INDY campaigner Martin Keatings will see the appeal over his People’s Action on Section 30 (PAOS30) back in court today, a month before the Holyrood election, as he bids to overturn an earlier finding from Lady Carmichael.
When she dismissed the action after a two-day hearing, Carmichael ruled it was “premature” and the question of another referendum was “also hypothetical, and may never come to pass”.
Although she did not rule on the action’s competency, she dismissed it on the grounds that Keatings “lacks standing” to bring the action because he is not an MSP.
READ MORE: Holyrood 2021: Article 30 challenger Martin Keatings in Presiding Officer bid
Keatings is now seeking to remedy that after revealing he is standing as an independent in Mid-Scotland and Fife with the hope of becoming Presiding Officer, who is selected by MSPs with no public input.
He was a candidate for Action for Independence (AFI) before their leadership withdrew all their Holyrood hopefuls and threw their lot in with Alex Salmond’s Alba Party.
Keatings has been the driving force in the PAOS30, which he originally brought on behalf of the Forward as One group, which he leads.
He said he had proven he can walk the fine line down the middle of party politics, and added: “That skill will come in handy because my impression is that parliament is definitely going to need a referee.
“And better it be a Yesser than a Unionist.”
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