SNP chose political irrelevance in Brexit talks

Lesley Riddoch laments that “Four long years of Brexit border warfare show vast gulf between Scotland and England ”( Perspective, December ). The truth is that the fouryeargi rn of which she was a part was a complete waste of time.

The Liberal Democrats discovered this in 2019, the SNP will discover it in 2021. We are now in the bizarre situation that after trying to scare us with a “no-deal” Brexit for four years, the SNP seem ready to vote for no deal when forced to choose between this and a deal that virtually everyone else is signed up to. They are on their own. Early on in the Brexit process, the SNP said very clearly that they would not support B rex it leg is lation under any circumstances. The political consequence of this was that politically they became irrelevant. No-one would take the time to deal with them because they knew what their ultimate response would be. Westminster have been ignoring the SNP, who are not the same thing as Scotland.

If Nicola Sturgeon had wanted to tie the Brexit result to her quest for independence, she should have called for a vote the day after the Brexit vote in 2016. That was when her party was at its strongest and the UK parliament was at its weakest. She may have b een taking a chance, but what would Bruce or Wallace have done? They would have gone for it, created their own weather and momentum and risked it all.

Ms Sturgeon didn’t do that, and now the Brexit ship has sailed. The cold light of Januar y will reveal that the independence ship has sailed as well.

VICTOR CLEMENTS Aberfeldy, Perthshire