By John Mowat
The polls all suggest that Keir Starmer is a shoo in to be the next UK Prime minister with a majority which does not require extra Labour MPs from Scotland to make up a large majority.
It has been a strange, somewhat unreal Campaign where the three Westminster based Parties do not and did not want to mention the main issues.
The Tories do not want to talk about their Hard Tory Brexit highly damaging project which has left the UK Countries isolated, declining and outside Europe’s highly successful Mainstream Single Market. The UK has fallen to 7th in the G7 economic League with the prospects of zero growth in the years ahead.
Meanwhile Keir Starmer has backed further Tory austerity where the poorest pay the highest price. The IFS have indicated alarm at this along with the copying of Hard damaging Tory Brexit, outside everything.
Keir Starmer wants Change, but only cosmetic change, with a change of name but not of policies. Many people may intend to vote Labour, they have no idea what makes their Leader Keir Starmer tick or what he stands for.
Backing Tory Brexit will not begin to improve the damaged relationships with our 27 EU neighbours along with 4 more EEA Countries.
The most urgent issue and the key to kick starting economic Growth is by restoring seamless access to Mainstream European Markets.
Zero growth and a lack of cooperation with our European neighbours is the direct opposite of what is urgently needed.
Is Keir Starmer capable of thinking outside the box and listening to the IFS and all the main economic analysis groups ?
Meanwhile the LibDems have failed to mention one of the main issues, the EU or the EEA in any of their leaflets or party political broadcasts.
With Tories, Labour & the Libdems , all the main decisions are taken in Loddon, hundreds of miles outside Scotland.
The Libdems clearly do not want to mention Hard Tory Brexit in Southern England where they want to play down their previous strong support for Europe while targeting Tory seats in the South.
The SNP have put Europe, the restoration of business, friendship and cultural links with Europe at the top of their campaign.
Economic Growth, in Scotland, is seen as Good and Desirable,
The SNP have close links with Ireland where they see continued prosperity and annual economic growth of 5.5 %.
Independence and seamless trading with Europe is seen as the only remaining route to economic growth and political cooperation. Europe has to cooperate and work together in the face of a rampant Russia attacking neighbouring countries.
Maybe continued lobbying by SNP, Plaid, the Greens, Northern Irish and maybe in future the LibDems too may help Keir Starmer & Labour to ditch their right wing extremist dogma and open up a positive dialogue with Europe
The SNP, alone, are happy to talk about the Cost of Living Crisis, closely related to Hard Brexit as a major contributing cause,
The Highlands & Islands have been worst affected by the loss of European Structural funding, while Scotland in general has suffered from severe Brexit economic damage.
John Swinney, SNP Leader wants politicians across the political divide to work together on the important issues to ease the Cost of Living Crisis.
It would appear Labour’s Keir Starmer’s Hard Brexit dogma needs to be challenged strongly. He in turn needs a good circle of colleagues to persuade him to ditch the worst Tory dogma, and reconsider the merits of economic growth.
Meanwhile Anas Sarwar, Scottish Labour Leader has hitherto had little or no influence on encouraging Keir Starmer to look outwards beyond England again.
The big question still remains in doubt if Scotland elects a number of Hard Brexit supporting inward looking Labour MPs from Scottish Constituencies.
The failure to send out Postal voting papers is another damaging indictment of 14 years of disastrous Tory Rule at Westminster.
The people of Scotland and the rest of the UK deserve better.
The candidates standing in the Orkney and Shetland constituency at the General Election on 4th July are:
