nupateer blog

    INTRODUCTION In recent months, opinion polls have shown majority support for Scottish independence. Arguably, the change from the previous pro-UK majority, reflects a mixture of differing views on Brexit, ill-feeling amongst some Scots against Boris Johnson and his government, and a perception that Nicola Sturgeon has  better presented the covid pandemic response, even if in practice the measures taken and the results have not been significantly different between Scotland and the UK as a whole.    Those who value Scotland’s place in the UK appreciate that UK prime ministers come and go, and that however each of us voted in the 2016 EU referendum, leaving one wider union hardly justifies leaving another, particularly when the UK is a union we have the closest possible relationship with.   If the First Minister gave a full and frank response to some of the big questions relating to the independence issue, I suspect the opinion poll majority would...

  The ’20/’21 series   CONSEQUENCES -       what the coming decade might look like if the SNP gets its way on independence     What follows is an imagined future for Scotland. From 2021 to 2031. A decade that doubtless some believe will turn out much better than the picture I have set out here. Equally, it could prove to be a lot worse.   If we do find ourselves in the coming year or so having to consider a second Scottish independence referendum, and how to vote in it, what follows are some of the prospects we need to contemplate:   Scotland 2021 to 2031  v 2021 – 2022 The SNP and other independence supporting parties collectively win a majority in the May’21 Holyrood         election, then win a Supreme Court case to force the UK government to u-turn over blocking another independence referendum    v 2024  After more than a year of what all sides agree was the most d...