Years of failed economic policy and low growth under the SNP has drained money from household budgets and public coffers alike. Income tax shortfalls and un-costed spending commitments have left us with a blackhole in our finances, forcing the SNP to make harsh cuts of up to 8 per cent to already battered public services.

As always, the SNP had a string of excuses lined up, blaming everything from inflation to the pandemic to – you guessed it – the Tory UK government. But while all of these made a bad situation worse, there is no hiding from their own role in creating this mess.

The devolution of these and other powers should have allowed us to transform our economy. The SNP had a chance to take a tailored approach to Scotland’s unique challenges and opportunities, choose a better path than the Tory government, and design a fair tax system; to use the powers we have here in Scotland to grow our economy and deliver a fair deal for workers.

Things should have gotten better with these new powers – but in the SNP’s hands they’ve gotten worse, and the road ahead looks even more grim.

Want to see more SNP fails? – Environment Matters