Last week I stood up in Parliament for the first time since the general election, and spoke from the third-party frontbench for the first time in 14 years. It was a privilege to speak for my party and my Northern Isles constituency – but it was also, I hope, the start of a far more productive era for our country. People in Scotland have voted decisively against the SNP’s politics of nationalist grievance – and for representation which is constructive, both in government and in opposition.
After years of SNP protest and posturing, voters instead want practical results for our communities. Advertisement Advertisement Sign up to our Opinion newsletter Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. For the better part of a decade, Scottish politics was dominated by one dividing line.
Every political question – on our taxes, on our infrastructure, on our place in the world – was distorted by the kaleidoscopic lens of nationalism. With the SNP driving the narrative as the third party in Westminster, everything came back to independence. Read More Three lessons Scottish Tories must quickly learn from Labour – or face oblivion Why the SNP and Stephen Flynn have been 'silenced' with no question at Prime Minister's Questions John Swinney should always remember climate change helped depose his pre.