Nicola Sturgeon has every right to call for a second referendum on independence.
The intention was made clear in her party’s 2021 Holyrood election manifesto.
The SNP leader said she would look to stage the vote in the second half of the parliamentary term. Her announcement this week confirmed that.
It doesn’t mean her Government can take its eye off the ball.
SNP and Green ministers need to get the day job right. That means boosting the country’s stuttering economy as inflation batters businesses and dents consumer confidence.
Special attention must also be paid to the NHS as it struggles to meet post-pandemic demand from patients.
Anas Sarwar was right to flag up the Daily Record’s splash from yesterday, highlighting “hell on Earth” in wards due to corona staff shortages.
The NHS crisis is all the more worrying as we are in the height of summer. What will it be like come the winter flu season?
It is crises like this that Sturgeon must get a grip of, and while she is entitled to stage a referendum, it can’t be at the expense of running the country.
The public accepts times are hard and making political choices in the current climate cannot be easy.
But the single best advert for independence is Nicola Sturgeon proving the SNP can run Scotland well.
If she fails on that front it will be an uphill struggle to convince voters that independence is the answer to the nation’s problems.
In the face of evil
BETHANY Haines has been resolute in her search for answers about her dad’s murder by Isis terrorists.
Her fortitude would have been stretched to the limit when she came face-to-face with Alexanda Kotey.
Scottish aid worker David was murdered by an Isis terror cell known as “The Beatles” and Bethany spent two hours with Kotey, who admitted stalking, abducting and murdering him.
She learned of his last moments and his plea to make his death quick.
It gave her an insight into the barbarity of his killers, who prolonged his torture to get the right angle for their video.
David’s family have maintained an unwavering dignity since his death and have been determined to seek whatever justice has been open to them.
Bethany asked Kotey for an apology but he did not have the humanity to show remorse with any grace.
It was clear there was no sincerity when he eventually said he was sorry.
Bethany meeting Kotey must have been so hard but we can only hope it will somehow help her in the face of overwhelming grief.
