How did it unravel so quickly for Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP? - Ian Murray

If you talk to political journalists and observers based in Westminster, there is only question they ask of Scottish MPs: How did it unravel so quickly for Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP?

Former deputy first minister John Swinney arrives at the UK Covid-19 Inquiry hearing in Edinburgh

They can’t quite comprehend how such a devastating fall from grace could happen in such haste. Any remaining belief that the SNP was leading a progressive, competent administration north of the border has completely evaporated. Just as it has here in Scotland.

Sturgeon’s trust rating has fallen to -19 points among the Scottish public. What the latest revelations from the Covid inquiry will do to her reputation remains to be seen, but frankly it’s already tarnished beyond repair. Humza Yousaf’s rating is also in the gutter.

And this week we were reminded about the issue of trust when former deputy first minister John Swinney gave his own evidence to the inquiry. Once upon a time he was known as “Honest John” – a compliment in some regards, yet also a reminder of the times he had said more than he should have, such as when he admitted an independent Scotland would struggle to fund the state pension. Well, this week he was at least honest about what happened to his WhatsApp messages with Sturgeon – they were all manually deleted while keeping no formal minutes.

However, at yesterday’s hearing during an agonising exchange where Sturgeon attempted a semantic argument with the Inquiry’s Counsel, she finally admitted to the deletion of her WhatsApps. Deleted almost simultaneously to her promise to keep them and give them all to any future inquiry.

The scandal of the industrial scale cover-up by the SNP and Scottish Government civil servants continues. What a betrayal of all those who lost loved ones during the pandemic who deserve answers about how major decisions were reached.

In stark contrast to the betrayals and lies of Sturgeon, Swinney and Yousaf, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has rightly emerged as the most trusted leader in Scotland. As he said to the journalist Andrew Marr this week, people in Scotland have the right to be furious with both the Tory Government and the SNP Government for their handling of the pandemic.

Yes, the Tories under Boris Johnson were an utter shambles, failing to communicate properly. But that doesn’t give SNP politicians a pass for choosing to bury their decision-making process – which, let’s not forget, included Covid-positive patients being moved to care homes, and concealing the first outbreak in Edinburgh from the public.

And the inquiry evidence we have heard over the past week has revealed how both governments were playing politics throughout. Liz Lloyd, Sturgeon’s top adviser at the time, even said she wanted a “good old-fashioned rammy” with the UK Government. The two government were – and are – obsessed with confrontation.

The people of Scotland want their representatives to work together especially in times of national crisis, which is why a UK Labour government will bring a constructive approach so we can deliver for the country. Should Labour have the privilege of forming the next government, I urge the SNP to drop its petty, divisive approach and do its job. At the General Election, Scotland can lead the way in delivering the change that we all need by delivering Scottish Labour MPs and booting the Tories out of Downing Street.

Ian Murray MP is Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland