A guest article from regular contributor Bill Clark. Bill lives in Fort William.
FREE SPEECH
People will invariably confirm their belief in free speech but what they really mean is their own interpretation of that freedom. Few would believe in the Scottish Government’s interpretation as described in their hate crime bill. Many politicians can and will interpret their own party manifestoes in ways that suits the narrative that they believe their audience will accept. Every political party in the country goes through the same experiences.
Where it becomes really unhealthy and unhelpful is when the attacks within the independence movement becomes personal rather than a judgement on their political views and that normally happens when people have a weak case. That is where differences and democracy come into play. If your argument is not strong enough to persuade others of your political point of view, obviously you will lose the debate. What you should not do is make personal attacks on those you don’t agree with.
In a democracy people who are part of a movement do disagree over policy and if you are unable to cope with alternative views then you are in the wrong profession. The unity that was abroad during the 2014 referendum was brought about by Alex Salmond’s good leadership and commitment. Post 2014 was more about vanity projects and power politics including trying to destroy Alex Salmond’s political career rather than concentrating on independence. In everyday life it is not uncommon for people to try to make their mark at the expense of others. It was bad enough when FM Humza Yousaf was being disrespectful towards Ash Regan when she left the SNP to join the Alba party only to see others in the new independence group following suit. In effect, doing the unionist work for them by finding fault with a former colleague. We can all make bad calls; I made one thinking that the SNP would fight tooth and nail for independence. Ash Regan is a committed nationalist and her actions certainly show that she has the heart to go along with it.
Going back to 2021 when Ash Regan was a minister in the Scottish Parliament and voted with the government on the hate crime bill after receiving assurances on the issue which did not materialise, she resigned her ministerial post. I left the SNP because of their disinterest in the very thing they were elected to bring about in favour of other interests and their treatment and betrayal of Alex Salmond, all to retain the power that they had acquired after he stepped aside as FM in 2014.
The SNP have also been taking an unhealthy interest in jury court matters. I was certainly not alone in leaving the SNP for those reasons. Some members who left the SNP have now left the Alba Party and will now contest some Westminster seats as independents for independence. They should now concentrate on doing just that without anyone taking a leaf out of Pete Wishart’s political play book. There are no winners in a political civil war. Outwith the obvious discord with Chris McEleny and others, which I know little about and make no comment, I have yet to read in print any negative words from Alex Salmond or elected Alba Party MPs Neale Hanvey or Kenny McAskill or MSP Ash Regan in response to negative comments from some of those persons who left the Alba Party.
I have nothing at all against ambitious politicians just so long as they are doing it for the right reasons without demonising those who are travelling towards the same goal albeit down different roads.
ARE INDEPENDENTS THE WAY FORWARD?
In response to the election of an independent councillor to Highland Council an active member of the Independent for Independence group has made it clear, along with others, that independent candidates are the way ahead for independence. Attaching a political tag to a group does not guarantee that independent candidates will be a unified group after their election any more than any other member of any other political party. You have to play by the rules that are already set out and in place. Take Highland Council as an example, it is a party-political Council and has a political administration.
After the 2007 Local Government election the Independent Group in Highland Council had a party whip. The administration of the Council at that time was formed by the Independent Group and the SNP but collapsed when the SNP withdrew from the coalition. After the collapse a second independent group was formed called the Independent Members Group.
From August 2008 the coalition was made up of the Independent Group and the unionist Lib Dems and Labour parties. In February 2010 a third independent group was formed when 4 councillors left the Independent Group and created the Independent Alliance Group. To participate in the various council committees’ political groups required to have a membership of at least 4 councillors. That has now been increased to 5 councillors.
HIGHLAND COUNCIL INDEPENDENTS PAST AND PRESENT
In October 2003 Highland Council had 58 independent councillors and 8 SNP councillors. As of April 2024, the numbers of the two main parties are Independents 18 councillors and 21 SNP councillors.
In October 2023 4 Independent Councillors resigned from the group and along with 1 non-aligned ex-Tory Councillor formed a Highland Alliance Group taking the name from a previous independent group which had been formed in 2010.
Independents as a group act no differently from members within other parties. All over Scotland independent councillors form groups with other parties, it all comes down to individuals irrespective of the party tag and whether they can accept that people do have differences of opinion in a democracy.
With exceptions, the one thing that all activists in all parties/movements will experience from friend and foe alike as it grows in membership numbers is an understandable thirst that some have for power. To quote Edward Moore, a writer and dramatist from the mid-18th century, “Power admits no equal and dismisses friendship for flattery.” That is human nature.
THE ALTERNATIVE TO WESTMINSTER
Irrespective of the number of independent supporting candidates who are elected to the House of Commons if Westminster responds true to form it will give a resounding no to anything that would bring independence closer. It will be helpful for all elected MPs to Westminster who support independence if they can explain the alternative plan they are going to carry out if they get a negative response to whatever their plan may be. What is going to be different on this occasion? Angus MacNeil MP has been continually asking such questions of the SNP without success. We know Alba’s proposal for an election mandate for independence and support for Ash Regan’s Bill for a referendum on the powers of the Parliament to include independence. Alba’s call for an Independence Convention is more likely to succeed as is SALVO.
If I had my way, those elected independence supporting MPs would simply be touching base in Westminster until the Scottish Elections in 2026. In Westminster they are going to get the same answer that those before them have been getting over the past 10 years. Rather than play Westminster’s game they should head home before 2026 when they can make decisions without asking members of the English Parliament for their permission before they can make progress towards independence. Not so long ago many independence supporters were saying no to voting SNP simply to enable MPs to spend another 5 years on the House of Commons treadmill. Some of the same people who were critical are now giving their support to others to enable them to do exactly the same thing, to spend the next 5 years sitting on those same green benches. What is the plan to unlock Westminster’s intransigence and if there is no plan just what is the purpose of another 5 years sitting in Westminster’s green benches?
Unfortunately, even asking Westminster to have a serious debate on independence will be like sending a group of Oliver Twists with begging bowls to ask for all the same things that the Westminster Government have been refusing Scotland over the past 10 years. That being the case, what new plan has been drawn up that could not be put into practice in Scotland?
I do not expect every independence supporter to agree with every view I have any more than I will agree with all their views but we must be as one when a real political fight comes about in 2026.
TOMMY SHERIDAN
I do not concur with all of Tommy Sheridan’s plans but no one could mistake him for a unionist and certainly not if they had attended the meeting held in the Caird Hall in Dundee during the lead up to the 2014 referendum. The capacity crowd, so many that Tommy asked those in attendance if they could give him 10 minutes to speak to the crowd outside the venue who were unable to get in. It is a meeting I am sure that he will never forget. I know I won’t. That night Tommy Sheridan blew the roof off the Caird Hall and all those people who attended rose to the man and left that meeting energised by his presentation and a belief in independence.
GRANGEMOUTH OIL REFINERY – A FIGHT WORTH HAVING
The only way around this problem is to follow the Alba Party proposal taken up by ex-members who set up an indy1st group that candidates supporting independence should fight under a Scotland United for Independence ticket. The new independence group who broke away from the Alba Party months before an election immediately put Eva Comrie and Sally Hughes forward as their candidates but as Eva and Sally are no longer members of the Alba Party then it would come as no surprise if an Alba Party candidate also fought those seats.
If the political divorce was not over policy issues, then it was personal and that attracts negative friendships for all the wrong reasons. If it had been more amicable, round table discussions could have taken place without an aggrieved partner saying, without any discussions taking place, we are leaving and we are standing in this or that constituency. Not unlike an aggrieved marriage partner saying I am divorcing you and I expect you to agree to my terms. That does not leave much room for future discussions, never mind a reconciliation, and to win independence that’s exactly what is going to be required. If the hackles are up for nominations before a Westminster election, then what on earth is it going to be like before the real fight for independence starts in2026?
MPs Kenny McAskill and Neale Hanvey have been leading the fight to save the oil refinery in the House of Commons and Eva Comrie at the refinery itself along with Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, Alex Salmond, Robert Slavin and many others. Alex Salmond brought everyone together in 2014 and let us hope he can repeat that. I happen to think that Eva and Sally and no doubt others would be an asset in the Scottish Parliament. To quote Jim SILLARS “for mediocrity to survive it has to kill talent. That is why there was an orchestrated attack on Kate Forbes and Joanna Cherry. Mediocrity has a vested interest in not having talent.” As far as I can tell all those Alba members I have named along with Eva and Sally have real and tested talent.
MY COMMENTS
I think I have to state this is another example of my blog publishing an article that I don’t entirely agree with, but I do support Free Speech and I think proper respectful debate is a good thing.
An obvious weakness in Bill’s argument is that Alba will not contest every seat, or anything near it, which to an outsider like me makes it look particularly destructive and pointless to select as one of the handful of seats that Alba will contest a seat where another pro Indy alternative candidate is already declared and who has strong local support and adequate funding.
it seems the excuse for this is that Kenny MacAskill is a strong supporter of Grangemouth and this important issue makes it imperative he stands in this seat.
With respect to Kenny, and I genuinely hold him in the highest regard, that is nonsense. Kenny has been doing a great job defending Grangemouth while he remains the MP for East Lothian. He is the Alba spokesperson on Grangemouth and he has already voiced his belief that keeping Scotland’s sole refinery is a matter that impacts on all of Scotland, not just this single seat.
I have some experience in this, I led the SNP CAMPAIGN to defend Scottish Steel, the campaign itself lasted more than a decade. Like Grangemouth it affected the whole of Scotland but it was never necessary for me to be the candidate in Motherwell to carry out my role and by not doing so it could be argued that I was looking for no personal gain in return for my efforts and support.
Anyway I think it would be better to use Alba’s limited resources elsewhere but I totally accept that it is entirely down to Alba to decide that for themselves. I am merely expressing my personal view and my reasons for it.
I am, as always
Yours for Scotland
BEAT THE CENSORS
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YOURS FOR SCOTLAND 
I posted on X this morning, if all we will gain from independence is a continuation of the adversarial Westminster type of politics, then the only reason to continue this fight is to gain complete fiscal control.
We have to do things differently – how about the political parties, Alba included, work together to secure independence. Whatever chamber they are a member of?
I’ll leave that choice to those who believe that Westminster will ever allow their cash cow to go peacefully.
For myself, direct democracy of a type decided by the Scottish people, and the complete restoration of our constitutional and sovereign rights is the only option which will suffice. Somehow, I just can’t see the braying donkeys in Westminster who sneer at our elected representatives, whether they are working together or not, delivering that with a good luck message.
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I agree with much of what Bill has said, and I have to confess that I am as bad as anyone else when I get angry. What really depresses me is the way in which, since the middle of the 20th century, politicians throughout the UK, and probably elsewhere, have used and abused their people and used them as social experimental subjects. It is nothing new, but it has been increasing since the turn of the 20th century into the 21st.
They seem no longer to engage with local branches and constituency organizations, but, more and more, seek to impose the party’s will on the wee folk. Due diligence also appears to be a thing of the past, and, with it, proper legal scrutiny of policies which, too, often turn out to be illegal or, certainly, ultra vires because lobbying groups now run the show. All political work appears to have been delegated out to them who owe nothing to the party or its supporters, or, indeed, the ordinary voters.
It is in light of all this that people are becoming less and less restrained and more and more angry – or, sadly, the opposite, apathetic. Politics have always been surrounded by noise and shouting and insults, from way, way back in time. I’m sorry, but anger is a legitimate expression and people need to vent their anger at the middle-class, nicey-nicey, don’t rock the boat attitudes that prevail at the moment. To put it crudely, tearing politicians and their acolytes a new one is the way that we avoid real violence when independence movements can so easily tumble into this abyss.
In my day, independent councillors were Tories to a man and woman, or, at the very least, Lib Dems, and they always aligned with whatever party’s policies suited their personal tastes and those of their supporters. The problem for the independence movement as a whole is that it has not managed to reconcile its various factions to join together in the fight for independence, so, yes, independents are going to emerge more and more, but are they the answer?
This has come about mainly due to SNP intransigence and wishing to lead the charge – basically, to nowhere. I am severely disappointed in ALBA’s stance on the vote of no confidence issue. The SNP will benefit but they will never reciprocate, and I fear that ALBA has destroyed its chances of leading us to independence, or, at least, to unifying the movement in order to do so. I understand why, but it is a gross mistake because the SNP has not cleaned its Augean Stables and will continue until it is voted out or brought down, to cripple Scotland with issues that divide while doing nothing with independence. The Misogyny Bill is mooted to appear soon, as are the jury-less trials experiment and they will be the subject of a new offensive on behalf of GC females and the more extreme ‘feminists’. The ‘genderists’ are still squatting in the SNP, despite the removal of the Greens and they cover up their Queer Theory roots with platitudes about ‘feminism’. They are as disruptive and dangerous as they ever were, even without the odious Greens.
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The problem these days is not a lack of free speech it is the inability to debate and to recognise opinions equally as valid as your own.
When preparing for a real debate with observers you carefully prepare your argument. You know your weak point(s) and recognise that is where you will be attacked.
You open on your weak area and take the hit early. If you do not it is certain that your opponent will hit you with it if you try to evade or delay that topic.
The objective is to finish on the strong powerful case that leaves audience/onlookers swayed by the positive balance you present.
A good example is the “3rd. Way”. If both sides concede some ground and compromise then the outcome (the 3rd. Way) is usually far superior than the rigid opinion.
unfortunately people today want to impose their view. They deny any weakness in their case. The select the company of only those who align with their view.
Scotland has Communists, Far Left, Middle Ground, Right Wing and everything in between. I want them all represented in Holyrood because they are a cross section of the People of Scotland.
I do not want to remove Tories, I want to defeat them in debate.
I do not want to remove Unionists, I want to defeat them in debate.
Free speech is worthless unless you listen and debate.
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Some of the article is a bit removed from reality. Ash Regan was the minister responsible for the hate crime etc bill. She resigned from her ministership in 2022 due to gender recognition stuff, not the bill that she wrote. I think the reason she left the SNP was probably because they didn’t make her leader and erect independence thermometers. She was yet another daft minister from the Sturgeon era, and doesn’t look like she has wised-up any.
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<i>”Ash Regan was the minister responsible for the hate crime etc bill.”</i> No, she wasn’t, she was a junior minister under Humza Yousaf, who was Justice Minister. Humza Yousaf was the actual minister responsible for the hate crime etc bill.
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Mass-member parties are prone to factionalism, it’s an irreconcilable, structural-flaw. Adopting the the position of independent-candidate-for-independence (IFI), may not produce a cure-all remedy for inherent factionalism, but it seems a lot more sensible than the currently bankrupt, mass-party system, which few seem happy with but hitherto have had few choices but to vote for and, if by default, legitimize.
In the unlikely event of an all IFI parliament, could such a parliament even function without the rise of factions and groups based on personal-chemistry, mutual choice, shared ideology and so forth? We’re saddled, unfortunately, with ye olde Westminster system into the foreseeable future, it would seem, but the election of many more IFIs has the potential, at least, to mitigate many of the more obvious tensions and contradictions of that inherited and deeply flawed Westminster system.
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I have always believed in free speech as well and I was both surprised and annoyed by Yes Scotland’s facebook which cancels any post that mentions trans issues.
Like all the other woke virtue signallers the Scottish Green Party have totalitarian leanings, which complement their self-righteousness and frequent use of the word ‘progressive’, which they anything but.
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