Alba Pairty

The **Alba Pairty** is a Scots naitionalist an pro-unthirldom poleetical pairty in Scotland. The party wis foondit bi the retired telly producer Laurie Flynn, wi the umwhile first meenister o Scotland Alex Salmond taen ower as heid o the pairty. Salmond lenced the pairty's 2021 Scots Pairlament election campaign in Mairch 2021, wi the pairty aimin tae staun list-anely candidates. Twa Members o Parliament (MPs) in the Hoose o Commons defectit frae the Scots Naitional Pairty tae the Alba Pairty on 27t Mairch 2021, an twa-three ither heich-up feegures frae the pairty includin members in its govrenin body an umwhile MPs jynt the pairty wi-in days efter Salmond's annooncement.

## History

### Backgrund
Alex Salmond wis heid o the Scots Naitional Pairty (SNP) frae 1990 tae 2000 an frae 2004 tae 2014, an as first meenister o Scotland frae 2007 tae 2014. His deputy, successor as first meeenister an leader of the SNP wis Nicola Sturgeon, thit haes haud baith poseetions efter. Salmond owergied frae the SNP in 2018 efter accusations o sexual misconduct, thit he denied. Chairges made agin him in a follaein court case in 2020 war duin awa wi. Later on in 2020, the chance o Salmond heidin a new pairty supporting Scots unthrildom wis tawkit aboot, in the context o a fech atween Sturgeon an Salmond, thit acciused Sturgeon's "inner circle" for plottin agin him. Pollin duin in Julie 2020 reportit thit 40% o thae thit votit SNP at the 2019 general election wad back an unthrildom-supportin pairty backed bi Salmond.

### Foondin
The pairty wis foondit an registered wi the Electoral Commission bi the retired telly producer Laurie Flynn on 8 Februar 2021. Alba ( in Scottish Gaelic, Scots an Scots Inglis) is the Gaelic name for Scotland. It can be pronoonced /ˈælbə/ in Breetish Inglis an aw. On 26t Mairch 2021, Salmond annooncit at the pairty's election lench thit he haed jynt the pairty an wad become the new heid, taen ower fraw Flynn, efter "tawks wi Laurie an ithers frae ither list pairties" ower the weeks afore. Durin the annooncement o candidates, it got its first electit member, cooncillor Chris McEleny, thit haed served as the SNP group heid on Inverclyde Cooncil afore an an SNP candidate for the ingang 2021 Scots Pairlament election. The MPs Kenny MacAskill an Neale Hanvey, as weel as the umwhile MP Corri Wilson, jynt the pairty on 26t Mairch. The SNP's naitional equalities convener, Lynne Anderson, defectit tae Alba an aw. BBC Scotland's poleetical editor Glenn Campbell said thit the list o defectors tae the party included "thae thit fear thit gender self-identification for trans fowk haes a threat tae weemen's richts" as weel as politeecians thit personally support Salmond an his approach tae Scots unthrildom.

### 2021 Scots Pairliament election
The pairty annooncit plans tae staun at least fower candidates for the list vote in ivery pairt o Scotland for the 2021 Scots Pairlament election. Planned candidates include Salmond staundin for the North East Scotland pairt as weel as umwhile SNP members Chris McEleny staundin for the Wast Scotland pairt, Eva Comrie for the Mid Scotland an Fife pairt (whair she wis the SNP candidate afore), an Cynthia Guthrie for the South Scotland region. Caroline McAllister, the SNP's weemen's convener an depute heid o West Dunbartonshire cooncil, jynt the pairty an wis annooncit tae be a candidate in the West Scotland pairt. The party endorsed votin for the SNP in the constituency vote while votin for the Alba Pairty for the list vote, tae mak siccar mair pro-unthrildom MSPs are electit.

On 26t Mairch 2021, the heid o Action for Independence, umwhile SNP MSP Dave Thompson, statit thit the pairty wad be stanudin doun aw thair candidates fur tae support Alba. Tommy Sheridan, an umwhile MSP an convictit perjurer thit haed been efter election as pairt o Action for Independence, jynt the Alba Pairty on 28t Mairch. On 29t Mairch, umwhile perfaisional boxer Alex Arthur wis annooncit tae be a list candidate, an umwhile SNP MPs George Kerevan an Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh an umwhile SNP MSP Jim Eadie jynt later that day.

Sturgeon an the SNP criticised the new pairty, speirin aboot Salmond's fitness tae tak public office acause o the sexual harassment claims agin him. Sturgeon said she thit wadnae hiv ony dealins wh Salmond unless he apologises tae the weemen thit haed accused him o harassment. Lorna Slater, co-leader o the Scots Greens, criticised the new party an aw, cawin it a "a party flung thegither bi a disgruntled ex-first meenister as pairt o his vendetta agin wir first meenister." Neil MacKay cawed the party "Trumpian" an "a hotchpotch o social conservatives an naitionalist fundamentalists" in his *Herald* column. The pairty wis criticised efter it wis kythed thit candidate Alex Arthur haed tweetit anti-vaccine statements an comments cawin Romanians as fat, usin the pig emoji an aw. The pairty war criticised mair as "cynical" for uisin women's rights as a campaign issue despite pittin forrit misleadin statements aboot ane o thair candidate's rowe in Glesga Ceety Cooncil's equal pay dispute, Salmond's history o complaints for inappropriate sexual conduct, an candidate Jim Walker referring tae Sturgeon as "a cow".

Durin the Alba Party's Weemen's Conference, Central Scotland candidate Margaret Lynch claimed thit the Scots Govrenment wis fundin LGBT rights groups thit wis wantin tae lawer the age o consent tae 10 year auld. The SNP cried this "awfu homophobic an no true" an Lynch wis condemned bi Scots Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie. Whan speired at bi *[[The Scotsman]]* whather no Lynch's poseetion wis the pairty's an aw, Alba refiused tae comment. Umwhile SNP cooncillor Austin Sheridan left the Alba party, cawin Lynch's comments "hideous" an statin thare wis "nae way a can be pairt o a party that tolerates sic views." Lynch made clear efter her comments in an airticle in *The Times*, whaur she kept claimin thit trans richts wad lat "sexual predators" intae weemen's bathrooms, an in *The Scotsman* repeatit her accusation thit LGBT organisations, thit gat '£2.8 mulȝeon o Scottish public funds' hiv signed a letter promuivin lawerin the age of consent tae 10 year auld. LGBT charity Stonewall hiv cawed on Lynch tae tak back her false allegation an apologise.

## Policies
The pairty is Scots naitionalist, cawin for Scottish independence, as an "immediate necessity". The pairty descrives its aim tae build a "socially juist and environmentally responsible" Scotland.

## Representatives

### MSPs

### Councillors
Efter Salmond's announcement, eleven cooncillors jynt the pairty bi the end o March. Aw eleven haed been electit as SNP candidates, tho three haed awready left that pairty. Three cooncillors on Aiberdeenshire Cooncil jynt the pairty, alang wi twa on North Lanrikshire Cooncil. Aw candidates wis defeatit in the 2022 cooncil eleckions. In October 2023, Chris Cullen o Sooth Ayrshire Cooncil defeckit fae the SNP til Alba. In Mairch 2024, Karl Rosie jynt the Alba Party as weel, haein sat as ae independent on the Highland Cooncil aifter leain the SNP in Febiwar 2024.

## Leaders

## References