Angus MacNeil says SNP 'clueless' about independence plan

MP Angus MacNeil has said he will not re-join the SNP's Westminster group when his suspension expires as he accused the party of being "clueless" about how to achieve independence.

The Na h-Eileanan an Iar (Western Isles) MP had the whip removed for a week after being accused of threatening the SNP group's chief whip during a row in Parliament.

He has now said he will sit as an independent MP until at least October.

The SNP has been asked to comment.

Mr MacNeil, who had the whip removed last week, said he will not return to the Westminster group until at least after the SNP conference in October.

But he said he would only do so if the party provided "clarity on independence".

In a letter published on Twitter, the MP described the SNP as "a brand name missing the key ingredient".

"The urgency for independence is absent," he added.

The Western Isles representative - who is one of the SNP's longest-serving MPs, having first been elected in 2005 - said the Scottish government was "utterly clueless" when it unsuccessfully took the UK government to the Supreme Court last year in a bid to establish whether Holyrood has the power to hold a second referendum without Westminster's consent.

He said the ruling meant that SNP ministers had "left the Supreme Court utterly clueless about how to pursue independence".

The letter continued: "The SNP still have no clear understanding that it has to use elections to negotiate Scottish independence from Westminster by getting the backing of the majority of the electorate.

"The SNP members must have a say at conference on the policy direction, which is hasn't until now."

Mr MacNeil, a frequent critic of the SNP's independence strategy, accused the party leadership of playing "tricks" on members over the past six years and of "kicking the can down the road".

Citing concerns about Scotland's falling population, which he said would hit constituencies such as his particularly hard, the MP warned the "cost" of being in the UK meant Scotland had been left behind by its independent neighbours such as Ireland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Norway and Denmark.

"Instead we are trapped with Brexit in a socially failing UK," Mr MacNeil wrote.

Seven SNP MPs - including deputy leader Mhairi Black and former Westminster leader Ian Blackford - have announced that they will stand down at the next general election.

But Mr MacNeil said he would "certainly" be standing at the next UK vote, expected in autumn 2024.

"I will continue with my staff to work as best we can for the population of Na h-Eileanan an Iar, until the SNP gets serious about independence, to improve lives and society in the Hebrides and Scotland," he added.

The MP, who won with a majority of 2,438 in 2019, is among several pro-independence parliamentarians facing a tough fight to retain his seat at the next general election.

Recent polls have suggested that Scottish Labour could make significant gains, with former Daily Record Westminster editor Torcuil Crichton set to stand for the party in Na h-Eileanan an Iar.

The House of Commons will close for summer recess on 20 July, with MPs returning on 4 September.

A recess over party conference season will begin a fortnight later on 19 September, with MPs not returning until 16 October.

At a special SNP conference last month, First Minister Humza Yousaf said that if the party won the most Scottish seats at the next general election he would press the UK government for powers to hold a second referendum.

He told members that the only route to independence was through "lawful and democratic process" and has previously warned that there were no shortcuts to Scotland becoming an independent country.

Angus MacNeil has long been a critical voice within the SNP, and one pushing for more action from the leadership on independence.

He will feel he is voicing the frustration of some elements within the party that more has not been done to advance the cause.

He says he will consider returning to the fold in October if the SNP embraces a strong position at its autumn conference.

But given the nature of this broadside, you have to wonder if he would be welcomed back.

And on a purely practical level, party chiefs will need to consider soon whether or not to select a different candidate for the looming general election.

Keeping the seat may be the main thing that Mr MacNeil and the SNP have in common at the moment.

Labour is already targeting it - and will be rubbing their hands at the prospect of the nationalist vote being split between a new SNP candidate and an independent MacNeil ticket.