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Yes supporters must think of Robert the Bruce and the spider

I WRITE these reflections as I sit on the ferry heading home after a short trip to Arran. The island has a rich history, including during the time of the Scottish Wars of Independence.

It is believed that in 1306 Robert the Bruce landed at Lochranza castle, in the North of the island, on his return from Ireland and on his way to claim the Scottish Crown. This historic building now sits as a ruin with spectacular views across to Kintyre.

In the southwest corner of the island lies King’s Cave, a site traditionally linked to the story of Robert the Bruce and the spider. It is said that while in exile, Bruce sought refuge in the caves. Here he watched as a spider attempted to attach its web to the cave wall. Despite failing many times, the spider did not give up and continued to try until it finally succeeded. Bruce took inspiration from this perseverance and vowed to try again to claim the Scottish throne and fight for independence.

Even today, this story still stands and the Scottish independence movement can take inspiration from both the spider and Robert the Bruce. The most recent election results do not detract from the need for independence and in fact strengthen the argument. We no longer have a Tory government, however we have a Labour government who will continue more of the same.

Just last week this Labour government voted to keep the two-child benefit cap in place. Scottish Labour leader, Anas Sarwar, has previously described this as a “heinous policy”, but his MPs voted to keep it regardless. They do not have Scotland’s best interests at heart. In contrast to that we have the Alba Party, where Alba literally stands for Scotland. The only party with a coherent plan to deliver independence, without the need to ask Westminster for permission. Alex Salmond, Alba Party leader, has rightly called on the Scottish Government to mitigate the policy in Scotland, as he did with the Westminster bedroom tax in 2014. In doing so, it would highlight the progressive values of Scotland, as well as put pressure on Labour’s support for the policy in the rest of the UK.

Children’s charities across the UK have called for the policy to end, highlighting the impact it has on children as the “biggest driver of rising child poverty in the UK today." Independence would allow Scotland to leave such abhorrent policies behind, but in the meantime we must not leave Scotland’s children behind which is why the Scottish Government must act. Alex Salmond has highlighted how this can happen, through the use of last year’s budget underspend and paying for this by striking a deal with councils in Scotland to increase the funding received for discretionary housing payments.

Labour went into the election as the party who promised change but, by continuing with policies like the two-child benefit cap, have shown they are more of the same.

Scotland does need change, highlighted again by this election. Voters essentially had the choice between red tories or blue tories. Many people did not go out to vote, with voter turnout down more than 10% in over a dozen seats. A large number of those who stayed home were yes voters, a far cry from the high turn out of the 2014 independence referendum.

We have young people who are disillusioned and do not see the point in voting. This does not mean they do not care about political activism, as I have seen many young people attend the marches and rallies for independence, but there are reasons this is not translating into putting a cross in a box.

With the impact of the cost of living crisis, Scotland being energy plenty but with fuel-poor Scots, and with a Labour government continuing with Tory policies, it is not hard to see why people feel disillusioned. But if Scotland is to regain its independence we must change that.

Looking ahead to 2026, Scotland must take the opportunity of independence. With the polls showing 50% of Scots support independence, there is clearly the appetite. The SNP support sits at around 30% showing the need for an independence supporting party like Alba. The SNP must understand that they are not the only independence supporting party. This is a benefit given the nature of the proportional representation system at Holyrood.

Like the lesson learnt by Robert the Bruce, we must persevere: “if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” Scotland will succeed. We will be an independent nation again, but only through the determination of the Scottish people. We must not politely ask permission and instead use 2026 to show we are taking back what is ours- Scotland’s future in Scotland’s hands.

 

[This article was first published in The National on 29.07.23]

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