SNP Leaders In Political Meltdown; Bitter SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon ends up looking like a right haddock after accusing Prime Minister Theresa May of 'selling out' Scotland's fishermen, coordinated SNP attack fails as PM uses one apt sentence after SNP leader attack in the Commons, "I will tell him what a sell-out of Scottish fishermen would be: it's the policy of the Scottish National Party to stay in the Common Fisheries Policy"

Dear All

What is the first important thing that comes to mind when you think of the SNP, depending on your political knowledge, you might think:

Incompetent

Lacking in substance

Inept

No vision

Liars

Charlatans

You would of course be right as the terms above easily and readily roll off the tongue.

Here is something which is not funny; unpopular Nicola Sturgeon has accused Theresa May of 'selling out' Scotland's fishermen. The irony in this attack is that Nicola Sturgeon along with the rest of the SNP intended to do just that by remaining in the EU. If the SNP ever won independence; the first thing on their agenda post feathering their nest would be to rejoin the EU.

The SNP doesn’t have the interest of Scottish fishermen at heart, they never did, and they never will.

What people like Nicola Sturgeon count on is that the public are politically unaware, so that they can try to manipulate them to their cause, the SNP has never stood up for Scotland, they don’t know how to.

The SNP only stand up for them; always have, always will!

The bitter battle that Sturgeon seeks to have with Theresa May is all about trying to angle another independence vote. In Holyrood, Sturgeon using a safe platform is fighting against Brexit at every turn, and using fishing rights is just a convenient excuse to attack Theresa May. The tactic isn’t new, it is old and par for the course, the SNP stand up and accuse whomever of “selling out” Scotland.

   

The Prime Minister has said that post the transition period in December 2020, Britain would become an “independent coastal state”. Although a lot of people might not like the transition, I think people can get their head round it, Brexit doesn’t just affect the UK, it also affects Europe. The Brexit talks are tricky as it is hard to unpick 40 plus years of membership at the snap of your fingers.

And less we forget it was SNP’s policy to keep Scotland in the Common Fisheries Policy!

What Sturgeon is doing is ultimately making herself look like a fool as she tries to side with the EU, who are at best lukewarm about her and Scotland.

The UK and EU27 have agreed a text on their future relationship post Brexit, the details of which is due to be signed off at a special summit in Brussels. What is clearly is that Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP have had no input in shaping the Brexit talks.

Not on the UK side and not on the EU side either.

The text states:

“Within the context of the overall economic partnership, the parties should establish a new fisheries agreement on, inter alia, access to waters and quota shares. The parties will use their best endeavours to conclude and ratify their new fisheries agreement by July 1 2020 in order for it to be in place in time to be used for determining fishing opportunities for the first year after the transition period.”

So, to clarify, the focus should be on July 1 2020, that is where Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP should have focused on rather than her continual spewing of rubbish to attract attention to get a media headline. The problem in her strategy is that she has cried ‘wolf’ so often nothing she says has any impact. If you read between the lines and sit back and let the SNP spew, you can see what they plan, they planned to use Scottish waters as a “bargaining chip” if they were ever in a position to apply for entry to the EU.

At First Minister Questions, Ms Sturgeon said:

“The political declaration that has been agreed between the UK Government and the European Commission this morning represents another Tory sell-out of Scottish fishermen”.

In case you didn’t grasp what was said, allow me to break it down, Sturgeon wanted to say “Tory sell-out”, it is called a ‘hook’ in literature, something to grab your attention and let your imagination do the work.

One gaffe that Sturgeon did make was recalling how last week all 13 Scottish  Conservative MPs sent a letter to the Prime Minister making clear post Brexit the UK "must be able to negotiate access and quota shares on an annual basis without any pre-existing arrangement being in force" and "this means that access and quota shares cannot be included in the future economic partnership".

13 Scottish Conservative MPs standing up for Scotland….. opps!

In what must be a drag, Sturgeon added:

"In terms of David Mundell's position I would simply say this: his position is a matter for him but if he is still in office by the end of today in light of this political declaration he will have forfeited forever any last remaining scrap of principle or credibility that he had."

If it is a matter for him then why is Nicola Sturgeon and the rest of the SNP rabble constantly calling for him to resign?

Labour's Lesley Laird, the Shadow Scottish Secretary, echoed the call for the Scottish Secretary to "resign with immediate effect".

I think like Sturgeon that call will find no favour!

David Mundell has tweeted that he would “not take lessons on standing up for fisherman from Nicola Sturgeon, who is committed to trapping them in the hated Common Fisheries Policy”.

Game, set and match.

He added:

“The PM has fiercely resisted the efforts of EU states to make an explicit link between access to our waters and access to markets. We will negotiate and decide, as an independent coastal state, on access and quota[s] on an annual basis, just like Norway and Iceland do now.”

Finally, it is no secret that SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon is truly having a dreadfully bad Brexit in terms of government input and also her personal standing. The ploy of trying to appear to stand up for Scottish fishermen is much like a Xmas panto with her as the ‘panto dame’ who the audience boo at through-out the show. The intelligence need in the SNP is lacking, here are two more examples.

SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford mouths off about fishing, to which the PM says:

"I will tell him what a sell-out of Scottish fishermen would be: it's the policy of the Scottish National Party to stay in the Common Fisheries Policy."

And SNP MP Hanna Bardell plays 'keepy up' in the Chamber of the House of Commons, it seems the SNP have loads of time for stupidity and none for the key things need in Westminster and Holyrood, commonsense, vision and emotional intelligence.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University