Lesley Riddoch, National columnist:

“The launch of indyref2 was fanfare-free and knocked from the front pages by the Covid resurgence and Richard Leonard’s travails, which was actually fair enough. The pandemic is bigger news than the timetable for a poll that has become inevitable. And greater scrutiny of Unionism is no bad thing.”

Ruth Wishart, National columnist:

“I think all of us impatient for indyref2 were glad to see the First Minister’s promise of its detailed inclusion in next year’s SNP manifesto.

“So far, so good.

“But I think, whatever the obstacles thrown up by Westminster, if there is an SNP majority administration, or a parliamentary majority in favour of independence, there must be a specific date and question announced immediately post-election.

“Otherwise there is a very real danger of the movement splintering and the momentum being lost. The need for a self-governing Scotland has never been more urgent.”

Paul Kavanagh (Wee Ginger Dug), National columnist:

“Nicola Sturgeon’s announcement that we will soon have a road map to another referendum was very welcome.

“For too long frustrations have been building as people feel that we are trapped in an increasingly dystopian UK. Now we can start to see the fog lifting and a route out of this mess becoming clear.

“However the party needs to ensure that it follows through on its promises. Too many in the movement feel that they’ve been let down and left behind. If the independence movement can’t offer hope, then we can’t offer anything at all. As Scotland becomes a country where independence is the majority will, it’s vital that we can start once again to offer those who have yet to be convinced of the wisdom of independence that message of hope and of a better Scotland.”

Women for Independence:

“We warmly welcome the First Minister’s statement that she will publish draft legislation for a new independence vote before next May’s parliamentary election.

“WFI were founded in 2012 to ensure that our voices were heard in the campaign for a Yes vote in the independence referendum in 2014. After the referendum we decided to stay together and build ourselves into a more formal organisation. We were inspired and knew that we still had work to do.

“It is our firm conviction that Scotland must learn to do politics differently in order to build a better nation.

“We at WFI advocate for different approaches than that taken by successive Westminster Governments to the economy, to international development to human rights, to immigration and asylum, to international relations to abortion and reproductive rights to nuclear weapons and access to justice.

“We look forward to indyref2 and we will vote Yes, with hope rooted in courage and the resilience of Scotland’s women. We will vote Yes with determination to bring forth a better nation.

“We invite women and girls of Scotland to join us by registering at www.womenforindependence.org/join.”

Gordon MacIntyre-Kemp, the CEO of Business for Scotland and leader of the grassroots independence campaign Believe in Scotland:

“More and more people are coming to believe in Scotland. The Business for Scotland (Panelbase) poll was the first to find 55% support for independence and there will be more polls soon to match that figure and higher. At the launch of Believe in Scotland, back in January I predicted we would hit 55% in summer and 60% by the end of January 2021 and that’s still the target we are working towards.

“To the Yes movement, if we come together for the good of the movement and engage undecided and soft No voters with a positive vision for a better, greener, healthier, happier, fairer, more prosperous Scotland, we will prevail. We can have a Yes vote in autumn 2021 if everything falls right. Even if it takes a wee bit longer, keep the head, we’ve got this.”

Voices for Scotland:

“As a non-party political, civic campaign, we speak to people every week who want a better future for themselves, their families and their communities. The opportunity to vote for independence is the opportunity to create a fairer, greener, happier and more prosperous country.

“The First Minister’s announcement about a referendum in the next parliament is a welcome relief to all those in Scotland who have suffered years of austerity, cuts to public services and billions of pounds wasted on nuclear weapons. What’s important now is that people come together to talk about what independence means to them and the Scotland they want to create.”

Airdrie for Independence:

“The announcement was fairly well received by the group but there is a feeling of being here before so we are not going to go nuts about it. We had the big National event almost a year ago in Glasgow and it was pretty much word for word as to what we were told the last time.

“People do feel things are moving forward but it is not 100% certain it is going to be delivered.”

Bridges for Independence:

“This is the third promise of a draft bill in four years and, as the first ones have not turned up yet, we are keeping our counsel until something real turns up that doesn’t involve an election. Once bitten, twice shy. Three times? Hmmm.”

Falkirk for Independence:

“We are delighted that an announcement on a referendum has been made and, while frustrated that we have to wait several months before details will be known, we appreciate the reasons for the delay.”

Yes Bikers:

“Since 2014 the Yes Bikers have not stopped riding at events promoting independence all over the country. With the latest announcement, we will be upping our game for the final push with more rides all over Scotland to help free our nation. Soon we will be riding in celebration.”

Dumfries and Galloway Pensioners for Independence:

“Within the group it is generally a positive reaction but there is a feeling that it is overdue. We are definitely up for it and we hope Nicola Sturgeon means it this time and there is definitely a positive go-ahead for some activity next year rather than another false start. The members are certainly up for it. It is more a matter of holding them back than putting them forward, so bring it on.

“She has to mean it this time. It will be terribly disappointing if nothing happens and I think there are likely to be some extreme reactions if there is another false start. We are keen to go.”

Yes Annandale:

“Yes Annandale welcomes every move towards our renewed status as the location of Scotland’s international border with our neighbours and friends in England. The sooner the better. Help us win over our area and the rest of Scotland will be a doddle.”

Yes Dalkeith:

“We are very happy to see the First Minister take us a major step forward on the long road to independence. We await the detail but in the meantime are continuing with our work.”

Edinburgh Yes Hub:

“It is important to understand that if we wish a legal, clean break from the Union, that we need to do that through the ballot box. We also need Westminster to come to a joint agreement – not to do so would mean a one-sided referendum which no-one would accept.

“We, mainly out of frustration, have blamed everybody for not having a second referendum but the only ones to blame are Westminster and the last two prime ministers.

“Some massive words of caution… we have loads of so-called Yessers out there trying to cause division through single issues. Also the British state has a great record of ‘divide and rule’ and they will try and try again.”

Dumfries and Galloway English Scots for Yes:

“We are delighted. It will allow Yes groups to prepare for the campaign to counter some of the usual scare stories already being put forward by those who support the Union. We cannot take anything for granted and, while we are sure Brexit will also increase support for independence when we crash out at the end of December, we must put forward the positive case of independence. We are currently exploring ways to do this during the Covid crisis such as converting our independence hub van into a mobile billboard to tour Dumfries and Galloway with facts that the largely Unionist media will not cover.”

Visit: www.englishscotsforyes.scot

Yes Oban:

“The announcement was wonderful to hear – very welcome news which gives the yes movement right across the country a focus. It will, we’re sure, motivate the movement to get the campaign up and running.

Yes Tayport:

“We welcome the announcement made by the First Minister and look forward to being part of the next independence campaign. Hopefully sooner, rather than later.”

Yes Kirkcaldy:

“We welcome the announcement and are keen to start campaigning.”

Yes Clackmannanshire:

“Hopefully this announcement will mend the cracks that have appeared in the Yes movement. The indy train is running, jump on board!”

Yes Stirling:

“The announcement is very welcome. We look forward to working with other local and national independence-supporting groups to convince even more people that only by being independent of Westminster can Scotland become the successful, democratic and fairer country people who live here deserve, so that by the time the referendum takes place we will have a convincing majority for Yes.”

Yes Edinburgh:

“There is a bit of ho-hum about it in the sense of how many times have we heard this over the last couple of years? She has been charging us up the mountain and charging us back down again and leaving us in limbo.

“Why would she announce it now? New parties are being formed, so is this a reaction to some of that? It is not certain how much traction the new parties are getting but there seems to be a lot of interest in both of them.

“After the last referendum there was a huge influx of people to the SNP but they joined because they want independence not because they particularly support the SNP and now they will have a choice of other parties.”

Yes Kirriemuir:

“We’re ready, bring it on. The campaign begins now!”

Aye Aberdeen:

“Aye Aberdeen continues to campaign for independence for Scotland and any efforts in this regard are welcome. We are a grassroots group and welcome new members, so why not get in touch?”

Islay and Jura SNP Branch:

“We are delighted by the fact that independence has been put front and centre in the Programme for Government. It is obvious to us that for Scotland to become the fairer, greener and progressive country we want, 2021 has to be the independence election. Islay and Jura, like all areas in Scotland, have been impacted by Covid-19. While the pandemic causes us difficulties it also shows how community strength and local self-determination have risen to the challenge. We believe the best way for us to build forward better is with local solutions led by a Scottish Government with all the powers a normal independent nation has.”

Yes2 Kirkcaldy Hub:

“The general feeling here is mixed. It’s nice to hear something positive from Nicola Sturgeon regarding indyref2, of course. But until we see or hear the details, we won’t be getting too excited. We very much hope that Scottish independence will be front and centre of the SNP’s election manifesto and campaign and that there will be a commitment to an early referendum following a pro-indy victory, whether Westminster agrees or not.

Yes Linlithgow:

“The announcement about indyref2 is very welcome and might give the Yes movement some much-needed focus. But it’s a draft bill to be published before the next election so we probably shouldn’t expect to hear a date any time soon.

“Recent polling has been fantastic. The hard work from the grassroots is paying off and it looks like we have a majority before any official campaign starts. The Better Together parties are already looking desperate. Bring it on!”

Yes Kintyre:

“We are delighted that we have movement towards indyref2 but need the promised details on currency and so on. It is vital that the Scottish Government takes control of the narrative to maximise pro-indy turnout next year and deliver that majority.”

Mike Small, editor, Bella Caledonia:

“The announcement of the commitment to a second referendum is very welcome but not surprising at all. It states: ‘If there is majority support for the bill in the Scottish Parliament in the next term, there could then be no moral or democratic justification whatsoever for any UK government to ignore the rights of the people of Scotland to choose our own future.’

“I am confident that there will be a huge pro-indy majority in the Holyrood elections and that the UK Government will start negotiations about how to proceed. In fact there are many indications that this process is already under way as the Union disintegrates.

“It’s time for unity and imaginative action to enable this process.”

Robin McAlpine, director of Commonweal:

“It is difficult not to feel cynical about this. Announcing a question and a date doesn’t mean anything until you’ve either negotiated with Westminster or clearly decided you’re going to hold one without agreement.

“Neither of these is the current situation. To be credible the first step would be to start again with the core case, now the Growth Commission is in tatters, and restart the work on the economic case for independence which was only scrapped last week.

“Unionists are stepping up their attacks and gaps and flaws will be ruthlessly exposed. Get a plan, do the work and leave the PR for when you’re actually ready.”

Maggie Chapman and Iain Black, co-conveners of the Scottish Independence Convention:

“We welcome the progress towards securing Scotland’s right to choose its own future outlined by the First Minister this week.

“This represents one of the three essential programmes required for us to launch a Green, fair and prosperous independent Scotland for all.

“The SIC is busy working on a strategy and campaign to secure Scotland’s Right to Choose, including examining different options open to us as the UK Government continues to deny a Section 30 order. Each of these options becomes easier to take as support for independence grows.

“This is why the Scottish Independence Convention launched Voices for Scotland which, along with other campaigns, is seeing success in building support for self-determination.

“We look forward to hearing more from the First Minister in the coming months: we need to know more about her plans for creating the institutions required to start a new country. We are working with a range of experts to develop proposals for these institutions and will publish these for discussion over the coming months. As a movement, we won’t agree on every policy position. But we can agree that we need a banking system – including a currency, a revenue service, an international affairs department and (self) defence system, a borders agency and so on.

“The policies these institutions implement will be decided by the people of Scotland at the Holyrood elections after independence, but we must have these institutions ready for the first day of our new country. These plans, therefore, form a vital – and as yet missing – part of the case for independence, and we would welcome the opportunity to work with the First Minister and her Government to develop them further.”