Indyref2 Bill published

A draft independence referendum Bill has been published to give people in Scotland the right to decide their future, once the current health crisis is over.

Constitution Secretary Michael Russell said the draft Bill is being brought forward to offer Scotland the choice of who is best placed to lead the country’s post-pandemic recovery – the people who live here or a government based in Westminster.

The draft Scottish Independence Referendum Bill publication sets out a number of key issues for a vote including:

• the timing of a referendum should be a matter for the next Scottish Parliament to decide. Ministers have separately made clear it should take place once the public health crisis is over
• the question “Should Scotland be an independent country?” is the same one used during the 2014 referendum and it will be tested by the Electoral Commission
• voting eligibility will be extended to match the franchise at Scottish Parliament and local government elections

The draft Bill has been published on the Scottish Government’s website. It will be for a future Scottish Government to consider whether it formally introduces a Bill in the Scottish Parliament.

Mr Russell said: “Our top priority will continue to be dealing with the pandemic and keeping the country safe, but we are optimistic that because of the incredible efforts of people across Scotland better times lie ahead.

“The Scottish Government believes it should be the people living in Scotland who have the right to decide how we recover from the pandemic and what sort of country we wish to build after the crisis.

“If Westminster maintains its control, recent history shows what Scotland can expect: an economic recovery hindered by a hard Brexit that is already taking a significant toll and the continued, systematic undermining of devolution, which is weakening our parliament’s powers to maintain food and environmental standards and protect the NHS from post-Brexit trade deals.

“Scotland’s recovery should be made by the people who live here and who care most about Scotland. That is why Scotland’s future should be Scotland’s choice.

“It should be for the next Scottish Parliament to decide the timing of the referendum. So that the recovery from the pandemic can be made in Scotland, the Scottish Government believes it should be held in the first half of the new Parliamentary term.

“If there is a majority in the Scottish Parliament after the forthcoming election for an independence referendum there can be no democratic justification whatsoever for any Westminster government to seek to block a post-pandemic referendum.”

Read the draft Scottish Independence Referendum Bill

Scot Lib Dem candidate for Northern and Leith slams SNP for prioritising independence over recovery

Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate for Edinburgh Northern and Leith, Rebecca Bell has criticised the Scottish Government for diverting their attention to an independence referendum instead of focusing on the pandemic.

On Monday 22nd March, the Scottish Government published a draft bill on a proposed second independence referendum which sets out the SNP’s plans to hold a referendum early in the next Parliament. 

The document states that the timing of a vote will give power to MSPs to determine the timing of another referendum on independence, rerunning the same question as used in 2014 “Should Scotland be an independent country?”.

Rebecca Bell said: “People are under huge pressure from the pandemic and after years of arguing about independence and Brexit, the last thing we need right now is another independence referendum.

“While families and businesses have been worried about their lives and livelihoods, the SNP have put civil servants and their resources up to the task of planning an independence referendum instead of planning for the recovery from the pandemic.

“We need a Pandemic Recovery Bill, not a Referendum Bill which distracts from our recovery. This should be our absolute priority. The Scottish Liberal Democrats will put the recovery first and use our strength and influence to build a fair, green recovery for everyone.”

Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats Willie Rennie said: “Holy moly, they’ve had people working on the referendum instead of dealing with the pandemic.

“Dozens of civil servants could have been planning to get cancer services running full speed but they’ve been ordered to do this instead. Or they could have been working on getting funds to business, better mental health services or support for schools.

“We are still in a pandemic. Thousands have lost their lives, thousands more have lost their job.

“Reasonable people will think that this is the wrong moment to be pushing a referendum.

“We should put recovery first and bin this bill.”