It’s almost ironic that the lack of actual politics on display during my months in Your Party has now bled into the ongoing – and dragging – Holyrood election campaign. With days to go, it could be May 2021 for all that has changed since we last went to the ballot box to elect our Scottish government.
The SNP look to be cruising to first place, Labour are declining, the right will likely form the opposition (this time in a new uniform) and the Greens and Lib Dems will be played off each other by the government to pass legislation. The offering, with a few notable exceptions, is a natural continuation of the previous SNP government’s programme.
Crucially for the people of Scotland outside of the political bubble, come 8 May, very little will have changed, regardless of the outcome.
That is not to discount the threat of Reform and what I hope will be a wake-up call for many. The worst-case scenario seems to be that they’ll form the opposition. It will be a shock to have far-right politicians in our national parliament, but all going well they’ll be unable to pass any laws or make any legislative difference. Despite this though, the reality of Scotland having voted for these individuals – and the party they represent – is something we’ll all have to come to terms with – and quickly.
Reform may not have power in Scotland, but this election will disprove the myth of Scottish exceptionalism and the lie many tell themselves that this kind of racist rhetoric wouldn’t take hold here. We beat off the rise of the BNP and UKIP over the past few decades, but we have collectively failed to stop the rise of Reform and that is something we all bear some responsibility for.
After all, they may not be able to pass legislation, but they will be setting the political agenda from the opposition benches and pushing their poisonous agenda from a much higher pedestal than before.
As I say above, that is a collective responsibility – particularly of those on the left. We haven’t done enough. Opportunities have been squandered – Your Party being the key one in the last couple of years, while other existing left-wing projects remain in relative obscurity and unlikely to make too much impact on a national level.
Most importantly, what this election has shown is that the current political parties are not enough to fight back against the far-right.
More Green MSPs are unlikely to stop Reform making the political weather. Labour has long shown itself to be more willing to kow-tow to the right than challenge it. The SNP meanwhile and whoever joins them in government are unlikely to do anything more over the next five years than continue their managerial decline that has itself fed the Reform machine.
Cuts, cuts and more cuts to our public services – voted through by SNP MSPs and supported by the Greens – have opened the door to Scotland voting for Reform and what they represent. The failings of the so-called centre-left is the biggest factor in the political predicament we find ourselves in. The public are desperate for a new option that they hope will offer a step-change from the establishment. With all five of the other parties at Holyrood complicit in the austerity facing ordinary Scots every day, is it any wonder many are turning to Reform, or disengaging altogether?
Ultimately, as things stand, we are setting ourselves up to be in an even worse position in 2029 and 2031. That means we all need to step up and do what we can to change that before it’s too late.
It’s too late to address the lack of politics we’ve seen over this seemingly years-long election campaign. Reform will be in Holyrood and millions of voters won’t even bother to have their say. The only way to stop this malaise is to build something new. Not throwing out all that has come before, but working within and building upon the movement that still exists on the Scottish left. We must harness that energy, build in our communities and put serious energy and resources into the electoral arena – starting with next year’s council elections in Scotland.
These can be a staging post to something greater, broader and more radical. But local authorities have been at the sharp end of cuts passed down from Holyrood and Westminster for years now. Stopping the rot there and getting socialists into town halls across the country would represent the first – and most important step – in challenging the austerity agenda that has been so pervasive that even nominally ‘left-wing’ politicians have backed it.
Red lines need to be drawn. If we fail to act now, I’d wager I’ll be writing much the same piece again ahead of the next election. But next time, the far-right will be taking control, rather than making up the opposition. I for one won’t be standing by and letting that happen.
