Labour will see victory as endorsing Westminster control of Scotland

Since I joined the SNP at the age of 15, independence has gone from being a strong belief held by a relative few to being the favoured position of half the country.

When I went to school wearing my SNP badge, it was considered unusual for a teenager to support independence. Now, you would be hard-pressed to find many young people who don’t.

That remarkable shift has happened not by good fortune but through hard work, persuasion, never giving up and a relentless focus on how independence will improve people’s lives and make Scotland a better place.

Quite simply, we believe people in Scotland deserve to get the governments they vote for every time. And at the core of our mission is the idea that no-one else will do a better job of running Scotland than the brilliant, diverse population who call this country home.

Our task as a movement is to convince people across the country that it is in their interests, their families’ interests and the national interest to join us in supporting independence.

(Image: Gordon Terris)

Let me be clear about one thing – there is no other way than democratic persuasion and pressure, however infuriating the intransigence of the Westminster parties is. That’s why at this election independence has been at the heart of our campaign.

While the result in England is a foregone conclusion and Keir Starmer is certain to be the next prime minister, in Scotland, the election is on a knife edge. It will be hotly contested between the SNP and Labour and a huge number of seats in Scotland could be decided by just a handful of votes. In effect, Scotland is the only story left in this election and there is so much at stake.

The contrast with what is happening south of the Border is stark. The election there has ground to a halt.

There is no hope or ambition and there is a complete absence of a positive, inspiring vision of the future. All that is on offer are two right-wing parties arguing over which is best to administer more cuts, which is best placed “to make Brexit work” and which can be trusted most to bring down immigration. All of these things will be devastating for people in Scotland.

If we were having this election in an independent Scotland rather than as part of the UK, the debate would not be about austerity or Brexit or cuts to migration.

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The debate would be about how we can best invest to grow the economy, create jobs, eradicate child poverty and make our country a better place.

We would be discussing how we could match the performance of similar countries to Scotland, such as Ireland, Denmark and Sweden which are wealthier and fairer than the UK.

We would be talking about how we can best work with our friends and colleagues across Europe as an equal, independent member of the EU with our own seat at the top table.

We would not be hearing a debate on the future of the NHS with two major parties committed to deepening the privatisation agenda. We would already be benefitting from a constitutional right to free healthcare at the point of need – and be free to make the decisions we need to invest even more in our health service to create a fairer, healthier nation.

And we certainly would not be in the midst of an election which has centred on demonising migrants, with senior politicians on both sides using outrageous rhetoric about “sending people home”.

That is because independence would allow us to take our own decisions based on our values – Scotland’s values. But we do not need to wait until we are independent to express those values. We have the opportunity to do exactly that on Thursday.

Whether we choose to do so is the last remaining question in the election. We already know that Keir Starmer (above) will be prime minister. We already know the Tories will be soundly defeated. And we already know that we will see a strong vote in England for the outrageous politics of Nigel Farage.

Against Westminster’s catastrophic consensus, the SNP will stand up for inclusion, internationalism, compassion and equality.

We are clear in our beliefs and in the mandate we would take from this election. It is page one, line one of our manifesto – vote SNP for Scotland to be an independent country.

Keir Starmer’s beliefs are equally clear – he opposes independence and will count every single vote cast for Labour as an endorsement for Westminster control of Scotland. He and the entire Westminster establishment will do everything they can to try to close the door on independence. We cannot afford to let that happen. Because Westminster doesn’t work for Scotland.

But that is what is in the SNP’s DNA – a driving ambition to work for the people of this wonderful country.

We will be working non-stop over these last few days of this campaign, taking our positive vision of a better, independent Scotland to the people of this country.

This week will be crucial as we seek to get that message of hope to as many people as possible and on Thursday I’m asking you to vote SNP – for a future made in Scotland for Scotland. Only the SNP offer Scotland the hope of a better future. But we have to vote for it.