A LEADING SNP advocate of an early independence referendum has said the chances of it happening this year are "simply none" because of coronavirus.
Chris McEleny, a former candidate for SNP depute leader, said a nationwide campaign “would simply not be wise or possible during a pandemic of this nature”.
The Inverclyde council group leader said SNP members “shouldn’t diminish ourselves by pretending” that the virus hadn’t ended the prospect of Indyref2 this year.
Pro-Union campaigners said the SNP should now formally rule out a referendum before next year's Scottish Parliament election.
Nicola Sturgeon recently insisted Indyref2 was still possible in late 2020, and SNP Westminster Ian Blackford yesterday said the party was still fully committed to the date.
He told the Herald on Sunday: “I want to see an independence referendum this year, of course I do. But we do recognise, of course, that in the next few weeks – we don’t know how long this is going to go on for – life is going to change.”
Last week he suggested “all our efforts” were focused on securing Indyref2 for this year.
However Mr McEleny, who demanded Indyref2 by the end of 2020 when he ran for the deputy's position in 2018, said the virus had put an end to political “business as usual”.
Mr McEleny and SNP MP Angus MacNeil are two of the party’s leading advocates for having a Plan B on independence in the face of Boris Johnson blocking Indyref2.
With the Prime Minister refusing to grant Holyrood the power it needs to hold a legally watertight referendum, Mr McEleny and Mr MacNeil argue a pro-independence election win should be sufficient to trigger independence negotiations instead.
To that end, they want to include the idea in the SNP’s manifesto for the 2021 Holyrood election, and had planned to canvas support from SNP members in the coming months.
However Mr McEleny today said the pair’s efforts had been “suspended” because of coronavirus and the SNP cancelling its spring conference in Aviemore due in on June 13.
Referencing Mr Blackford’s comments, he said: “The CoronaVirus pandemic could carry on well into summer.
“If the peak projection is June then we might only be on the other side of the curve well into the second half of the year - and that’s if management of the pandemic goes as hoped.
“We shouldn’t then diminish ourselves by pretending this doesn’t change business as usual and that there is still the prospect of a referendum this year - it does, and there isn’t.
“The chances of a referendum being agreed to by Boris Johnson were already slim to none, they are now simply none.
“Although there’s nothing to stop the powers over holding a consented referendum still being devolved to the Scottish Parliament, a referendum on Scottish independence deserves a level of debate that reaches every doorstep in Scotland.
“That would simply not be wise, or possible, during a pandemic of this nature.
“The SNP now have to accept this, focus on providing the leadership the country needs during this crisis and then, at our autumn conference hopefully after we have got past this crisis, we can have a real debate on how we will take forward the case for independence."
READ MORE: Independence referendum could 'absolutely' happen this year, says Nicola Sturgeon
He went on: “Postponing the SNP’s June policy making conference is the right decision given the current Coronavirus crisis as it is fundamental that everyone’s key priority right now must be listening to the up-to-date advice issued and supporting measures to address the crisis.
“However there are still other major issues facing the SNP and Scotland which won’t go away. These must be addressed with democratic debate when the crisis is over and at that point we will seek to go back out across the country to speak to SNP members, and the wider independence movement, about why it’s essential we have an independence Plan B to counter the anti democratic position of Boris Johnson and his UK Government.”
Pamela Nash, chief executive of Scotland in Union, said: “The only sensible course of action at this time is for the SNP to formally rule out a second referendum prior to the elections in May 2021.
“It should never have been on the table in any case when it’s clear it’s not what the people of Scotland want.
“This is a time for the Scottish and UK governments to work together in the interests of every citizen in the United Kingdom.”
The SNP has been asked for comment.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel