August 2 1974
The Scottish National Party might well be the third largest at Westminster after the next election and the second largest in Scotland, their parliamentary leader, Mr Donal Stewart, said this week.
They were now through the credibility gap and it would not be possible in future to claim that a vote for the SNP was “wasted”.
Mr Stewart said the firm bridgehead the party’s seven MPs had established at Westminster would be significantly expanded. The three issues they would concentrate on at the election would be self-government, oil and inflation.
The SNP closely missed out on being the third largest party in Westminster after the October 1974 election, winning 11 seats to the Liberal Party’s 13. It would finally attain the position in 2015 under Nicola Sturgeon’s leadership when it won 56 seats. It maintained this position until the general election this year when it lost all but nine of its seats.
Faul Done More for Workers Than Unions
Sir – I would like to remind your correspondent Liam O Caomonaigh (29/7/74), that bombings were not needed to drive Protestant workers behind Tories like Craig and Co.
They have always been the only right-wing working class in the world. Trade unions to them are just a matter of convenience, the anti-trade unions Tories were always assured of their vote.
British workers have never demonstrated by mass protests against the actions of their army, in its imperialist role. They were the products of working class homes who shot and tortured people in Kenya, Cyprus, Aden and Northern Ireland.
The Six-County Catholic worker has always been demoralised by the violence of discrimination directed against him, with the tacit approval of the Protestant trade unionist.
In my view, Father [Denis] Faul has done more to help the persecuted Catholic worker than any trade union official.
