Can the SNP bounce back before 2026?

SNP conferences of late haven’t been what they were in the aftermath of the 2014 referendum. Gone are the days when a carnival atmosphere ensued. That’s for the best. Those times felt like our conference was on loan to an impatient ‘Yes’ movement rather than a conference of the party of government, focused on ensuring good public policy choices and Scottish self-determination.  

But absent too from the weekend’s 90th annual conference was the miasma of despair that hung over us as the Sturgeon-Salmond feud gathered pace. Even last year in Aberdeen during Humza Yousaf’s first and last gathering as leader, uncertainty lingered heavily. Now, after the storm of the election and with a leader who commands the confidence of the membership, the air has cleared, and it feels like SNP conference is beginning to be returned to the SNP.  

This being so, it’s undoubtedly the case that we’ve gathered in better circumstances than those today: heavily defeated at Westminster, on our third leader in just over 12 months, facing a difficult election to Holyrood in 2026 and without a clear route to independence.