Whose Country Is It Anyway
We’ve written about the people’s involvement in the forthcoming National Convention and wish to address a few points:
·We will not get another referendum under the current system. Not now, not ever. The UK government does not want to have another referendum for any purpose whatsoever. The only exception to this is in the North of Ireland where a referendum is constitutionally guaranteed. No such guarantee exists in the rest of the UK.
Any idea that a so-called plebiscite will do the job is simplistic and, in fact, downright dangerous. Holyrood has no say in the matter and, even if we have a majority of independence-supporting MPs in Westminster after the upcoming election, we are simply not ready for the consequences. The probable outcome would be the dissolution of Holyrood and little else.
The National Convention is designed to address the important issue of what sort of country we want to live in and the Convention will have substantial involvement of the people of Scotland.
·Finally, why involve politicians? The politicians we are proposing are the only ones who have constitutional authority which would be recognised internationally. They are strategically essential. To exclude them from the Convention is to effectively hobble the Convention from the outset. To invite them in at some unspecified time in the future is downright insulting, like being naughty schoolboys left outside the headmaster’s office until their punishment has been decided upon. It is extremely unlikely that more than a handful would attend the early meetings of the Convention but the important point is that they are invited. They can’t complain later that they were left out. Besides, they form nowhere near a majority. Whether we like it or not, these Westminster MPs, as the constitutional authority, are an essential bridge to international acceptance and without them, the Convention is a mere talking shop.
Time is short. We need to engage the people of Scotland and it should have been started already. To leave the organisation on the starting line any longer threatens the entire concept.
A further word about the £2.00 fee. Going forward, the Convention needs substantial funding to cover the cost of future meetings. While donations may be forthcoming as it goes on, the income from the fee is intended as a dependable source of the funding needed.
That’s all for now. More to come later.
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We remind you that the £2.00 registration fee is a one-off. You will have a unique registration number and will remain registered, subject to annual renewal, free of any further charge. You may also join free of charge as a member. This entitles you to email information but does not entitle you to vote.
If you wish to donate to our campaign fund you may do so on the website or directly to:
People’s Assembly Scotland t/a Scotland Decides
Bank of Scotland
a/c no. 26466161
sort code 80 22 60