POLITICS is shifting. More and more people can see that a better future is possible, and the tide is turning in favour of independence.

There’s one key reason for that – hope. The case for independence is a positive one, based on shared progressive values such as fairness, equality and compassion. That case – in contrast to the doom, gloom and despair of Brexit – will be one of high hopes and high ambition.

Scotland, and Wales, will soon face a choice. A choice between a future as part of a broken Westminster system, shackled to an increasingly isolated Brexit Britain ... or a brighter future, as an independent nation in a partnership of equals with our UK neighbours.

In the coming months, as the UK Government teeters on the brink of collapse, both the SNP and Plaid will be stepping up our work to build a fresh case for independence – working in parallel to build a positive future for each and every person who lives here.

The next six months could offer challenges greater than anything we have seen in a generation. But, having been a member of the SNP for more than three decades, I’m still as confident as I was 30 years ago that a better future is waiting for us, if we are ready to seize it.

The SNP and Plaid Cymru are, of course, sister parties. We are both parties defined by ambition, ideas and optimism. The connections between our parties go back a long way, and will continue long into the future – after Scotland and Wales have achieved their independence.

So many of you made the trip to Scotland to help us in the Yes campaign. When the time comes for a referendum on Welsh independence, I’m sure that SNP members and Yes supporters will respond with the same enthusiasm, friendship and support that you showed to Scotland in 2014.

As political parties, the SNP and Plaid work easily together in solidarity. We are both on a journey – putting forward the progressive case at Westminster, presenting the real and only opposition to the Tories, and continuing on a journey which I am quite sure will end in independence.

However, in Wales, as in Scotland, there remain people who aren’t quite on board with the message of independence. Those voters, who are undecided and open to new ideas, are the key to securing a better future for our two nations.

We have a responsibility to set out a credible plan for independence, to listen to others and take on their ideas. Of course, marches and rallies like today are key to winning support for our cause – but we need to take that enthusiasm to doorsteps up and down the country.

It is now incumbent on every single one of us to go out and begin those conversations with our neighbours, colleagues, family and friends – to persuade them to embrace the positive future that we believe in.

We have been doing that, and it works. In Scotland, support for the SNP remains high – despite being in government for 12 years. In Wales, Plaid Cymru are on track to form the next government of Wales.

People now know that independence is normal, and the future of Wales and Scotland as independent nations at the heart of Europe seems more likely than ever. It’s absolutely vital that both of our parties continue to work closely together to achieve that goal.