Achi news desk-
Meanwhile, Patrick Harvie has insisted that there will be no electoral agreement with the SNP in the general election.
The co-leader of Scottish Green said that although his party “strongly believes in political cooperation” it would not have “those kind of conversations” with Humza Yousaf.
READ MORE: Lorna Slater and Patrick Harvie support Scotland’s aid in dying Bill
The Greens did not make a huge impact at that last general election, losing all their deposits after none of their candidates won more than 5% of the vote.
However, there were some marginal seats where their vote was more or almost the same size as the SNP’s majority.
In East Dunbartonshire where Amy Callaghan beat Free Dem Jo Swinson by 149 votes, Green candidate Carolynn Scrimgeour won 916 votes.
A senior SNP official said: “Outside a handful of urban boroughs the Greens are increasingly unpopular and are seen as completely out of touch. I’ll be surprised if their vote doesn’t plummet.
“Going into the election the SNP need to create a considerable distance from the Greens – at the ballot box, under the first to the last, they are an opponent like any other. Working together is Holyrood doesn’t mean we agree on everything – far from it. We need to convey that to the electorate.”
Speaking to the BBC’s Sunday Show about the election, Mr Harvie said it was “vital that the critical existential challenges the world faces with the climate and nature crisis are on the table” in the general election.
“A strong Green vote in that Westminster election can be transformative, just as it can be in other countries around the world.
“This is an opportunity for the world to get the kinds of governments in place that will take this crisis seriously, and begin the transformative changes that are needed.”
Asked if he had spoken to the SNP, Mr Harvie said: “We don’t have those kind of conversations. We strongly believe in political cooperation.
“I think politics is at its best when political parties recognize their differences, express their differences, but also look for common ground and try to work constructively.
“But at election time, it’s time to put all those ideas, all those visions on the table and allow the voters to make their choices. So we don’t go in for electoral deals.”
He was asked about an interview with Ms Slater last October when she was asked if the Greens could go into government with another party.
He said they were “open to conversation wherever we have points in common.”
Asking if independence was “not a red line?”
Slater replied: “Not at all”.
READ MORE: Greens open to go into government with Unionist parties at Holyrood
Mr Harvie said: “Independence is a policy we strongly support. There is no chance that our party will choose to remove that policy as far as I can see.
“At the moment, there is a very strong majority in favor of independence in the Scottish Parliament, the SNP formed a government and invited us to join it.
“A change to the Scottish Government would require a new Scottish election.
“It is not going to result from the Westminster election. So you know if there is a change in Westminster and a new Labor government in the UK, they have an opportunity to reset to change direction and to rebuild a functional relationship with the Scottish Government that the Tories have damaged.”
He said he hoped for “a different tone to the UK Labor government.”
One policy where the Greens could be closer to Labor than the SNP is over Sir Keir Starmer’s call for a “proper” random tax.
While Humza Yousaf supports a levy on energy profits, he has deviated from some of the restrictions put forward by Labour, Mr Harvie said: “We strongly support a random tax on the oil and gas industry. Yes, but I think the SNP makes a fair point that it should apply more widely.
“There are businesses and industries that benefited during the cost of living crisis, for example, I see no reason why they shouldn’t be subject to random tax.”
He added: “The biggest companies, they have spent decades churning out climate denial propaganda and disinformation.
“It is necessary to give their money to invest in the green economy. That is the only viable future.
“And if we get that investment right from the public purse and from the private sector, then we will create a successful economy for the future, one with high quality jobs that will last for the season long, instead of an industry that is clearly on its way out.”
Scottish Conservative shadow cabinet secretary for Net Zero, Energy and Transport Douglas Lumsden said: “In typical Scottish Green fashion, Patrick Harvie is by his own admission admitting that the Green Party would be happy to turn off the taps on oil and gas .
“The Greens are as ever determined to damage the economy and are perfectly prepared to throw tens of thousands of workers under the bus.
“He would rather deflect and point fingers at the UK Government than accept that Lorna Slater’s troubled handling of the Debt Return Scheme led to her downfall due to her stubbornness, pettiness and refusal to engage with businesses .
“It is clear that the Scottish Green party would prefer to see Scotland lose out on jobs and an economic boost – and only the Scottish Conservatives can be relied on to stand up for the Scottish economy.”
