This is a quick note to say that the Voices staff, Allan and Clara, have returned from furlough and are ready to get the campaign back up and running. We start this week with the first of our weekly ‘Get Together’ zoom events on the subject of ‘Independence: Where are we now?’. We’ve also go a series of webinars lined-up with guest panelists to discuss the most pressing issues in Scotland today. The last few months have been difficult for so many, but there is an ever more pressing need for Scotland to forge its own future.
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There has been much talk of how we, as individuals, as communities and as a nation can recover. Whilst it may have been pushed back on the list of priorities over the past few months, independence is on the minds of many who have witnessed the contrast in approaches from the Westminster and Holyrood Governments in dealing with the crisis and the priorities in leaving it.
Where there has been flapping chaos in London, a calmness has emanated from Edinburgh, managing the crisis and the phased easing of lockdown with assurance and caution. There are always things that could have been done better and the Scottish Government is not immune to criticism, but their handling of the crisis is evidence of Scotland’s ability to lead itself.
This is very much highlighted in the series of polls on Scottish independence that have emerged over lockdown, with those in favour of independence consistently polling above 52%. Whilst this is encouraging and a step in the right direction there is much to be done. Support needs to continue on this trajectory, regularly exceeding 60% and there’s the small matter of how to secure another referendum.
The sense of urgency around independence comes in many forms, however the most pressing is an entangled web of identity, ideology, politics, economics and power. The post-Covid era is being discussed as the ‘Great Reset’, an opportunity to reassemble local, national and international systems and make them more people focussed.
The fissure between Westminster and Holyrood is there for all to see and without independence the fear is that Scotland will be dragged towards a post-Brexit neoliberal Paradise of a pesticide drenched walled garden, hoaching with chlorinated chicken, white faces, hedge fund managers and the unemployed – scapegoats for all the world’s ills.
As the future is never certain there is always an opportunity to move away from what appears on the horizon. For Scotland that means working towards creating the Scotland we want to be, a Scotland that works for everyone, a Scotland for everyone.
Every week we will be hosting an online discussion about Scotland, its people and its past and its future. This is a discussion for everyone, a way to connect with others, express your views, hear what others think and build consensus around what a Scotland for everyone looks like.
Join us for a virtual get together this Thursday – voicesforscotland.scot/events/
VfS Staff