No visit to Edinburgh is complete without a hike up Arthur’s Seat, an ancient extinct volcano which rises 250 metres above the city.
And as we are travelling across Britain with a parliamentary bench – it just seemed appropriate to plonk our seat on top of Edinburgh‘s.
At the foot of Arthur’s Seat sits Holyrood, home of Scotland’s devolved government, and here we met a primary school teacher who later decided he didn’t want to be named, but his views reflected the shifting mood in Scotland.
“I’m leaning towards Labour, I previously voted SNP, but it’s a tactical vote because I don’t want to see another Conservative government,” he said.
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While still supporting the idea of an independent Scotland, the teacher said he “doesn’t know if it’s realistic anymore”.
He added: “The SNP have lost my vote, I wouldn’t say Labour have made any impressive moves. I was impressed by the leadership of Nicola Sturgeon, particularly during the pandemic.
“I think she was principled, and she stuck to those principles. I don’t have faith in the current leadership of the SNP. I think the party is fracturing and there are too many small groups within it fighting for different ideas.”
Since the departure of Sturgeon, then Humza Yousaf, following his broken alliance with the Greens, the nationalist dominance in Holyrood is less formidable and that will be reflected in this election.
Scotland has 57 seats on the green benches of Westminster.
In the last election Labour got just one of them, the SNP got 48. A few years ago, the prospect of Labour becoming the largest party in Scotland seemed about as realistic as someone hauling a parliamentary bench to the top of Arthur’s seat.
Scottish students help cart the bench up to Edinburgh’s highest peak
But, take a screwdriver to a bench and break it down – the task becomes less daunting – and a more fractured SNP makes Labour’s ambitions of re-conquering Scotland plausible.
We borrowed the muscle of three Scottish students to help cart our deconstructed bench up the rocky path towards Edinburgh’s highest peak.
On a rest stop above the city, one of our sherpas, Ross Ramsay, said he hasn’t decided politically which way he will go but added: “I’m looking for a party that reduces taxes – especially with the cost of living crisis at the moment, also helping my generation get on the property ladder.”
Hiker Erin Wilson who paused for a rest on our bench said: “For me, I wouldn’t say I’m struggling, but I see that a lot of people are, and that is why I tend to vote Labour, not so much for the position I’m in, but for a lot of the population.”
It took an hour and a half to reach the summit, and as we did the weather began to turn.
Another hiker, Marcus Kneen, who lives at the bottom of the hill, said he was going to vote Labour for the first time in his life.
“Labour was always strong in Scotland, and Scotland is better when Labour is strong,” Marcus said.
Marcus Kneen says he is voting Labour for the first time in his life
Sitting on our bench in the drizzle he pointed down to the distant rooftop of Holyrood.
“Look to your left you can see what’s happened in Scotland – filthy weather, filthy politics. If we were in America, we would be shouting ‘drain the swamp!'”
However, a Westminster bench placed above the Scottish Parliament symbolises exactly what many believe remains the number one problem in Scottish politics.
Strong leaning towards independence
Away from the Arthur’s seat, 20 miles outside of Edinburgh, wild swimmers drift through freshwater ponds that form part of sculpted gardens in Jupiter Artland, near Livingston.
Wild swimmers at the sculpted gardens in Jupiter Artland, near Livingston
Free-spirited, and just as hardy as the hikers, the politics among the female bathers here leans strongly towards independence.
Dried off from her dip, Martine Stead, a member of the Linlithgow Selkies Swim Club, said independence is “the thing that matters to me in this election”.
“I’m just back, like many Scots, from two weeks in Germany watching the football and what struck me really clearly there, is that there are so many small countries in Europe the same size as Scotland or smaller that are doing really well – and Scotland should be running itself,” she said.
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Martine Stead says Scottish independence is the thing that matters in this election
Her fellow Selkie, Janet Philip, believes, whether Scots like the SNP or not, they should remain focused on the cause.
She said: “After independence there’s no need for the Scottish Nationalist Party. It’s done its job to get independence – and then we can vote Labour, Liberal, Green, Conservative, any other variety of politicians – because the whole point is for Scotland to manage its own political affairs.”
But the director of this outdoor sculpture world, Nicky Wilson, thinks only Labour can bring the change she wants to the political landscape.
She believes lack of investment has left the arts “on its knees”. On a more personal level, she just wants rid of the Conservatives.
Janet Philip (R) believes, whether Scots like the SNP or not, they should remain focused on the cause
“My father died during COVID, and he was a wonderful man and there was a funeral, like so many others, of just 18 people, we all had to sit apart. It was terrible,” she said.
“At the same time, we were getting partygate news. I’m not a judgemental person but in this situation, I felt profoundly wounded by it.
“In this election we’ve had the D-Day debacle and the betting, the whole thing has been bookended by a lack of moral compass. And that’s a very strong reason not to vote for the Tories again. Just simply that, forget about policy.”
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With Labour having a real chance of beating the Conservatives in the wider election, Scots are more likely to vote for them, whether they want an independent Scotland or not.
Like Scotland’s unpredictable climate – the political weather seems to be changing.
