Far from being marginalised the Green Party could gain more influence in government, says TERRY MURDEN
A little over a year since the SNP lost its seemingly impregnable leader the party is now in danger of losing its coalition partners who are keeping an increasingly fragile administration in power. By the end of next month we should know if the Greens will continue to support First Minister Humza Yousaf’s policy-challenged Cabinet following the decision to abandon a key emissions target.
The infuriated Greens have called an extraordinary general meeting to discuss the future of the three-year-old Bute House Agreement, providing clear evidence that the party is not prepared to share the blame for the SNP’s climate wobble.
Friday’s statement from Green Party HQ sent the rumour mill into overdrive with the prospect of the Greens tearing up the agreement and resigning from the government. That would leave the SNP to either limp on as a minority for two years or call a general election.
However, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Co-leader Lorna Slater used the statement to list the party’s progress in getting its policies into action and building a “springboard’ for “bigger breakthroughs”. Voting themselves out of government therefore makes no sense.
With no hope of forming a government in their own right they would have nowhere else to go. As an alternative partner, Labour is closest, particularly on rent controls, workers’ rights, supporting minorities and the environment, but Labour won’t work with the Greens while they back independence or want rid of nuclear weapons. So the Greens and SNP appear to be stuck with each other.
Just when businesses thought the green bubble had been burst, the party could come back even stronger. I would wager on the Greens seeking compensation for the climate climbdown humiliation by extracting further concessions and guarantees from the SNP who also have no alternative partner.
This may be an additional or strengthened presence in government (Cabinet posts?), and more, rather than fewer, Green policy proposals. After all, the SNP also has work to do to get its own green credentials back on track and Net Zero Secretary Mairi Mcallan’s announcement included a range of fresh environmental initiatives as it sticks to achieving its long-term carbon targets.
This may induce a collective sinking feeling across the business community. While willing to support measures that support the transition to clean air and more public transport, businesses are frustrated by the revenue-sapping impact of legislative changes, new regulations, ill-conceived initiatives and cost burdens that represent a compromise too far.
Should the Greens crank up their demands from the SNP in exchange for continued support, then the belief that last week’s climbdown will somehow lead to a relief from such burdens may prove misplaced. It might just lead to more.
There is a long list of green measures waiting to be unleashed around housing, land reform, and public transport. Home builders may struggle to persuade ministers to drop, or at least dilute, proposed environmental measures, such as the introduction of a Passivhaus Equivalent Standard for new homes from 2025 which will raise the cost of buying a house. Motorists will face an ever-rising tide of regulations and initiatives to force them to get on their bikes, or use public transport that is currently stretched or unviable.
Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie reminds us that the climate crisis is an emergency, and tackling waste is essential, but insists his party is not anti-business, nor anti-growth. He merely wants a more balanced economy. However, pushing businesses to financial ruin is not a sensible way to tackle these issues. If the SNP does feel pressured to concede more Green policy it must ensure it takes business with it.
See also: Interview with Patrick Harvie
Terry Murden held senior positions at The Sunday Times, The Scotsman, Scotland on Sunday and The Northern Echo and is now editor of Daily Business
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