THE publication of the IPSOS-MORI poll last week showing 58% for Yes was a breathtakingly important moment. It’s now clear that independence is becoming the settled will of a majority of the Scottish people and, even more importantly, that majority is growing steadily month after month.
But I live in Galloway, where that welcome, long-awaited swing doesn’t seem to apply – not just yet anyway. In 2014 the Dumfries & Galloway region recorded 34% support for Yes, in spite of a passionate and hard-fought campaign. We consoled ourselves with the thought that at least some parts of our region, and some parts of our nation, had supported independence. Now it feels a little bit as though we are about to be left behind.
READ MORE: Angus McNeil: Scottish independence: Dirty tricks show we need a Plan B more than ever
And yet, that doesn’t chime with my own experience as a young activist who was enthused by the referendum campaign and went on to join the SNP, becoming the party’s national organiser along the way. There are plenty more of us in the “blue belt” too, whether we joined the party back when the ’79 Group was a thing, were inspired by the creation of the Scottish Parliament or reached the conclusion that independence is the right way forward only after the shambles of Brexit started to unfold.
We may not be in the majority yet, but we bring the widest possible variety of experiences with us and we’ve all taken different routes on the way to supporting independence.
What that experience and diversity tells us is that others are following us by their own paths. Folk are reconsidering, and it is absolutely vital that we see clearly and kindly that it’s OK to change your mind, and, more than that, you’re very welcome to join us!
READ MORE: Douglas Ross supports the UK Government, so has nothing to offer Scotland
Not so long ago my friends and colleagues Julie Hepburn and Calum Kerr, wrote in this paper about the importance of winning in the south, and of reclaiming language as we do so. We need a Borderlands strategy for the next Yes campaign. By that I don’t mean the UK Government-sponsored growth deal, which has in fact received more financial support from the Scottish Government than it has from Westminster. I mean claiming that language for our own. Here between England and Northern Ireland we are border regions and always have been, but independence can work for us as much as it can for other parts of Scotland which have already switched from No to Yes.
As a party we need to ensure that next year’s Holyrood campaign, and the independence campaign I am certain will follow it, must resonate with and reflect every part of our diverse nation. As someone who lives in arguably the least understood part of the country, I can attest to the fact that the regions which are yet to swing to Yes have the greatest potential, and our future campaigns need to speak to that.
It’s also what has driven me to seek selection to become the next SNP candidate for my home constituency of Galloway & West Dumfries. We have a fantastic opportunity to win back a seat first won by George Thompson in 1974 and again by Alasdair Morgan in 1997 and 1999, and I’m confident we can do that next year. I also know that victory will only be the starting point for a wider campaign to bring both my own region and the whole of the south on board in support of independence, as the rational and sensible way forward for our nation. I can’t wait.
Stacy Bradley
via email
KEVIN McKenna’s article in yesterday’s National is absolutely brilliant (What’s the point of independence if we stick with neo-liberal ideas?, October 21).
READ MORE: Kevin McKenna: What’s the point of independence if we stick with neo-liberal ideas?
If Andrew Wilson is such a font of knowledge, time for him to come up with a plan to help those in our communities least able to help themselves. Let’s see all that much-vaunted wisdom put into action.
Cameron M Fraser
Bannockburn
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel