A Legacy of Utter Failure; SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon will put in force new lockdown restrictions in Scotland, coronavirus cases are rising as inept Sturgeon finds out that she is so far out of her depth that she needs outside help to cope, cap in hand she goes to the UK government to prop up her failed regime, take note of this, an entire SNP Cabinet in Scotland and they cannot teach people to be “self aware”, a simple mental tool, to keep them and their communities safe, a change of government is now in the national interest of Scotland

Dear All 

Today is the day, after failing to control the coronavirus in Scotland, SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon is to introduce new lockdown restrictions in Scotland. This could possibly mean as some suggest no visiting people in other households, it could see yet again business curtailed in Scotland, but more importantly, this could affect campaigning for the next Holyrood election. I always suspected that Holyrood 2021 would be inter4fered with by the SNP in some way other than attempts by indy supporters to ‘game the system’. It is looking clearer that Sturgeon and co are shutting down the country legally so opposition parties cannot function, while at the same time she using the Office of First Minister will roll out daily political broadcasts under the guise of health briefings. 

I knew within a few episodes of the Sturgeon broadcast what was happening, the opposition politicians took serve months to speak out. It took still longer to complain to the BBC what was going on, and haven’t grasped they need their own hour long TV shows as well. There is a democratic imbalance in favour of the SNP who are campaigning with Sturgeon as the sole figure head of the SNP push for Holyrood. One thing that coronavirus has taught us, is that the SNP despite their claims of superiority isn’t capable handling this crisis. Early on during Cobra briefings, we all saw first hand how Nicola Sturgeon sought to undermine a joint approach by leaking policy before the PM. As the virus is spreading again, we now see Sturgeon calling for a ‘four nations’ approach, because in the run up to the Holyrood election, she needs to blame the Westminster government as a key part of her electioneering strategy. 

Sturgeon will be fighting the election in 2021 on a simple message, ‘Toreee bad’, it is the same campaigning strategy the SNP have used in several elections both at Holyrood and Westminster. This revelation isn’t new to you but what it does show is how the SNP is in a rut, they aren’t a progressive party, they stick to the same formula with a few tweaks. In the 13 years of SNP misrule, in one key area such as small business expansion, the SNP have done nothing. The SNP aren’t building up Scotland in business, education or socially, they are playing absentee landlords at the Scottish Government. To the SNP, government is a campaigning vehicle for independence, and departments of state are something they use to draw their ministerial salary. 

The only question about the new restrictions is will Nicola Sturgeon go further than Boris Johnson, well; I would suggest she has a core package and additional package depending on how far Boris Johnson goes. I would say one thing, whatever way Boris goes; Sturgeon will be keen to raise the stakes higher. This is to fit the construct narrative that ‘Sturgeon Cares’. As we have seen how they badly handled the care home fiasco, the truth is Sturgeon really doesn’t care, who puts infected people into sterile environments to infect others? Who wants patients to sign DNR letters as a cover for their mismanagement? It is time that people started raising their voices and speaking out about what is going on around them, because there is plenty to be angry about. 

The fact that coronavirus is spreading isn’t a surprise to me; here is a personal experience just recently about me. I went to the drs to pick up a prescription, mask on, went into the surgery, in front of me was a health worker talking to the receptionist, I stood back two metres to wait till they finished their chat. As I stood there, I noticed the health worker’s clothing which wasn’t special, but she was leaning on the reception counter, bare arms, and touching the counter with her hands. This to me sent out a signal of much unawareness there is in Scotland. When outside, you should be limiting people and surface contacts as much as humanly possibly; especially in places of multiple person footfall like a surgery. Just as drs surgeries can help cure us, we should be aware that sick people use it, and that any virus they have, corona or other wise could be left on their surfaces, doors, seats, counters, walls, sinks and toilets. The only thing other than picking up my prescription that I touched was the carpet and with the soles of my shoes. 

When you are outside, be self aware, don’t just motor along in a daze! 

As well as her previous failures which led to the virus spreading in Scotland, which allows her to do “further and urgent action” as she sees it, she can then say that she will introduce “a package of additional measures” but will aim to avoid a full-scale lockdown. I would say this type of thinking is useless because the public don’t respond well to piecemeal restrictions, they require certainty. When it was pointed out that Sturgeon was just copycatting the UK restrictions, she said that decisions in Scotland were, ‘hers and hers alone’, now she is endorsing the UK chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance because her and her experts are out of their depth. Vallance says new cases could rise daily by 50,000 by October in the UK. By not being a team player with the UK Government, Nicola Sturgeon did her part in ensuring the failure of the previous strategy. 

Finally, in these desperate times, don’t look to Nicola Sturgeon to save you, your family, your friends or your community; you have the skills to do that yourself. When outside, don’t touch surfaces if you don’t need too, that includes, doors, seats, counters, walls, sinks and toilets. Stay two metres apart; always wear your mask in any shop or inside space that isn’t your home. Limit your contacts with other people to the bare minimum, stagger your shopping hours to avoid crowds, if on a bus, try not to touch rails with your bare hands, wear gloves. Always wash your hands regularly and first thing when you return home, and don’t go out if unwell. In the meantime, stay active, both physically and mentally, and you will survive, be self aware, this is your greatest asset in fight against coronavirus.

Yours sincerely

George Laird                                                                                                                                The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University