08/04/2026
CULT NEWS: SNP IS THE PARTY OF THE "ESTABLISHMENT" WITH JUST ONE CANDIDATE WITH NO EXPERIENCE AS A "POLITICAL PROFESSIONAL"
Former party leader Nicola Sturgeon appeared to criticised the rise of 'career politicians' at a book festival a few years ago
The SNP has become the party of the political elite after it selected only one constituency candidate with no "political professional" experience.
Shetlander Hannah Mary Goodland is the Nat's only potential constituency MSP that brings experience working in business, including in energy company Equinor, as she hopes to win in Lib-Dem stronghold Shetland.
Ms Goodland will be the only one of the SNP's 73 fielded candidates to have not already worked in politics before taking up the challenge of becoming an MSP.
The Sunday Times reports that the SNP has been up a variety of candidates who have all worked in politics as a councillor, MP, MSP or even an aide.
Paul Cairney, a professor of politics and public policy at the University of Stirling, told the paper: "People with long memories may wonder what happened to ‘new Scottish politics’, in which devolution would not only widen political participation, but also the pool of recruitment for politicians,” he said.
“Rather, it has allowed the established political parties to recruit more people whose professional background is in politics. If you ask people what they value in an elected politician, maybe they will want that person to be like them in some way, such as to represent their social background, be local, or have had a job outside of politics.
“While parties might say the same, they are also looking for people with experience in party politics, public speaking, and the hard realities of making and defending policy choices."
It comes after Nicola Sturgeon appeared to take a swipe at her former colleagues and allies as she bemoaned "career politicians", complaining the SNP was "too full of young people who have just come through the political ranks".
And she admitted it was "wrong" for people to go into politics as a career choice. The one-time SNP leader herself only worked in the 'real world' for four years as a lawyer before becoming an MSP in 1999 aged 28.
She admitted at the Charleston Literary Festival two years ago that people who joined politics for a career rather than believing in something were in it "for all the wrong reasons".
She added: “I think politics, including in my own party now, is probably too full of young people who have just come through the political ranks."