Scottish Independence – Page 2

Labour right-wing forces Richard Leonard out

After surviving a previous attempted coup, Richard Leonard resigned from the Scottish Labour leadership last week, just four months from the next Holyrood election. With details of this latest coup circulating the press, it is clear that Keir Starmer was involved in removing the left-wing MSP.

One Year after the Election: Boris’ Government of Crisis

One year ago, on 12 December, the Tory Party won a shock landslide victory in the 2019 general election. Promising to ‘Get Brexit Done’, Boris Johnson and the Tories secured 43.6% of the vote, providing them with an 80 seat majority in Parliament.

British Capitalism’s ‘systemic crisis’: social explosion brewing

Even the strategists of the ruling class are warning of an apocalyptic scenario for British capitalism, as the pandemic, Brexit, and economic chaos combine to create a perfect storm. We are entering a period of revolutionary convulsions.

Prolonged Crisis and Class Consciousness: Organise to Fight Back!

Eight months into the global coronavirus pandemic, any pretence of the world settling into a stable “new normal” has been shattered. After a summer of lockdown and a brief period of “re-opening”, the fundamental crisis has not been solved. As the spread of coronavirus accelerates, so does the political, social and economic crisis of capitalism.

Tory distain for devolution boosts independence cause

The Prime Minister’s choice of words has landed him in hot water again this week, as leaked reports from a meeting with Tory MPs have him calling Scottish devolution a “disaster” and a “mistake”.

Rifts in the SNP: How should the Left respond?

Whilst support for independence is growing, tensions within the SNP are also becoming more apparent. We’re just over half a year away from Holyrood elections where these increasing pressures will put the relatively stable dominance of the SNP to the test.

Pandemic shows the Growth Commission is Dead. Fight for a Scottish Workers’ Republic

Almost six years have passed since the Scottish independence referendum, and over this time, the UK has been ruled by a perpetual Tory government. This stasis has led to a resurgence of the independence campaign. It is important to analyse what such an independent Scotland would look like in our current crisis.

Scotland: An Independent European nation?

When the results of the 2016 EU membership referendum came in, Nicola Sturgeon took to the airwaves to denounce the fact that while the rest of the UK had voted to Leave, Scottish voters had not. While this fact has been consistently used to make a democratic case for independence, the SNP policy on the EU has evolved multiple times: from “special status”, to Single Market membership, to “Stop Brexit”. As Britain has now left the EU, this process of evolution has merged the two questions, with the main SNP slogan now being “an independent European nation”: advocating that an independent Scotland would re-join the European Union.

SNP Currency Debate: Divisions Open over Future of Indy

After the defeat of Yes in the 2014 independence referendum, many supporters saw the question of Scotland’s currency as a key weakness of the campaign. It has been a looming issue in the nearly five years since, with much of the grassroots movement demanding a bold and straightforward policy from the SNP. This came to a head in the SNP’s spring conference, where delegates clashed with the leadership over the question of a new Scottish currency.

Abolish The Monarchy: For a Workers Republic!

By Alex Johnson, IMT Edinburgh

With the recent announcement of the engagement of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and the upcoming wedding, we call not for celebration of but the abolition of the monarchy. The royal family is a feudal relic and symbol of national chauvinism which, along with the House of Lords, reveals what our so-called ‘democracy’ really is – a system designed and run to serve the interests of the ruling class. The monarchy is a drain on the public purse, receiving handouts of £35.7 million per year on top of countless other expenses. The upcoming royal wedding is an excellent example of this. While the royal family will pay for the wedding ceremony, reception etc., the taxpayer will foot the bill for the policing, security costs and public order arrangements around the event. Kate and William’s 2011 wedding saw £15 million spent of policing alone, with 5000 officers deployed. This time we can expect the same arrangements, if not even greater measures following the recent increase in terrorist attacks.

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