SCOTLAND is now worse in "every possible respect" than it was a decade ago, according to Alex Salmond.
In an interview with The Scotsman, the Alba Party leader claims there has been a severe lack of "strategic thinking" from the SNP, leaving Scotland worse off.
“If you went out on the street there and asked every single person apart from the odd eccentric, they would give you the same answer. It's worse, in every possible respect," he said.
He referenced the "consistent pressure on living standards and life expectations" over the last decade and said public services "are in a much worse position than they were 10 years ago".
He added: "But I think probably the main missing ingredient from both politics and economics is hope. Scotland was a very hopeful, optimistic place 10 years ago.
"They thought that whatever difficulties there were going to be in the short-term, things were moving forward, things were going to get better. People were proud of their parliament, proud of their government, even people who didn't vote for independence."
“The SNP has to be an independence party or it's nothing. The SNP currently is not an independence party. Being an independence party is offering people a credible route to Scottish independence."
Salmond believes that Scotland would be in a “much better” position economically had it voted Yes.
He claims that the country would be in a “super-Northern Irish situation due to Brexit,” adding that Scotland would be “in a great position economically".
“Now, that doesn't mean there wouldn't have been any difficulties over the last 10 years. But strategically, we would be in a great position economically. A fantastic position."
He gave the interview in the lead up to the ten-year anniversary of the independence referendum.
Reflecting, Salmond believes that the political landscape of Scotland would be very different had the Yes Campaign won.
"I like to think if Scotland had voted for independence, then I would have stayed in office, and if I'd stayed in office then the politics of the SNP would have been very different to what they have been. I'm not talking about independence; I'm talking about approaches to other issues in Scottish society."
“[Post-independence politics would probably have been] a lot more competitive…and that's a good thing.
“It stops the SNP going mad, which would be a short description of what the SNP has been doing in the last five years."
Salmond (below) went on to attack the SNP’s handling of independence since 2014, criticising a lack of strategic thinking "in the context of the objective of Scottish independence".
"To retreat in the way the SNP has retreated over the last 10 years, is a catastrophe. It requires a radical approach to do something about it.
“It is actually easier to get to independence from the current situation than it was, say, in the 1990s or 20 years ago. We just had a very, very, very good run for 10 years. In the last five years, we've had a very bad run. But that bad run was provoked by a lack of strategic thinking.
"It's the job of those who want to change things to make them change. Unfortunately, we've got a group of people who are not capable of doing that."
When asked about reconciling with Nicola Sturgeon following their high-profile feud, he said: "I always say nothing is ever forever. I think Nicola has got her own difficulties at the present moment, so just let her work her way through them, and see if she emerges from them.”
