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| 20-03-2007 PRO'S & CON'S OF UNIONISM PART 8 |
Tony Blair, the Prime Minister of the U.K. pleaded with the Scottish people, not to “rip Scotland out of the UK " , saying full independence would be disastrous for the country as a whole. Asked about a poll that suggested 51% of Scots favoured independence, Mr Blair said he would have to persuade them otherwise. He blamed the people who wanted an independent Scotland , for trying to claim voters were only "true Scots" if they were backing independence. |
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The Scottish National Party leader Alex Salmond answered his statement; he went on to say that, the Prime Minister of the U.K. was "out of touch with public opinion in Scotland ." Blair then went on to describe what he defined as the S.N.P. Folly Blair said: "To end up having a separate Scottish currency, separate Scottish armed forces, separate Scottish economy when we are so integrated together would be disastrous for people. I think that when this debate progresses, it's not just that people will realise the folly of the SNP position." With only a few weeks to go before the Scottish parliamentary elections, polls suggest the SNP is neck and neck with Labour - which rules in coalition with the Liberal Democrats The SNP has promised a referendum on independence within four years, should it win power in the may 2007 elections Asked about a poll in a Scottish newspaper, Mr Blair said it showed he would have to speak to Scottish voters, and persuade them the benefits of remaining in the UK . He went on to say that in his opinion, increasing Holyrood's powers was not the answer "What I think it's about is the attempt by the SNP and others to say: 'You're only truly Scottish, in inverted commas, if you are making the case for independence," he said. "But that's rubbish. The question is what is in the best interests of Scotland and what is in the best interest of Scotland is to have a strong Scotland within the United Kingdom , where you have the benefits of devolution” he also said; “You take your local decisions in relation to law and order, education, health and so on, but at the same time you get the benefits, as we do in England , of being part of the UK .” Blair stated that England and Scotland benefited from shared trade, currency, armed forces and social security systems. "You rip Scotland out of the UK , which is the SNP policy, you will lose those benefits," he said. "You will end up with an uncertain economic future with less power for people in Scotland to effect the big changes that are happening in the world." In response, Mr Salmond the S.N.P. leader said: "The more the prime minister attacks independence, the more popular it becomes. I urge him to continue in a similar vein” he went on to say "Labour's negative smears and fears campaign simply isn't working in the face of the SNP's positive case for Scottish independence." He said most Scots wanted more powers for Holyrood and said there was a "clear consensus" for an independent Scotland .
An “opportunist group of nationalists” threatens the identity of the United Kingdom , Gordon Brown has warned. The chancellor told the Fabian Society that some groups were "playing fast and loose" with the union of England , Scotland , Wales and Northern Ireland . He then stated that the UK was a country "built on shared values" which served as a "model for the rest of the world" . SNP leader Alex Salmond disputed what Brown, had said, and that he was thinking only of his "self-interest as a prime minister designate" . It is expected in most circles that Mr Brown, (who is a Scot) and MP for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath, will take over as prime minister of the U.K. later this year. Mr Brown, when speaking to former Labour MP Oona King at the start of the Labour think tank's conference, stressed the importance of the country's shared values. “It is very important to recognise that Britishness and Britain itself is not based on ethnicity and race," he went on to state. "It is founded on shared values that we hold in common: a commitment to liberty for all, a commitment to social responsibility shown by all, and a commitment to fairness to all." He said there was now a dividing line in Britain that pitted "those of us who are prepared to support the shared values of the union" against "those who are prepared to play fast and loose with the union and put the whole future of the union at risk". This year is the 300th anniversary of the Act of Union that merged the English and Scottish parliaments, that was formed in 1707 The pro-independence Scottish National Party are expected to do well in the Scottish Parliament elections in May, with the independence debate to be a major issue in the campaign Mr Salmond, who is the SNP leader said the chancellor "could not tolerate the idea of Scotland slipping out of Labour's control just at the point he wants to move into No 10". He went on to say; "Revealingly, Mr Brown is unable to accept that, under his chancellorship, the Scottish economy has lagged behind both the UK and spectacularly, the small independent countries in Europe ." For some time now The Conservatives have been voicing the opinion that it might be better if exclusively English laws were voted on by English MPs alone. However, Mr Brown the Chancellor, said the idea of "English votes for English laws" would pull the union apart. When speaking to the Fabians, Mr Brown pledged support for the idea of raising the school-leaving age to 18, but this idea has not gone down well and is seen as a way to give false impressions on the amount of people registered unemployed. Brown, told delegates that terrorism and security issues could not be solved through military means alone. Earlier, he had written an article in a daily newspaper where he criticised the Conservatives for siding with the nationalists over constitutional issues. In the article, the chancellor warned: "It is now time for supporters of the union to speak up, to resist any drift towards a Balkanisation of Britain and to acknowledge Great Britain for the success it has been and is." He attacked the Conservative Party for embracing "anti-unionist positions" in collusion with nationalists - contrasting them with the stance Lady Thatcher, took in support of the union. Sir Menzies Campbell, who is the Liberal Democrat leader, said the chancellor was right to highlight the "Faustian bargain" between the nationalists and the Tories. "They may have different motives but their actions will jointly lead to the same conclusion - the break-up of the union," he said. However, Shadow Scotland secretary David Mundell said the chancellor was "undermining Britishness with his support for English regionalisation, identity cards and the European constitution." Mr Mundell also accused the chancellor of sticking his "head in the sand" over any modernisation of the union. He told a television news programme that: "Gordon Brown simply sticks his head in the sand and says the only way to deal with that issue, and that question, is not to ask it." GORDON BROWN yesterday attempted to put a spoke in the SNP bandwagon with a scathing attack on their tax and spending plans. Just four days before delivering his final budget, the Iron Chancellor turned his fire on the nationalists' economic pledges. He said their plans for the nation's currency and joining the Euro are "all over the place". The chancellor Mr.Brown also attacked their local tax policy which would scrap council tax and replace it with a 3p-in-thepound income tax. And he warned of a multi-billion pound hole in their spending pledges. It is his most hard-hitting attack yet in the campaign for the Scottish elections. Brown said: "None of the SNP's policies is properly thought out. Then said, "When you look at these policies of the Scottish National Party, they are falling apart. "They don't know, they are totally confused about Scottish interest rates and a Scottish pound. "They have fallen apart when asked about their replacement for the council tax. Only this morning they couldn't explain who would pay it, whether it would apply to unearned income. "They have fallen apart on spending because we have shown in great detail how all the commitments of the SNP just do not add up. "The Scottish National Party is about grudge and grievance. "What people want are more jobs, more prosperity and better public services, not the grievances of the SNP. "Labour is the party of jobs, not the party of chips on the shoulder." Gordon Brown, said that in his opinion the Labour's election campaign was going well - but he admitted they faced a challenge to convince people a vote for Labour was a vote for jobs. He added it was important to keep reminding people of the numbers of jobs created since Labour came to power in 1997 and also to get more people into better jobs in modern industries. He said: "The next few weeks is a chance for us to get across to the people of Scotland just how successful they can be in the economy of the future. "That does not need a change in the constitutional arrangement, it needs investment in education. "If you look at unemployment today, it has halved since we came into power from 162,000 to 82,000. "And the amount of jobs being created in Scotland ,we have gone from 2.26million to 2.51, so there are 250,000 more Scots who have a job now. "If people had said 10 years ago we were going to create 250,000 jobs in Scotland , they would have said that was very difficult - but that is exactly what has happened. "Now the key is that people who are economically inactive get the opportunity to get into work, that single parents who want to get back to work can do so, that young people are leaving school with the qualifications to get these jobs. "That is where education is so important. We aim to create 100,000 more jobs in Scotland . Only Labour can help people get the skills they need to work in the industries of the future. "Any diversion from that, like spending years with constitutional chaos, I think the Scottish people would find unacceptable." The Chancellor also hit back at high profile SNP supporters such as former top banker Sir George Mathewson, who claimed Labour's election campaign amounted to scare tactics. Brown said: "Of course he is entitled to his view. "But I don't hear the current leaders of the financial services industry repeating these things. "Standard Life issued a statement saying stability is what they value and anything that contributes to instability is a problem. "I've heard Sir David Murray saying these things in stronger terms. I have heard it from people on the board of Rangers and the board of Celtic. "There is a common cause - none of the SNP's ideas is thought out." Because of his attempt at using the ‘Old Firm' many people have condemned him and accused him of clutching at straws. People are saying that he must feel under pressure to take such desperate measures. They think that Brown has resorted to the old religious connotations with these two huge Glasgow football clubs, in an attempt to gain votes for the Labour party. |
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Alex Salmond Speech to Spring Conference Mr Salmond said: "My name is Alex Salmond - and I'm running for First Minister. "And things are going all right - like a Gaelic song, as Angus MacNeil would say - and I, and we, owe so much to Nicola Sturgeon and her brilliant leadership of the Scottish Parliamentary Group. "Almost three years ago when Nicola and I ran together for leadership of this Party when we said that we intended to remove the dead hand of Labour Party control from the governance of Scotland not too many people believed it to be possible. |
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Correspondence to the Editor at Crann Tara |
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