Tagged with Scottish Independence

The view from a Scotland full of flags, few of them red

union-flag-melts-away-from-scotland-e1388694836550It has been an emotional few weeks in Scotland. Many of those on the No side are now hugely relieved after Friday morning’s result as, although you would not know it from the media, lots of ordinary people had been incredibly worried about the massive ramifications of a potential Yes vote. This was a forever vote with no going back.

As the debate intensified those making flag poles must have made a fortune. But as more and more saltires and union jacks unfurled in people’s gardens, none of the flags flying were red.

When canvassing we would often find people in the same households voting different ways. Labour comrades have pointed out to me repeatedly in the last few weeks that this referendum had achieved what Margaret Thatcher had failed to do – in dividing families, communities and indeed the Labour movement in Scotland. In the west coast of Scotland where I come from, the sectarianism of orange and green has been a disturbing feature. Continue reading →

Whatever happened to the Red Clyde

Red-Clydesiders-2246356

In the aftermath of the independence referendum the Labour party should address some key questions. But above all it must ask itself “Whatever happened to the Red Clydeside?” From the beginning of the twentieth century to the era of the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders work in, Glasgow has been a bastion of left-wing socialism and working class solidarity. It produced titans of the Labour movement like John Maxton. But in the referendum working class support for Labour collapsed. And the great Labour party bastion of Glasgow swung behind independence. Notably working class Labour voters were more heavily pro-independence than the middle classes.

It is clear the Labour supporters of independence in Glasgow, and elsewhere, were not blood and flag nationalists. Nor were most of them personal admirers of Alex Salmond. Instead too many of the poorest of the poor in post-industrial Scotland appear to have given up on the Labour party as a means of securing social justice. Nobody could have explained the problems with currency union more lucidly than, that smoothest of Edinburgh lawyers, Alistair Darling. But still Labour voters in the West of Scotland were moving to supporting independence. It took Gordon Brown delivering thundering speeches on social justice, in the authentic tones of a son of the manse, to stem the tide. Continue reading →

Labour faces a titanic struggle to regain the confidence of the Scottish working class

Bx3y4n1CYAETIvaIn gracefully accepting the verdict of the Scottish people “at this stage“, Alex Salmond made clear his expectation that the three unionist parties honour their pledges to the Scottish people in rapid course. “Let us not dwell on distance we’ve fallen short; let us dwell on distance we’ve travelled.”

The turnout at 86% demonstrates how engaged and energised the Scottish people were during the campaign. Though the result was – at 55/45 – not quite as close as the last polls predicted, the SNP have in reality won a great deal in this campaign, and Labour has seen enormous numbers of its erstwhile core working class supporters vote for independence. As John Curtice put it:

Those areas with more middle-class folk were more likely to vote “No” than those areas with more working class people.

Continue reading →

Devolution or Independence: We must not neglect the North East

1349835587_8369111e95_oIn the early hours of Friday morning we will learn whether Scotland has voted in favour of Independence.

The arguments have been well rehearsed from the uncertainty of Independence, and the stability offered by the Union, to the economic and democratic freedom offered by Independence. As a supporter of the Union, and the Better Together Campaign I hope Scotland will vote to retain the United Kingdom. However, I have no doubt that an Independent Scotland would be a successful and prosperous nation.

The referendum will have a profound impact on the UK, no matter what the result, we know more powers will be transferred from Westminster to Holyrood. Continue reading →

An Open Letter to Yes-Voting Socialists

bgso6wDear Comrade,

There are many things on which we can agree about the referendum campaign. The mobilisation of masses of people in Scotland is a good thing. Whichever way the vote goes I hope the energy and positivity mobilised by Yes can feed into progressive politics and positive social change. It’s also kicked the complacency of establishment politics into touch in the rest of Britain. Seeing the powers that be panic as a huge movement blew up before them is something not seen too often. I hope the people of England and Wales are taking notice and the union, with or without Scotland, is radically recast. To be sure, after tomorrow we on the left have a hard job ensuring that not only is a new constitutional settlement for the rest of Britain argued for, but that it reflects the interests and aspirations of our class. These moments seldom come and to cede it to the wonks, the constitutional specialists, and the little England isolationists would be a terrible squandering of an opportunity. Continue reading →