SINCE the beginning of the year I have been touring Yes groups and the occasional SNP branch meeting doing 20 or so talks, sometimes three a week, ranging from rural Berwickshire to Inverness, and Fort William to Lanark.
I am writing this column in a wee hotel in Brechin where I stayed last night after delivering a talk called “Act now and deliver independence”, enjoyed (I am told) by an audience of over 60 local activists. Not bad for a small Angus town on a Tuesday night, and tonight I have the last event of the series in Perth, where over 100 registrations mean the event has sold out.
READ MORE: This is the most likely independence timetable
Touring Scotland has reminded me just how beautiful and geologically diverse this country of ours is. The drive from Inverness last Tuesday to Fort William was a joy and then through the Great Glen back home to Glasgow on Wednesday was a mind boggling experience. It’s not that I hadn’t seen those views many times, it’s just that it’s hard to maintain a memory of such natural majesty, you start doubting your mental picture. It can’t possibly have looked like that, can it?
However, the natural beauty of Scotland wasn’t my major lesson from the talks. What became manifestly clear, is that momentum in the grassroots independence movement is building – Yes hubs are appearing across Scotland, numbers are growing at marches and at local events, and so is frustration at not having an actual referendum to fight.
My message though is that just because we were told there would be a referendum and were eventually supplied with a date in 2014, it won’t happen that way this time. Essentially the grassroots movement are in the driving seat. The SNP have to concentrate on Brexit, getting a result that is less harmful for Scotland and retaining as many powers as possible.
READ MORE: People are waking up to the human cost of Tory Brexit blundering
While they are busy doing the day job, the Yes movement needs to start converting people, emphasising Westminster incompetence, asking how Brexit will work out and relentlessly pushing that positive “Yes we can” message. For if we move into a lead in the polls (SNP ones or mainstream media ones) then Nicola Sturgeon will have the mandate to call a referendum from Scottish and UK election victories, the justification provided by Brexit and most importantly the backing of the people. Once that happens, she will call it.
Only after Brexit will we be able to compare and contrast our plan for independence with the shambolic Brexit. I know this is hard to swallow for all the “let’s go before March so we can stay in the EU” crowd, but that is just not going to happen.
The First Minister will be able to seize on progress in the polls
Firstly, there isn’t enough time to get referendum legislation through Holyrood, demand a Section 30 order, wait for Westminster to debate or just ponder that and then say no, all before March. If we were able to do that we would have a referendum that wasn’t binding on Westminster and one that promised we would stay in the EU when actually if the plan is to use sterling unofficially (for a few years at least) then we can’t actually stay in EU. There would be no need to vote before March if EFTA becomes the SNP’s policy (I bet it it will after March).
“Oh but we should have our own currency from day one Gordon”. Yes, yes, so the plan for independence is to trade in a different currency (backed by all of our oil and gas and renewable energy reserves and surplus in international trade) that will harden and rise way above the post-Brexit, sinking English pound?
READ MORE: May says UK Government could refuse to pay £39bn Brexit bill
That means our largest trading partner will not be able to afford to buy anything from us and our food and whisky and oil exports will fall dramatically. We all want our own currency and full monitory powers, but it has to be when it’s best for Scotland, not based on ideology. Launching a Scottish currency immediately after independence is only the answer if the question is “what’s the dumbest thing we could do on currency?”
On the other hand, Sterlingise as the pound sinks and the rest of the UK won’t be able to afford to buy from anyone but Scotland, even if there were border controls (there won’t be).
Another key reason for not going before March is that the key to winning independence is winning over people who tick the following boxes 1) Voted No in 2014 with heavy heart because of fears about the economy 2) Voted to stay in EU because of fears about the economy 3) Are now open to discussion about an independent Scotland in EFTA being more prosperous than the UK outside the EU and single market.
The trouble is that many of those people are still confused about Brexit. They still think it might be cancelled, they think “surely those idiots in Westminster will come to their senses”, and until they are 100% cured of that delusion they will resist ticking box three.
You see, to tick box three they have to accept that they got it completely wrong, that their core beliefs were incorrect. That the Westminster Government they put their trust in just a few years ago is deliberately acting against both Scotland’s best interests and Scotland’s democratically stated wishes and that they just don’t give a damn about us.
That’s a hard pill to swallow, and so they will wait until after Brexit happens and the think tanks spell out the pain of the actual deals, then they will be able to say “I am not leaving Britain, Britain left me”, and they will be right.
Remember that poll last week that put independence at 52% (if the poll is after Brexit)? Why not before? Because wording the question “after Brexit” means people have to accept the reality of Brexit and it then changes how they would vote.
Ask the people who will actually run the campaigns and they generally say the window of opportunity to call a referendum (and demand a section 30) opens after Brexit and the time to hold a referendum will be Autumn 2019 at the earliest, but before the next Holyrood election for sure.
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