FURTHER to Ian Lawson’s thoughtful comments of April 13 (in his letter beginning “I used to enjoy reading The National but that enjoyment is now tempered by a stream of letters telling us that the SNP approach to independence is wrong”), if one wished to read subjective perspectives denigrating the SNP, or its policies in government, there are more than a dozen newspapers one could buy other than The National.

Of course within the independence movement there are many different opinions as to how best to quickly achieve our common aim, but if we cannot include a single positive argument in favour of independence, or an argument exposing one of the many fundamental weaknesses of the Union, to offset any perhaps perfectly valid criticism of the SNP, then we are simply serving the aims of those who would deny the people of Scotland the right to express a common desire for self-determination.

READ MORE: Humza Yousaf confirms plans for devolution of employment law

Rehashing speculation of what might have been had different decisions been made by the SNP leadership during the last tumultuous decade is not going to convince a single undecided voter to now support independence.

There is a new and relatively young team at the helm of the SNP, who may not at this time be popular with Alba supporters, but to presume that collectively they lack intelligence or political wisdom is perhaps betraying personal shortcomings. Certainly Humza Yousaf has not had a straightforward time in taking over the leadership of his party and his country, but everything he has done to date appears to reflect the basic egalitarian and progressive principles that most independence supporters share.

READ MORE: Humza Yousaf encourages all workers to join a trade union

Stephen Flynn as leader of the SNP at Westminster has done an excellent job (within the highly limited constraints of that establishment) in succinctly expressing concerns about the current non-constitutional governance of the UK and the UK Government’s questionable foreign policies, including, despicably, its continuing military support of the genocidal slaughter in Gaza.

With a General Election fast approaching (which essentially has little to do with the SNP’s governance at Holyrood and everything to do with how Westminster can be changed to democratically reflect the rights and views of the people of Scotland), it is time to focus our individual efforts on building consistent support for independence to a level (preferably 60% or greater) that will provide a solid foundation

for action in the international courts if Westminster were to attempt to ignore the SNP winning not only most Scottish seats, but, just perhaps, more than 50% of the vote.

Stan Grodynski
Longniddry, East Lothian

WELL said “Old John” in your letter “It’s 2026 votes that’ll determine our future” (Apr 13). Well said, because Scotland with 59 constituencies out of 650 in total at Westminster will have little impact on who ultimately gets the keys to No 10 Downing Street.

Yes, the SNP have made their presence felt at Westminster over the last decade plus, but with the administration at Holyrood the SNP has been able to focus on Scottish issues, devolved matters, tackling child poverty, providing every child with the same start with the introduction of the “baby boxes”, giving carers in Scotland a twice-yearly supplement available nowhere else in the UK, and much more.

We do need a strong voice in Westminster, but we must not take our focus off the goal of independence and retaining control at Holyrood. 2026 is closer than we think, especially if the Westminster election is not called till the last quarter of this year.

Catriona C Clark
Falkirk