Nationalists aim to be champions

Alex Salmond says his party is ready and waiting to increase its Westminster influence after the UK election

By Andrew Black
Political reporter, BBC Scotland news website

As the famous song goes: We are the champions, my friends. And we'll keep on fighting . . . etc.

The Scottish National Party is gearing up for its spring gathering, rebranded as a "campaign conference", with one thing in mind - a UK election just weeks away.

This election is going to be a tough fight for votes between the main parties - resulting in a squeeze on the smaller ones as Labour and the Tories slog it out to win support.

The SNP is in government in Scotland, but, with its seven MPs, is classed as a smaller party in Westminster terms.

So it makes sense that the Nationalists want to use their record as the Holyrood administration to make the case for votes when the public goes to the polls to elect the next UK government.

There's been a lot of talk about a potential hung parliament, and, as the Liberal Democrats seem increasingly jumpy about a possible power-sharing deal, there could be a chance for the SNP increase its influence if it hits the target

Hence, the SNP's key election campaign theme. Party leader Alex Salmond is urging voters to elect a "local champion", namely a team of Nationalist MPs to provide a strong voice for Scotland at Westminster - the strong voice will, of course, also be promoting SNP policies such as independence.

As the Scottish government, Mr Salmond will tell you the SNP has cut NHS hospital waiting lists, put more police on the streets, helped families and businesses through the recession and reduced class sizes (although his political opponents would have something to say about those last two in particular).

A strong team of SNP MPs, the Scottish first minister argues, would help protect Scotland in areas of importance reserved to Westminster, such campaigning against the £100bn replacement for Trident nuclear weapons on the Clyde and, of course, those looming post-election public spending cuts that all the parties are talking about but won't say how deep they'll go.

The SNP has set a target to return 20 MPs after the election - a tough prospect given the previously mentioned squeeze - which Mr Salmond says will allow the Nationalists to hold a balance of power at Westminster.

The SNP has published the details of its proposed referendum on independence

They know this system can work, after all, at Holyrood the minority SNP Holyrood administration has to barter with opposition parties all the time to get its policies through.

And then there are the TV debates. Mr Salmond, along with Plaid Cymru, says the BBC is "endangering the conduct of a free election".

The Scottish first minister is angry his party will not be represented in three pre-election Prime Ministerial debates to be televised on BBC, ITV and Sky featuring Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Conservative leader David Cameron and Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg.

The SNP says it is the government of Scotland - the opposition parties argue Mr Salmond is not only standing down as an MP, but is not vying to become the prime minister of the UK.

Minority government

The BBC says it has clearly set out how impartiality will be achieved, with subsequent coverage - but the SNP, which has long called for powers over broadcasting to be devolved to Scotland - has accused the corporation of bias. Legal action has been threatened.

Away from the election and on the home front, the SNP, in its life as Scotland's minority government, has more than enough on its plate.

It has finally published the details of its proposed referendum on independence, under which voters would have the option of backing full independence, or new powers for the Scottish Parliament.

Even though that second option has been designed to woo Mr Salmond's political opponents into supporting the Referendum Bill, it still looks like the legislation will be voted down in parliament. Plans for minimum alcohol pricing look like they will suffer a similar fate.

And in education, the government has had a tough time implementing its manifesto plan to cut primary class sizes.

Out went Fiona Hyslop as education secretary and in came SNP veteran Mike Russell, who from day one has approached his job at 100mph, within days offering councils a deal on speeding up its drive to cut class sizes through the scaling back of free school meals.