Thread by @DavieBirkettSNP

*Long Thread Warning!*

Despite my loyalty, membership, campaigning, and latterly local office bearing for @theSNP I have a surprising confession to make, I was glad to see the Alba Party launch. 1/25

You’d have to not really be paying attention not to notice the SNP’s shift from the centre ground of politics to the left, and embracing progressive policies in addition to Independence. 2/25

I understood that some people had doubts about our direction, but despite those doubts their commitment to Independence kept them in the only credible political party campaigning for Independence.

The discomfort felt by those members had been a gaping wound in our party. 3/25

When Alba launched I knew the people who would leave the SNP, I could almost name them and you know what despite a couple of surprises who stayed with us I was generally right on. 4/25

Many decent people committed to Independence but perhaps not left leaning or progressives departed for Alba, and you know what I wished them luck.

I hoped they had found a more comfortable political home. 5/25

I hoped that given the experience of the people in charge, that Alba would be a credible alternative Indy Party for people who were Socially Conservative.

We were campaigning at the time trying to get @KarenAdamMSP elected. And I have to be honest I had my doubts… 6/25

not about Karen personally, or as our Candidate (as She’s frickin’ amazeballs), but I had my doubts that this Constituency would elect someone so openly progressive. 7/25

I’m not the most progressive person myself, and anyone who knows this area will know the constituency isn’t a hotbed of progressiveness either.

But Karen proved me wrong. It was close but we did it, got her over the line in a constituency which is a wee bit old fashioned. 8/25

...and where we had lost the previous two Westminster elections to the Tories.

And since getting elected she has been proving all kinds of other people wrong too. 9/25

Yes she is Progressive but she's not a one trick pony who only acts on social injustice.

She has engaged with all members of the Community, Public, Local Groups and Businesses, most recently fighting the corner for our Oil and Gas workers, again let down by the Tories. 10/25

But in particular Karen was amazing during Storm Arwen and its aftermath. Despite her own home energy supply being knocked out by the storm she coordinated a fantastic operation in the constituency.... 11/25

Becoming a focal point for getting information and support to constituents who really needed it and shepherding resources from the utilities suppliers to the most vulnerable constituents. 12/25

She did this largely by candlelight, battery power and mobile comms, as she too was one of the storms’ victims. Truly remarkable work.

Karen is totally crushing it as our MSP! I’ve even had dyed in the wool unionists tell me how lucky we are to have her working for us. 13/25

But getting back to our friends in Alba,

I used to have a tremendous amount of respect for @ChrisMcEleny, he was a grafter and a battler. I was slightly disappointed when he didn’t get elected as our Deputy Leader and would have loved to see him represent us in Parliament. 14/25

But when the Alba Launch was underway Chris was one of the members I knew would be joining them, and you know what as much as I valued and respected him whilst he was with us I understood, I respected his decision and hoped it would work out for him… 15/25

Unfortunately, the Alba Launch didn’t pan out as they, or I had hoped… there are myriad complex reason for this and fault on both sides.

But one of the saddest things has been the steady descent in my respect for Chris McEleny! 16/25

Watching his social media output descend into black-catting of the SNP, the photo of him and chums standing outside Bute House with little model boats “demanding” things from @nicolasturgeon when everyone knows she wasn’t even there was… until today… a low point. 17/25

I said “until today” because this was the day when Chris tweeted this attack on my MSP.

Karen was tweeting about the Ghislaine Maxwell case and that predators aren’t necessarily strangers lurking in the shadows. 18/25

Chris seized on this, deliberately misleading his followers by “half quoting” Karen, and describing her as an “Ideological zealot”.

I too am often suspicious of “progressive politicians & candidates” it's possible they could just be putting it on to win favour and votes. 19/25

But Karen is not like that, she has very personal and very genuine reasons for being “so progressive”.

If Chris had done a second of research on Karen, and perhaps even read and quoted both of her tweets he’d have understood what she was trying to say. 20/25

I’m afraid that this was the day that the last of any respect I still held for Chris McEleny has ebbed away.

Chris is not a stupid guy, I don’t believe for one second he could have read Karen’s Tweet, and only picked out of it what he posted. 21/25

That sadly means that he’s being deliberately obtuse, choosing to see what he wanted to, ignoring what he didn’t want to see, deliberately setting out to mislead his followers and most seriously, weaponising child abuse for his own ends. 22/25

And to paraphrase one of his new party’s favourite quotes, he’s just told a Woman to Wheesht! Not a good look Chris.

I know there are Alba Members who are decent, Independence oriented people who are Socially Conservative, and believe it or not I want them to succeed. 23/25

Your party in its current guise won’t take left of centre progressives from the SNP or the Scottish Greens.

You could really contribute to the Independence cause if you just ignore the SNP and go after Indy Minded Social Conservatives (they do exist). 24/25

But to do that you really need to have a word with your leadership (or change it).

In its current Guise Alba is the “Socially Conservative Indy Party”… Just a pity it’s not credible.

I’d love to see that change, and I’m sure most of the SNP would too.

Over to you..

25/25

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