The debate on Question Time has got me thinking about this again.
I certainly have my reservations about independence. There are lots of questions to be answered on how an independent Scotland would look in terms of its currency, pensions and economy.
However I am now leaning on the side of independence. Why should Scottish people be denied another referendum? The Tories always make the argument that there's been a referendum in 2014 and that should be respected. That ignores the fact though that there has been a material change in Scotland's relationship with the UK, and that is Brexit. Scottish people were promised that Scotland would remain in the EU as part of the UK, a promise that has now been broken. They voted overwhelmingly to remain in the EU in the 2016 referendum and are now facing the prospect of being dragged out of the EU against their will. There's nothing democratic about that.
Not just that but if SNP win the election next month by the landslide they're expected to (support is still stronger than ever), then who is any government to deny them that right to hold a referendum? Scottish people keep voting in the SNP on a mandate to have another independence referendum, and rather like the Spanish government in Spain with the Catalans, who are they to deny them that right? A denial of a second independence referendum in Scotland would be the real democratic outrage.
I certainly have my reservations about independence. There are lots of questions to be answered on how an independent Scotland would look in terms of its currency, pensions and economy.
However I am now leaning on the side of independence. Why should Scottish people be denied another referendum? The Tories always make the argument that there's been a referendum in 2014 and that should be respected. That ignores the fact though that there has been a material change in Scotland's relationship with the UK, and that is Brexit. Scottish people were promised that Scotland would remain in the EU as part of the UK, a promise that has now been broken. They voted overwhelmingly to remain in the EU in the 2016 referendum and are now facing the prospect of being dragged out of the EU against their will. There's nothing democratic about that.
Not just that but if SNP win the election next month by the landslide they're expected to (support is still stronger than ever), then who is any government to deny them that right to hold a referendum? Scottish people keep voting in the SNP on a mandate to have another independence referendum, and rather like the Spanish government in Spain with the Catalans, who are they to deny them that right? A denial of a second independence referendum in Scotland would be the real democratic outrage.