THE SNP and Scottish Conservatives have announced they are postponing their spring conferences due to coronavirus.
A message was posted on the SNP’s website yesterday informing those who had registered for the event, which had been due to take place in Aviemore on June 13.
It said: “All large SNP events have been postponed until the end of June as a result of the spread of Covid-19 in Scotland.”
Around 600 people were expected to attend the one-day conference, which had originally been expected to take place earlier in the year.
A new date will be announced in due course.
READ MORE: Coronavirus LIVE: Cases of COVID-19 in Scotland rise to 85
Meanwhile, Scottish Tory leader Jackson Carlaw said his party’s conference, due to take place in Perth in mid-May, will now be moved to later in the year.
An upcoming party convention this month has also been cancelled and planned campaign days have been delayed until official public health advice changes. Carlaw said the party is considering expanding a one-day conference planned for the autumn instead.
Meanwhile, SNP members received an email stating the party’s national assembly meeting this weekend will also not take place “for the foreseeable future”, and adds: “Member safety is our priority and it is crucial to us to minimise risk to our colleagues and others on this occasion.”
Announcing the postponement of the Scottish Tory conference, which would have been his first as leader since replacing Ruth Davidson, Carlaw said: “It’s become clear we have no option but to postpone the party conference that was planned for May.
“The same goes for a party convention that was due to go ahead later in March.
READ MORE: Coronavirus: SNP MSP to return to nursing in Covid-19 fight
“The wellbeing of our staff, party members and others who would have attended conference has to be paramount. We’re also aware that such a large-scale event involving senior (UK) Government ministers also requires the presence of emergency services, and that’s not what they need to be doing while this pandemic unfolds. The conference will take place at some point, and one option we’re considering is to extend a planned one-day event due to go ahead in the autumn.
“We’ll be providing plenty of notice about that as and when the final decision is made.”
On Thursday, the Scottish Greens became the first Scottish party to cancel their spring conference over coronavirus fears.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel