of an Independent Scotland being a much more attractive proposition. It has been interesting speaking to those who have changed their minds. There is of course also a cohort of people who are fed up with politics because of the chaos and it can be equally interesting speaking to them. What I find is that people do appreciate their MP taking their time to be out and about. Do we really think this happens with Johnson and his comrades? This is why those who are part of the UK Government never really know what people think. They rely on focus groups, opinion polls and advisors telling them what’s what. This, however, is no substitute for face to face conversations which I hope to continue.

Energy Policy

As SNP Energy Spokesperson, I have raised my concerns about the lack of a coherent UK energy policy. A White Paper was due out in July, but has been delayed. I had 74 written questions I submitted in July during the recess on energy generation capacity and just before prorogation I was given an answer for each one there wasn’t time to answer. So, between summer recess and prorogation the UK Government has avoided scrutiny for a full 3 months and prevented challenge from MPs. No wonder I think there must be a better system.