Sturgeon’s position in the party remains dominant, but she needs to assert that dominance in a way she didn’t before.
Advocates of every hoary old reform would immediately set to work arguing that the Union could be saved by their One Weird Trick.
Also: civil servant at heart of Salmond fiasco set for retirement windfall; Foster threatened by loyalist terrorist; and Bogdanor attacks federalist folly.
The Scottish leader has always tried to temper expectations about the country’s fight with Covid. This could pay off in an independence referendum.
He is right to suspect value placed on the Union by some senior figures in this government. The Prime Minister must lead by example.
He has a good eye for political openings, and Labour’s woes might have created a space for an avowedly left-wing, pro-UK figure.
The Nationalists’ campaign has been so successful that leading pro-UK campaigners shy away from saying ‘Britain’. That isn’t sustainable.
Throwing money around will not help. A natonal effort is needed to show that the UK is a force for good in a troubled world.
It is remarkable that even after SNP MPs admitted that they needed to stop us leaving to salvage their project, this self-serving myth endures.
With Holyrood elections probably a year away now, Conservatives north of the border need to be prepared for when the campaign starts.
The former First Minister is a diminished figure, but could still be a potent leader of the Nationalists’ fundamentalist wing.
Also: Carlaw and Johnson meet to discuss tweaks to the points-based immigration system; the SNP make trouble over the Irish Protocol; and more.
Also: Scottish Conservative leadership candidates set out how they’ll take the fight to the SNP; Jack says no referendum re-run in Sturgeon’s lifetime.
Also: Struggle to succeed Corbyn puts spotlight on Labour divisions over Scotland; and Jack has even more reasons to refuse Sturgeon’s referendum demands.
In 2014 the rules were almost designed to maximise the independence vote. This time London must take the question much more seriously.