Consultative indyref2 is no 'dead end', as the Scottish people are sovereign

Glenda is worried that this could take us down a “dead-end” road like Catalonia.

Glenda need not be concerned, as the position in Catalonia is entirely different from that in Scotland. Spain has a written constitution and it was reference to this constitution which Spain applied in Catalonia.

The UK does not have a written constitution. The law in the UK is what the Westminster parliament says it is, and today that means what Boris Johnson says it is.

READ MORE: Indyref2 'to be consultative in attempt to bypass legal issues'

Any referendum on Scottish independence, even one which had a Section 30 agreement signed by Boris Johnson, could be declared illegal by Westminster if they did not like the result. After all, Johnson signed the Northern Ireland agreement and had it accepted by Westminster and he now has decided to disregard it. So there is no sure way to get a legal referendum through Westminster if Johnson is opposed to it.

However, don’t worry about that, Glenda – the referendum which took us out of the EU was a consultative referendum.

The Scottish people are sovereign, and their will is what matters in international law. If the SNP are going to use a consultative referendum to get the opinion of the Scottish people, then that is wise. Because this can’t be overturned by any court decision and it will deliver what we need, the clear voice of the Scottish people.

Of course Johnson, the Westminster parliament, and a host of powerful vested interests will not like that and they will try to stop the Scottish people having their independence, but they will fail. The Scottish people will succeed.

If this is what the Scottish Government is planning to do then they will win our independence.

Andy Anderson
Saltcoats

NOW that Alex Salmond has stated that he will not let his “personal differences” with the current First Minister stand in the way of any independence campaign, and that Alba will “contribute wholeheartedly, full-scale to the independence campaign,” we need the First Minister to put country before party and make her own commitment to this cooperation.

READ MORE: We've seen a clear sign that Yes movement is uniting

And we need both leaders to ensure that their followers put an end to the continuing schoolyard trading of insults, or we can just forget independence for another generation. Let’s all remember that this is not an election to decide between the SNP and the Tories, it is a vote for a new Scotland.

CE Ayr, Cavalaire sur Mer, France
and Jenne Gray, Ayr

IN my opinion, what is needed to swing indyref2 in our favour is information! The well-known saying “knowledge is power” may be a cliche, but it is nevertheless true.

I speak to too many people who still subscribe to the belief that we get everything we’ve got from London, so how could we possibly survive without them.

READ MORE: Alister Jack tells SNP MP to 'suck it up' as UK bypasses Scottish Parliament

The indy movement (SNP/Greens et al) must provide irrefutable facts regarding how we’ve been ripped off, had treaties broken, and been fed propaganda for more than 300 years. This to my mind has been fairly successful, judging by the number of people who still believe it. 

The other elephant in the room is religious bigotry. I’m old enough to remember the cry “Home Rule is Rome rule”. As not only a non-Roman Catholic but a non-Christian, I have no axe to grind here, simply to say religious bigotry has been the cause of much pain and suffering worldwide for thousands of years. Oh, and for the sake of balance, those of another persuasion will tell you that indy will mean rule by the fanatical Protestants of the Church of Scotland – laughable, if it wasn’t (like the other cry) swallowed by the gullible and poorly informed.

Barry Stewart
Blantyre

A LEADING think tank has stated that due to the high price of petrol, the Chancellor Rishi Sunak is – despite his miserly 5p cut in duty – going to receive £28 billion in additional tax revenue. Any decent, responsible government would forgo this and reduce the duty and VAT to a rate that would give them their original estimated return and help to reduce inflation. However, this Chancellor will not do this as he is totally immune to to the extreme monetary pressure being faced by the poorest in society. The stunning silence from Keir Starmer and Labour about this says all we need to know about this pathetic Labour opposition.

A Jaap
via email

PRITI pathetic’s current attempt to circumvent UNHCR rules just proves that Britain is and always has been a country that likes to make rules but with a very convenient unwritten constitution, does not like taking or obeying rules from others. As I have said for some time now, the song should go “no rules for Britannia cos Britannia waives the rules!” Bring on Scottish independence to get away from the cesspit that Westminster has become.

Steve Cunningham
Aberdeen

LESLIE Sinclair has given 125 pints of blood in his lifetime but when he went to give number 126 he was turned away since he refused to answer a question on whether or not he was pregnant. He lives in Stirling so one would have thought that the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service would have had more sense, but no.

Professor Marc Turner of SNBTS said: “Questions may be asked without discrimination and we have a duty to promote inclusiveness, therefore all donors are now asked the same question”.

Is he paid to spout this politically correct poppycock? The SNBTS should provide two forms, one for men and one for women, instead of losing valuable blood donations.

Clark Cross
Linlithgow