Scottish Politics and Scottish Independence
The current situation in Scotland is that we have a devolved assembly, the Scottish Parliament, which is controlled by the Labour and Liberal Democrat parties. The official opposition is the SNP (Scottish National Party), and the other political groupings in the Parliament are the Conservative Party, the Scottish Socialist Party and the Scottish Green Party. There are also a number of independents, one of whom represents a party, the Scottish Senior Citizen's Unity Party.
Those parties which support normal national status for Scotland (Independence) are sometimes described as 'nationalist' however it should be noted that outwith the SNP few pro-independence people would be entirely happy with this term.
Most of the pro-independence parties are firmly on the political left although the SNP, despite having in general a fairly radical left manifesto, (mostly social democratic but with a strong anti-nuclear policy) does include some individuals from the centre-right of politics. The SNP has always considered itself a 'broad church' and for many years was the only pro-independence party. All the nationalist political parties (which have achieved representation) and some who haven't yet (see below for a full list) are currently working together within the Independence Convention to come up with a coherent strategy to achieve independence. All the pro-independence parties are strongly anti-racist.
The SSP's recent spurt of growth (prior to Sheridan's resignation which has seen them fall back a little) came at the expense of the SNP and therefore as the biggest fish the SNP is still understandably wary of it's vote being eaten into by the smaller but possibly more radical parties. Progress within the convention has therefore been slow, with all parties being nervous of too much commitment to each other (even though it is increasingly obvious that a united campaign is the only chance to defeat the unionists).
Still, the Convention is showing signs of greater life since it's highly impressive launch event on St Andrew's day last year and hopes remain high that it will achieve something significant soon. The fact that in addition to the established parties, three new pro-independence parties (see below) have been formed recently also shows the new diversity and strength of the independence movement. This diversity has been recognised by the Beith Speakers Club which organises regular public meetings with speakers from all the pro-independence organisations. The club offers a warm atmosphere and a decent buffet. Please contact John Johnstone for more information.
Another impressive addition to the independence scene has been the campaign for a Scottish Olympic Team C-Scot. This campaign has been going from strength to strength since it was launched last year and has been boosted by Scotland's strong performance in the recent Commonwealth games. According to independent polls paid for by the campaign a vast majority of Scots want their own Olympic team. Their website is well worth a look.
The independence referendum pressure group Independence First has also gained considerable support from across the traditional 'nationalist' political spectrum and beyond and IF's broad front approach should guarantee further growth in the next few years. Independence First was launched via an internet think tank after it was realised that post devolution pro-independence support was actually polling at a higher rate than the status quo.
IF have recently initiated a 'one million votes for independence' campaign proposal and are currently sounding out other organisations and the political parties for their reaction. This follows research that suggests that one million pledges of support for independence (or one million actual votes in both the FPTP and PR elements of the election) would be sufficient to swing the 2007 election in favour of the pro-independence parties.
One million is a significant sum of votes but it is well within the reach of pro-independence supporters. In fact well over a million signatures were collected on a pro-home rule petition in the 1950's. This petition was rejected out of hand by the British establishment however and increasingly independence campaigners are realising that only activity within Scotland will actually materially contribute towards independence. Post-devolution, any attempts to influence Westminster are increasingly seen as a total waste of time and effort.
Since Scotland has her own parliament, it is up to we Scots to decide when we want to achieve our independence. In the opinion of this website that will happen in the election of 2007, the historic 300th anniversary of the Treaty of Union, which has been regularly rebelled against by ordinary Scots since it was first launched by bribery, chicanery and threats of military force.
Pro-Independence parties (support normal national Status for Scotland)
Scottish Socialist Party (SSP)
Scottish Independence Party (SIP)
Scottish Enterprise Party (SEP)
Unionists (support the current British union)
Federalists (support a federal UK)
