Last week’s Conservative party leadership hustings in Perth should have been an opportunity to focus on what the two remaining candidates would each be able to offer Scotland. Regardless of which candidate is successful in this contest, they will face many challenges from the moment they take office, and it is important to understand how each candidate will step-up in the face of these challenges.
Unfortunately, however, the evening was marred by swathes of Scottish nationalists gathered outside the venue, who chose to spend their evening shouting vile abuse at anyone entering the venue. Not only did party members find themselves being called ‘scum’ or ‘traitor’, and even had eggs thrown at them throughout the evening, but the newly elected chair of the Scottish Young Conservatives was grabbed by her coat and had abuse shouted in her face.
I am clear that the right to protest – to make your views and opinions heard, even where you risk offending someone – is a fundamental pillar of any democratic society. But when such ‘protest’ descends into yelling mindless abuse and, in some instances, physical attacks, it is clear a line has been crossed.
The behaviour we saw last week was the ugly side of Scottish nationalism on full display, and not for the first time. This toxic, divisive, approach to politics has become a depressingly common sight since the 2014 referendum, and is something that is only getting worse over time. And while those outside Perth Concert Hall last week did not claim to represent the SNP, it is clear that Nicola Sturgeon and other senior SNP figures have consistently failed to do enough to condemn this kind of behaviour.
When asked about the horrific abuse that took place last week, Nicola Sturgeon condemned the abuse that had been directed toward BBC Scotland journalist James Cook, but remained conspicuously silent on the abuse suffered by every party member and elected politician that was in attendance.
If even the First Minister of Scotland refuses to unequivocally condemn this kind of behaviour, it is little wonder that the toxic nationalism we witnessed last week only feels further emboldened as the years tick by.
Given the kind of behaviour that a mere leadership hustings was able to provoke, I shudder to think what we would witness if a second independence referendum were to take place – it’s no wonder the Scottish public don’t want one. Last week was just a preview of the kind of divisive rhetoric that another referendum would bring, and it wasn’t pretty.
Given the scale of the issues facing countries the world over – ironically the very issues that were being debated at these hustings – it is clear that being divided straight down the middle all over again is the last thing Scotland needs. This SNP Government needs to step-up and unequivocally condemn this kind of behaviour, take their plans for a second referendum off the table, and focus on the real issues facing the country.