How Anas Sarwar can save the Union

Scottish opinion polling seems to hold little cheer for those who favour holding together this barely united kingdom. Despite a torrid few months for Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP is still riding high, apparently invincible in its quest for another majority government in 2021 to match that of 2011. Another independence referendum is the boldly asserted implication of such a result.

So how has the under-fire First Minister not just survived but seemingly thrived up to this point? One reason is that her primary opposition, the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, has chosen almost exclusively to oppose her on her safest and surest ground. Its leader Douglas Ross, and his temporary representative on Earth Ruth Davidson, ask precisely the questions Sturgeon wants to answer and very few of the ones she doesn’t.

Enter Anas Sarwar, newly elected leader of Scottish Labour and already breathing life into its erstwhile corpse through sharp wit and smart strategy.