THE SNP's draft agenda for the party's annual conference has been leaked in full to The National with a proposed motion on renewing the party’s commitment to hold an independence referendum and a warning the party "will not accept a Westminster veto" on holding a new vote.
It comes days after we revealed a resolution proposing a Plan B to seek an alternative route to independence if Boris Johnson continued to refuse to agree to a new referendum had been rejected by a key party committee.
The motion, which has been cleared for debate, does not set out what the party would do if the Prime Minister rejects a new Section 30 order request.
Instead, it powerfully underlines the party's commitment to independence, to a new referendum if there is a Holyrood majority after next year's election and to Scotland being able to rejoin the EU as a new independent member state.
It says that if there is such a majority after the May 2021 poll there "can be no justification whatsoever for the Westminster government to seek to veto that democratic choice nor should we accept such a veto".
The draft resolution states: "Conference affirms that independence is about the right of people in Scotland to decide our own future.
"The people of this country have the right:
- to get the governments we vote for.
- to protect our NHS.
- to have an economic policy geared to our needs."
It goes on to say that in an independent Scotland those rights "will be guaranteed".
And it states: "Conference believes we are at a turning point in Scotland’s history as we look to the future - in the aftermath of the global pandemic we will need to rebuild our economy and bring about a more equal, fairer society.
"The fundamental choice all of us who live here face is this: who can we best trust to care for Scotland as we chart this new course.
"Conference agrees that the best people to build a better Scotland after the pandemic are the people who live here led by a Scottish government they elect and which is equipped with the full powers of a normal independent country."
The resolution notes that there has been a material change in circumstances since the 2014 vote, including Scotland’s place in Europe and the manner in which the UK Government has treated the Scottish Parliament throughout the Brexit process.
It says: "Conference notes that in an independent Scotland we can decide for ourselves how to rebuild our economy and society anew, with the use of all the economic levers available to independent nations; that by becoming an independent country we will bring to an end the days of Scotland being ignored by Westminster governments we do not vote for and which cannot be trusted to act in our interests."
It continues: "Conference notes that we will become an equal partner with our closest friends in the rest of the UK in a new and better relationship based on mutual respect; that rather than being dragged out of the European Union against our will we can become a full EU member in our own right and be part of the huge, high quality, European Single Market which is seven times the size of the UK alone.
"Conference believes that with independence we will join a union of independent nations, based on common values of human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights.
"Those values are Scotland’s values and we have much to contribute to the challenges facing Europe as we seek to tackle the climate crisis and bring about a more equal world for this and future generations."
It continues: "Conference believes that with independence our NHS will be safe from the private market ideas of either a Westminster Tory or Blairite-style Labour Party.
"We will be protected from Westminster legislation which undermines our parliament and threatens our ability to protect our environment and food standards. We will be able to remove Trident nuclear weapons from our shores, which are an affront to basic decency with inhumane destructive power.
"We will be able to have immigration and asylum policies that reflect our history as a welcoming outward-looking nation."
It goes on: "Conference agrees that if there is a majority in the Scottish Parliament after the Holyrood election in May for a fresh referendum on independence there can be no justification whatsoever for the Westminster government to seek to veto that democratic choice nor should we accept such a veto.
"Conference believes any attempt to block the right of people in Scotland to decide how they should be governed would be both undemocratic and unsustainable, and would only strengthen support for independence.
It adds: "Conference agrees that it is time. With kindness, care and love for one another in this diverse, beautiful, welcoming country for all, it’s time we in Scotland took our own decisions, forged a new path and rebuilt our society into the more equal and prosperous country we know is possible.
"It’s time to put Scotland’s future in Scotland’s hands."
The independence resolution is at the heart of the event's agenda.
There are five other proposed motions for debate, themed around the NHS and the pandemic, social justice, the green recovery, jobs and the economy and Scotland in the world. The event, which will take place online, takes place from 28 to 30 November.
Amendments can be submitted to the motions with a final agenda to be published later.
First Minister and SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon will address the conference on the final day.
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