Let’s start by clarifying a couple of points. The office of First Minister is not the incumbent. Whoever bears the title of First Minister of Scotland does so only with the consent and approval of the people of Scotland and the Scottish Parliament. The office of First Minister belongs to the people of Scotland. The … Continue reading The Saltire strikes back!
A new independence referendum has always been "undeniable". The deal between the SNP/Scottish Government and the Scottish Green Party alters nothing. How could mere party maneuverings have an effect on one of the most basic principles of democracy - the right of peoples and nations to choose the form of government that best serves their … Continue reading By their desires and their works you shall know them
Transcript of speech at Union No More demonstration outside Scottish Parliament 31 August 2021. This demonstration is in many ways a first. It is – or it is intended to be – the first such gathering which is entirely focused on the constitutional issue. It is meant to be free of policy agendas, ideologies, partisan … Continue reading Union no more!
Other than her commitment to the Section 30 process nothing, I would contend, better evidences the woeful lack of strategic thinking within the SNP than the statement issued by Nicola Sturgeon on 17 March 2020 in which she effectively sent a cease and desist letter to the entire Yes movement. Aye! Not just members of … Continue reading The bosses know best?
The first six polls following the vote in 2014 averaged 47% for Yes. The most recent half dozen averages 44%. That Yes hit 52% and even 53% at different points in between is irrelevant. The fact that my bank balance was once in the tens of thousands of pounds in no way alters the fact … Continue reading A gathering point
I have news for those who continue to insist that the way to "win" what they apparently think of as the "prize" of independence is by using gentle persuasion and more facts and better answers to lure 'soft Nos' towards Yes. The news is that there are no conclusive answers there are no persuasive facts … Continue reading Softly! Softly! Get eaten by the f***ing monkeys!
When Mike Russell made that dismissive remark about shouting from the outside as a way of effecting change I almost felt as if he was talking to me. When I quit the SNP a couple of months ago it was for a range of reasons - not all of which were entirely unemotional and some … Continue reading The shout!
Few in the Yes movement can doubt that a game-changer is required. The fight to restore Scotland's independence has made absolutely no progress in the seven years since the first referendum. The SNP/Scottish Government remains committed to an approach to the constitutional issue which cannot possibly succeed given that it is crucially dependent on the … Continue reading Changing the game
Let me make one thing clear from the outset. I fully recognise the crucial nature of the climate crisis. I was persuaded by James Lovelock's Gaia hypothesis long before climate change became the stuff of mainstream media interest and global political significance. Nor am I one to minimise the not unrelated issue of zoonotic pathogens … Continue reading There’s aye somethin’!
This could be a really short article. The answer to the question is obviously and emphatically in the affirmative. Of course the SNP can change! It's a political party. Political parties are predisposed to change. Political parties which function in any way close to the manner in which they are supposed to tend to be … Continue reading Can the SNP change?
Peter A Bell 