Scotland's Strategy

The ALBA Party believe that every single election should be used to seek a mandate to begin negotiations for Independence, not yet another mandate for a referendum. The referendum boat has sailed, the Westminster Government have continued to refuse a Section 30 order andthe recent ruling by the UK Supreme Court has made holding a referendum without a Section 30 order a much more difficult task.

This position is not new, the time has come to revert to what was the position of the national movement prior to devolution. The threshold would be a simple majority of votes cast for all pro-independence parties. ALBA has committed to having an explicit declaration of our intent to begin negotiations for independence, if that threshold is met, on the first line of our manifesto. All pro-independence parties should do the same.

We believe that the next UK General Election should be fought under a "Scotland United for Independence" banner. The key to winning is to attract a substantial cadre of Labour independence supporters who would be unlikely to switch to the SNP in a straight-party contest.

Thus, preparations need to be done on what to do when an election is won. The focus should then be on how the Westminster Government can be forced into independence negotiations. As we have seen from the last seven years, winning elections does not guarantee independence progress without the political strategy to enforce the people’s mandate.

The Scottish Government's ill-fated expedition to the Supreme Court has halted the opportunity to propose an independence referendum in the Scottish Parliament. However, there is nothing to stop our Parliament from proposing a referendum which we believe would be within competence.

Ash Regan's bill would ensure that the Scottish people are consulted on whether the powers of the Scottish Parliament should be extended to include the power to legislate for and negotiate independence. The Referendum would take place ten years after the 2014 vote on September 19.

The Scottish people must have their voices heard in the independence debate, and that is exactly what this bill will allow.

You can download and read the proposed bill at: www.TheReferendum.Scot

In 2012, ALBA Party Leader Alex Salmond achieved a Section 30 referendum after just ONE mandate. However, if David Cameron had refused a Section 30 order then this is “exactly the sort of initiative" his Government were preparing to use. He believes that fact "concentrated the mind of Westminster wonderfully."

If you want to end a London veto over Scottish sovereignty then you have to make it clear that you are not prepared to take No for an answer.

It is time for political parties to offer Independence supporters the real prospect of progress.

The ALBA Party have repeatedly called for the the SNP to follow through on the promise made by the former First Minister at the end of January 2020 to form an Independence Convention. The Convention would bring together key representatives from political, civic and independence groupings to establish the way forward in regaining independence for Scotland. This convention will act as the steering group of the independence movement.

The movement has always been greater than one individual or one party, therefore it must be detached from the day-to-day problems that occur within Government. It is by giving the power of the movement back to the grassroots that we stand the greatest chance of restoring our nation’s independence.

The ALBA Party is willing to cooperate with other independence parties to stand for election as Scotland United on a joint mandate to initiate independence negotiations. We urge all other pro-independence parties to embrace this spirit of cooperation for the betterment of our nation.

As instructed by our members at our Spring Conference in Inverness, the ALBA Party will move to support the setup of a new Independence Convention with immediate effect.

By taking their seats without a plan to use the institution as one plank in an independence strategy, Scotland’s MPs are effectively giving tacit agreement to UK control.

On the 13th of July 2022, ALBA MPs took part in a parliamentary intervention to protest the Johnson Government’s refusal to acknowledge Scotland’s democratic rights. You can read more about the intervention here.

It is ALBA's position that all independence supporting MPs should similarly intervene in the Westminster Parliament on a daily basis in order to grind all business in that parliament to a halt. This action should only cease when the UK Government accepts Scotland’s national Claim of Right to democratic choice.

ALBA MPs already prioritise community campaigning in Scotland over merely occupying the green benches at Westminster. Parliamentary action should be backed by a campaign of peaceful popular agitation in Scotland.

Popular agitation is a crucial pillar of our independence strategy. In the past, the independence movement has been able to muster nearly 200 thousand Independence supporters onto the streets of our major cities. This is important for many reasons, not least for maintaining morale amongst our supporters but it is also important as it acts as a reminder to Westminster, and the wider international community, that the independence movement is not willing to meekly return to the shadows.

There is a historical context to popular agitation too. Research on self-determination movements worldwide has highlighted that every successful independence movement has had popular action as a key tenet to its strategy. Every movement that has achieved active participation from at least 3.5% of the population has gone on to achieve its aims.

That is why ALBA believes that cooperation between all pro-independence parties and non-party aligned groups such as All Under One Banner is vital to achieving our noble aim of restoring Scotland’s independence.

The struggle for independence is a political one to be fought and won in Scotland but the ALBA Party see the importance of a sustained campaign to enlist international sympathy and support, paving the way for when recognition would be sought for an independent Scotland.

If we are to have any chance of garnering international support for our cause, we need to start engaging now with key players in the diplomatic community. Diplomacy has two main components: relationship building and information sharing; and we need to work on both in order to achieve our goals

The ALBA Party have commissioned legal opinions from international authorities on the prospects of getting Scotland’s case before international tribunals as part of this process.