The looming crises facing Scotland that our politicians must stop trying to ignore
The growing sense of apathy and anger about politics is creating a democratic crisis on top of Scotland’s financial problems
Leafletting for an old friend, the lack of interest in the election was marked. The 2024 general election was quiet, partly but not entirely because the timing overlapped with the holidays. This time there’s no excuse. Apathy’s widespread and contempt palpable. Those interested in discussing it invariably wanted to vent their spleen and explain why they wouldn’t be voting.
Pledges and promises from candidates and parties are coming thick and fast but, far from enticing the voter, they’re simply increasing the electorate’s scorn. Local and national services are disappearing, while both the quality and availability of what remains diminish. But there seems no end to fripperies and freebies being proposed. All invariably peripheral to the basic wants that folk seek on health, housing, education and the economy.
The SNP’s free buses and £2 fares mean nothing when you can’t get one when you need it, or even one at all. The proposal to cap food prices surely takes the proverbial biscuit, unravelling like a digestive in a cuppa as soon as John Swinney had announced it.
The latest iteration saw him call on supermarkets to do the right thing. When have they ever done anything other than maximise profits? When action on energy costs is absent, the idea that food prices will miraculously be sorted simply breeds contempt.
Tory and Labour failings not forgotten
The opposition is as bad. The Tories’ failings in office at Westminster saw them unceremoniously removed just two years ago. Memories are not that short, and cronyism and incompetence remain painfully etched in many minds.
Labour’s promises to resolve years of SNP failure are snorted at when the shenanigans from Keir Starmer’s No 10 are all too evident. Folk are also painfully aware that failings at Holyrood are not simply in the administration but equally apply to the opposition. It was for good reason that Labour came third in 2021, and many are old enough to remember past failings when in power.
On my sojourn around the streets putting leaflets through letterboxes, which would go largely unread if not straight into the bin, I was able to reflect that it was 44 years since I first contested an election. Then I was an SNP candidate in the regional elections for Whitburn/Fauldhouse and shamefully the turnout then might well be greater than now for the Scottish Parliament.
Of course, our land is a changed place. Then the major employers in the area were Polkemmet Colliery and British Leyland, although redundancies had commenced and other closures nearby had already occurred as Thatcherism devastated our industrial base. The mass sell-off of council housing hadn’t taken root and it was far and away the principal tenure.
A new spectre emerges
Politically, Labour was growing in strength and would soon appear omnipotent as the fear and effect of Margaret Thatcher only grew. Meanwhile, a Scottish Parliament was a side issue and independence a distant dream.
But all that would change. Within just over a generation, Labour had come crashing down to be supplanted by the SNP. Now, according to the polls, they stand in Scotland as Labour once towered over Strathclyde and other regional councils. The spectre they summon to try and dragoon the electorate moving from Thatcher to Reform.
The latter though are the symptom, not the illness. Lord Offord’s smugness about his wealth and a deluge of ex-Tory defectors – including some like Robert Jenrick who are deeply nasty – have tarnished them. But they’ll still poll well. Not because of racism in most but through a desire, as one punter said to me, to “get it right up them”. It’s a contempt for not just the political elite but the entire body politic. All the political gods have failed, so ‘why not?’ seems to be the message.
The challenges facing the country are severe but political leaders appear as Nero, fiddling while Rome burns. The firestorm coming from budget cuts was severe enough even before Donald Trump imposed a global crisis. Only Sir Tom Hunter appears to be calling for action to address the need for an industrial base and a vibrant economy. Without them, the freebies and fripperies won’t just be marginal but non-existent.
A question pollsters should try to answer
Pollsters have been telling us who’s going to win, though I’m certain it will be closer than predicted. But they haven’t been saying why the majority are likely not to even bother voting.
Years ago, I read an excellent book, Civic Literacy, by a Canadian professor, Henry Milner. It detailed why people vote, contrasting countries with high participation levels, such as the Scandinavian nations, with others, whether the USA, and even those such as Belgium and Australia with compulsory-voting measures.
The answers he detailed weren’t the fines for failing to vote or even polling stations at Tesco’s. Instead, it was an understanding of what was at issue – a finding confirmed in this country by higher turnouts for referenda than elections – but also access to a quality press and media, along with wider civic education. The levels of trade union membership and voluntary participation in community or national organisations also had an impact.
All those factors have diminished. TV debates have a small audience, and contact is through the post or social media. But there’s another issue arisen. The body politic is now distinct and distant from the voter. Political activists are significantly fewer and, in the eyes of many voters, candidates are uniform irrespective of party. A reasonable take when nothing seems to change and the only differences are the freebies being trumpeted.
The outcome may well see an administration in office but not in power. A recipe for inaction just when urgency is required. It’s not just a financial but a political crisis which is looming. It’s politicians and politics, not the electorate, who need to change. A focus on the core issues and commitment to community not a political career. Our democracy requires it.
Kenny MacAskill is a former Justice Secretary of Scotland
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