Wednesday, July 09, 2014

Former SNP defence spokesman to stand for the Liberal Democrats

Stewart Crawford, who stood for the SNP in the first elections to the new Scottish Parliament, is to fight Edinburgh South for the Liberal Democrats at the next general election.

He left the SNP in 2001 and was not a member of any political party until he joined the Lib Dems in 2012

Crawford told the Edinburgh Evening News:
“I decided the SNP was not for me. I met some lovely people and I have great respect for many of those I knew at that time, but I had to concentrate on other things – my family was growing up and I had to put food on the table and pay the bills. 
“My position shifted from being pro-independence to saying ‘Of course, Scotland could be independent but is it a good idea?’. I just don’t think the arguments have enough intellectual rigour and there are too many unanswered questions. 
“The offer from Yes Scotland has become diluted to the point where it is clear that some sort of enhanced devolution is what most people want.”
It is good to see that we can still attract substantial new recruits even at our current low ebb. Edinburgh South was a seat we had great hopes off at the last general election, but failed to take from Labour even in those favourable circumstances.

No comments: