Day of Destiny

Having just watched the proceedings in the Scottish Parliament to elect Scotland's First Minister, I am overwhelmed by the sense of occasion. 2007 marks the 300th anniversary of the Act of Union, but it also now marks a new dawn in Scotland's history.

Scotland has an SNP First Minister. (Stating the obvious, I know, but I wanted to write it down to help it to sink in!)

I have been a member of the SNP for years, but given my young years (yes, I am claiming to be young) my service to the SNP and to Scotland has been but a mere penny in an ocean of dedication from SNP activists across the country. I know many activists in their seventies and eighties (although you wouldn't know it to look at them) who have campaigned their whole lives for independence, who have waited decades to see this kind of progress. I am privileged to be part of the SNP at this time, a time when Scotland is listening to our party and our ideas and embracing us.

Leading the Scottish Parliament is only a step in our campaign to deliver independence for Scotland and the benefits that will bring, but it is a momentous step and a day I will always remember.