Alright, so where do I start with this rollercoaster? Flashback to 2015, back when David Cameron was doing his best to look cool with the kids. Remember that? Hugging hoodies and all. Anyway, at that time, he was also tackling huge stuff like getting equal marriage passed through what was, let’s face it, a pretty skeptical and downright difficult party. Picture this: standing cozy with Nick Clegg, shouting out moderate, middle-of-the-road vibes. And so, that’s when I decided to dive into the world of Scottish Conservatives. Ten years down the line, I’m no longer sticking around.
Let’s rewind a bit. I was roped in by Ruth Davidson to join the Scottish party, and in 2016, boom, I was elected to the Scottish parliament. You remember Ruth, right? Karate chops, tank joyrides, and that Brexit smackdown on Boris Johnson at Wembley? Yeah, she was iconic.
By the way, me joining as a gay man wasn’t without its drama. The ghost of Section 28 loomed large, but I was sold on the dream of a party marrying fiscal sanity with social liberalism. That sang to me, really, especially with my media entrepreneurship and working-class roots. “Aspiration” was the magic word back then.
Swinging back to 2016, the Scottish Tories stepped up as the second-in-command party over here. We even leapfrogged Labour with this pro-UK, centrist shout-out, sending 31 MSPs to Holyrood. Kind of wild, if you think about it. Who would’ve thought so many newbies would put their X in the Tory box? The vibe in the party was definitely shifting. Unlikely comrades sat side by side. Posh titles rubbing elbows with folks who had climbed out of rough patches and troubled homes.
But here’s the catch: political parties are this whirlwind mix of real people and slick spin operations that don’t quite gel. Post-Davidson, things started going sideways. One moment, I was a crowd-favorite at Edinburgh Pride, Tory badge and all. The next? The booing was fierce enough to need a security exit. The switch was baffling; a party don’t get boos like that if they’ve got their act together, right?
Fast forward, and there’s all these hot-button issues like gender, net zero, and immigration stirring the pot. Global politics went bonkers too, nudging the Tories rightward. It was a slow creep at first, but as the general election losses piled up, the rightward tilt quickened. The shine was fading.
Enter Reform UK. Thought of as a joke once, they started shaking the foundations. The party I knew started looking more like its unloved self from the ’80s. The warm, fuzzy acceptance act? Stripped away. I mean, trust me, I’ve been bearing the brunt of this shift for a while now. Not pretty.
Last week marked the breaking point. My respect for the true-blue good folks kept me there for nine years, but the discomfort was shared, not just mine. How did I know? They told me. A party that once felt like home started echoing Reform’s rhetoric. My resignation letter was my warning: This dive into Trump-lite strategy risks reigniting the nightmare days of a divisive party.
When the news dropped, it didn’t take long for the hate mail to hit my inbox. One classic read: “With your perverse views, you won’t be missed.” Well, dang, alright then. The Tory PR machine couldn’t react fast enough, branding me as finding a snug fit with “gender extremists.” Talk about a parting gift.
So, what did I do next? Jumped ship to the Scottish Liberal Democrats. Just after dropping the Tory whip, in a single day, I felt welcomed. They’re respectful, decent, and carry that same social liberal torch Ruth once championed. Here’s the kicker: the center isn’t just where the voters sit; it’s where most decent folks in the old party probably would, too, if they only let themselves.
Hey, look, maybe I’m the first to bail from the Tories in this session, but betting I won’t be the last. This mess might just wake up the sensible ones.
In the end, hammering the far-right drum doesn’t win you fans. A brighter, inclusive vision does. You’d think it’s obvious, right?
Jamie Greene here, your Scottish Lib Dem MSP for West Scotland signing off with a challenge to think your own spin on my journey. What’s your take? Fancy a quick 300 words on it? Fire away.
