SNP-Green deal is all about independence but it may ruin nationalists' chances of victory – John McLellan

You’ve got to hand it to my Green colleague Cllr Chas Booth, taking to Twitter one minute to say he opposed the coalition deal with the SNP and the next to celebrate how great it was to see Green ministers.

Scottish Green party co-leader Lorna Slater is a minister in the Scottish Government following a deal with the SNP (Picture: Jane Barlow/WPA Pool/Getty Images)

And no doubt this won’t be the last of the twists and turns as new ministers Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater find out what happens when impractical, ideological policies dreamt up in Browns bar hit reality.

As well as cutting distances travelled by private cars by a fifth, Mr Harvie will have responsibility for housing standards, which includes an impossible commitment to upgrade all homes to the required “C” standard by 2033, which will entail ripping out every gas boiler and cooker.

Meanwhile Ms Slater will be charged with delivering a Circular Economy Bill, which given the lack of detail about how to tackle climate change and biodiversity will involve going round in circles as she tries to puzzle out what to do.

But that probably suits First Minister Nicola Sturgeon just fine; this is just about guaranteeing a pro-independence majority, looking good when the world comes calling for the Cop26 jamboree in November and trying to stop Greta Thunberg being rude about us.

The problem is that the hectoring and lecturing of working people about how they should live their lives will do nothing to sell a vision of an independent Scotland.

By trying to make the granting of a referendum unavoidable, the First Minster might also be making it unwinnable.

John McLellan is a Conservative councillor for Craigentinny/Duddingston

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