Nationalist Separatists claim that Scots would be better off if we were independent, and achieving independence would be straightforward.
There is no evidence for either of these arguments!
Scots would NOT be better off: Key aspects of Scottish life (health, transport, eductation and many others) have been devolved to Holyrood since 1997 and we see every day that the Scottish Parliament has done no better for the Scots than the UK Parlaiment.
If devolution hasn’t made us better off then neither would independence!
Independence would NOT be straightforward: Look how complicated Brexit turned out to be despite politicians tellings us everything would be fine. The SNP keep telling us they’ll get a deal, just like Johnson and Farage told us before Brexit. The cost to Scots would be immense.
If you think Brexit was difficult to achieve, just think how much more difficult Scottish independence, ‘ScExit’, would be!
Here are the main reasons why we need to stand together and say No to a second Independence Referendum (Indyref2).
- There’s NO PLAN post-independence!
- ‘It’s the ECONOMY, stupid!’
- The UK is MUCH more important than the EU!
- Learn from BREXIT… SCEXIT would be MUCH worse!
- BREXIT is just an opportunistic excuse!
- The SNP makes false claims to deceive us!
- This is not the time
1. There’s NO PLAN post-independence!
Give us details! We need a “Secession Clarity Act“!
There’s no apparent plan. If they do have one, they’re not telling us what it is!
The 2014 independence campaign was littered with ambiguity. There were no clear answers on exactly what the plan was to take Scotland forward in the event of the separatists winning. Every question asking for details just produced vague assurances that it would all work out just fine.
Before we consider another referendum, we need to see a Secession Clarity Act that defines exactly what independence would mean. We must know exactly how it would work and what the consequences would be. Here’s a detailed explanation: https://www.effiedeans.com/2020/09/a-clarity-act.html. Until we get that in full detail, we must say No to IndyRef2.
In Canada the adoption of such an Act flushed out the lack of substance behind the Quebec separatists’ demands and it helped to clarify the true situation.
(Source: Many articles on the Canadian Clarity Act including: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarity_Act.)
We must demand a Secession Clarity Act to ensure the separatists are forced to detail exactly how independence would work!
2. ‘It’s the ECONOMY, stupid!’ – No to IndyRef2
Holyrood has more powers than ever and we’re WORSE OFF as a result, NOT better!
Since 1997, devolution has meant the Scottish Government in Holyrood has had huge powers to govern the country. Despite this, the SNP still claims all the problems in Scotland are caused by the UK parliament in Westminster. The claim is always, ‘Holyrood good; Westminster bad‘. Everything that’s been successful is down to the SNP, while everything that goes wrong is England’s fault according to them!
The reality is that the SNP has been in power since 2007 and the Scottish economy is no better off as a result. If you look across many aspects such as health, education, poverty, crime etc. it’s difficult to find any success stories. Perhaps if they spent more time governing instead of plotting to leave the UK, Scotland might be better off?
At the same time, we see growing levels of abject poverty with an appalling rise in deaths from drug abuse. Meanwhile rehabilitation centres are almost empty. Drug abuse death rates are increasing. there is a clear link to increased poverty and a lack of opportunities. This has happened entirely on the SNP’s watch!
(Multiple sources including: https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/scotlands-drug-deaths-increase-country-23169365.)
If the SNP can’t be trusted with the powers they already have, then how would full independence make things any better? Also, who would the SNP blame if Scotland was independent?
3. The UK is MUCH more important than the EU!
The EU may have benefited Scotland, but our UK relationship is crucial.
It’s true that two-thirds of Scots who turned out on the day voted to stay in the EU. (Yes, it was just 2/3, not the landslide the SNP would like everyone to believe!) If you regard Europeans as your close cousins then our fellow Brits are our brothers and sisters.
The reality is that ongoing trade relationships, family ties and our shared history makes us so much closer to England, Northern Ireland and Wales than ANY other countries.
Scottish Exports in 2018
(Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/scotlands-biggest-trading-partner-continues-to-be-the-uk)
If you’re questioning these percentages, maybe you’ve seen some Scottish Government figures which appear to tell a different story? The SNP published a press release in Sept 2019 entitled ‘Europe buys 50% of Scottish goods‘, but that was a devious distortion! What they actually meant was that if you ignore exports to the rest of the UK then the remainder was split roughly 50/50 between the EU and the rest of the world.
Check all headline figures, no matter who is publishing them (including these ones!). Don’t be conned by figures that are deliberately distorted to fit a political agenda. Find out the facts and say No to IndyRef2!
4. Learn from BREXIT… SCEXIT would be MUCH worse!
Do we really want to go through a second BREXIT-style mess again now? Say No to Indyref2!
Everyone has seen the complications caused of BREXIT, but deluded Separatists somehow imagine SCEXIT would be ‘straightforward‘! We’ve heard these political fantasies before. Remember in 2016 the Brexiteers were telling us that leaving the EU was going to be easy? Well, astonishingly, the SNP and their separatist enthusiasts think leaving the UK will be easy too!
Compare these two statements…
- ‘It doesn’t seem to me to be very hard to do a free trade deal very rapidly indeed.‘
- Johnson on BREXIT in March 2016
- Source: What Vote Leave leaders really said about no-deal Brexit | Brexit | The Guardian
- ‘There’s a straightforward way to regain control of our future.‘
- SNP editorial on SCEXIT in July 2020.
- Source: There’s a straightforward way to regain control of our future | The National
Ironic, isn’t it, that the SNP and Brexiteers share the same delusions? Of course, the truth is, they all knew the difficulties, but just lie to us and pretend it’s all going to be easy.
SCEXIT would NOT be easy; it would be MUCH, MUCH worse than BREXIT!
The separatists don’t seem to care about the decades of damage that will be caused to Scotland by tearing apart the UK. They just want to get their own selfish way, no matter the consequences.
Challenge the SNP to tell us EXACTLY their proposed process for leaving the UK. Bland statements about intentions aren’t good enough. When you press them, it becomes obvious they have no plans!
5. BREXIT is just an opportunistic excuse!
In 2014 the SNP promised the referendum was a ‘once in a generation opportunity‘ – just say No to IndyRef2!
Source: Numerous recorded speeches and statements by Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon in 2014.
Two questions…
1. Did they not expect any political changes for a generation?
2. Do they really think more than a handful of people voted ‘No’ in 2014 just to stay in the EU?
From the very minute the 2016 result was announced, the separatists were desperate to have another go. The list of conspiracy theories they trundled out was hysterical. Like a prequel parody of Trump’s campaign six years later, they could only accept two outcomes: either they won the vote or it was stolen from them. Like children unable to take ‘No’ for an answer, the hunt was on for any excuse to try again.
How Scots voted in the 2016 EU Referendum
(Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Results_of_the_2016_United_Kingdom_European_Union_membership_referendum)
The SNP seized BREXIT as an opportunity to claim the world had changed enough to throw out their ‘once in a generation’ mantra. The fact is, one in three of the electorate cared so little about the EU they didn’t even bother to vote in 2016. It’s hard to see how this fits with claims that the EU was pivotal to how Scots voted just two years earlier.
It’s hard to find any ‘No’ voters at all who were swayed in 2014 by questions about EU membership, but the SNP continually tries to build this up as a major influence. The SNP just can’t accept that so many Scots simply just wanted to remain in the UK, no matter what!
BREXIT has simply been hijacked by the SNP as an excuse to call for another referendum. Just say No to IndyRef2
Hold the SNP to account. If BREXIT hadn’t happened, they’d be fabricating some other tenuous excuse. Don’t let them away with it: ‘No’ means ‘No for a generation’.
6. The SNP makes false claims to decieve us!
False Claim: “Scotland is very, very different to England.” – WRONG!
The people of Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland are in fact all very alike in many ways. The population of the UK has been very fluid with continuous movement. People have lived, worked, married and built families across the internal borders for centuries.
Of course, there are local variations of culture, even between different areas within Scotland itself. None of these are significant enough to warrant division. The Scottish government’s obsession with being seen to be different has caused confusion during Covid. Continually trying to have rules that are just a little bit different to England has been dangerous: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-57712737.
The separatists are simply trying to exaggerate minor differences in order to justify their argument for independence.
If England was really holding back Scotland, then this freedom provided by devolution would have produced clearly visible improvements. That has not happened. Indeed, since devolution many aspects of Scottish life have not got better, they’ve deteriorated!
False Claim: “England is holding back Scotland.” – WRONG!
If anything is holding Scotland back, it’s the fear, uncertainty and doubt being spread by the separatists. Here’s just one example: a video showing numerous TV clips of the SNP leader unable to defend the devastating decline in education following devolution. https://www.facebook.com/174186732640325/videos/250033253443723
The separatists can’t blame England for this or their other failings!
False Claim: “The English hate the Scots.” – WRONG!
A minority of separatists still peddle the myth that the English hate the Scots. This drives hatred within the separatist community to try and bolster their flawed campaign.
Reality is, however, very different. Of course, there will always be a tiny minority in any community who have extreme attitudes. However, as Scots who have lived and worked south of the border know, the vast majority of English people actually have a high regard for the Scots, both in the workplace and socially.
We must step back and look at the reality of our situation. The arguments for Scottish independence have not been made. Say NO to IndyRef2.
7. This is not the time! Say No to IndyRef2
Give us a Break! There are bigger priorities to deal with!
With the ongoing effects of BREXIT and COVID, the last thing most Scots want right now is more chaos, uncertainty and division.
Prior to the 2014 referendum our country was torn apart by disagreements within families and communities. Businesses were unable to plan ahead and make commitments. Politicians’ time was wasted fighting instead of running the country.
Right now, what Scotland needs most is a focussed leadership that will lift us out of the current situation and take us all forward in a positive and constructive manner. The country needs our elected representatives to do the job we elected them to do, not waste time, energy and money on another divisive distraction.
Don’t make us waste months and years dealing with more turmoil. This is the time for the country to come together and move ahead in unity, so say No to IndyRef2!
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