Years of decline under the hard-left Scottish National Party (SNP), followed by the party’s own recent meltdown that saw Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf step down from his post, have hurt the wider cause of Scottish independence hard.
Now, the SNP’s new leader, John Swinney, has decided to axe the government position of Minister for Independence altogether.
Supporters of independence have, of course, largely denied that the SNP’s troubles have hurt their cause. But Swinney, whose critics say he is so “dull” that he will damage his party even further, has this week undermined their deflection efforts and proved that independence is—for now, at least—dead in the water.
One pro-independence campaign group described the move as an “error of judgement,” adding that it “epitomises the government’s failure to engage in serious planning for independence.”
Others joked that the ministerial position can’t have been that effective in the first place, since they’d never heard of it.
It is unclear how Swinney’s decision to axe the position matches up to his claim that “my leadership will all be about” building “greater support” for independence. The responsibilities of the post, which was established just one year ago under Yousaf, will now be taken up by the minister for external affairs and culture.
An SNP spokesman insisted that “all of our government ministers are focused on independence in Europe.” But pro-union campaigners will be rubbing their hands at the move, which creates the impression that the independence movement is moving backwards, not forward.
