FORMER MP Roger Mullin is among the new faces on the SNP’s ruling body this year – but it’s not his first time serving on the committee.
He was a member of the NEC 27 years ago and said there had been huge changes in the SNP since then.
“I think part of the problem has been that in recent years the party has grown enormously,” he said.
“It has changed some of the ways it tries to operate – however quite a lot of the things they have done have I think, in many people’s judgements, not improved the situation.
“One of the things I think strongly needs doing in relation to the NEC is not just about structure, it is also about the culture and the processes and how it chooses to operate.”
Mullin, an honorary professor at Stirling University’s Management School, said research had shown problems were usually related to the culture of an organisation, rather than individuals.
“The growth of the SNP was super-fast from 2014. If you look at the 56 that were elected in 2015, the vast majority of them were active in the party in other kind of official capacities,” he said.
“They were suddenly drawn out of the organisation to become elected officials. That combined with the huge growth inevitably causes organisational strain.”
He argued the party should be focusing on “core business” – which is progressing towards independence.
“I want us to be more professional, I want the conduct of business to be constructive, I want it to be open,” he said.
“Through the achievement of those three things we will become more trusted amongst the membership.”
Mullin said these aims could be achieved through actions such as having a focus on achieving independence and making sure different views can be discussed “rationally”.
He added: “If we do all this it will make it much easier to tackle the big challenges of next year, like the Holyrood elections, potentially an independence referendum.
“There isn’t a magic wand – but you have a chance of getting things calmed down if the organisation gives itself a focus.”
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