A petition launched today calls for a referendum on independence, and MSPs should pay heed, writes ALEX ORR
THE Scottish Parliament will today witness a historic event in Scotland's constitutional development, with the launch of a "people's petition" to hold a referendum on Scottish independence.
Following the launch of the "national conversation", the
Scottish Government-led debate on Scotland's constitutional future, the Scottish Independence Convention aims to advance the case for independence through the launch of a national petition for the holding of a referendum, under the banner "Let Scotland Decide".
The Scottish Independence Convention is an umbrella grouping for supporters of Scotland's independence, with its ranks including members of political parties, as well as other organisations and individuals with no affiliations. Established on St Andrew's Day, 2005, its aims are to create a forum for those of all political persuasions, and none, who support independence, and to be a national catalyst for independence.
Given the current parliamentary arithmetic and because the majority of members oppose the right of the Scottish people to choose their constitutional future – exemplified by the establishment of a constitutional commission by the unionist parties that excludes the option of independence – the time has come to take this issue out of the hands of the politicians, and pass it to the people.
Perhaps the most significant achievement of the Scottish Constitutional Convention, which from the late 1980s prepared the way for devolution, was to entrench popular sovereignty as the founding principle of the new Scottish politics.
Popular sovereignty belongs, simply, to the people. It has a historic resonance, from the Declaration of Arbroath, the 1689 Claim of Right, through to today. This is further evidenced by the Claim of Right, signed in 1989, that acknowledged "the sovereign right of the Scottish people to determine the form of government best suited to their needs". In democratic regimes, it embraces a right for voters to place before their peers for their judgment a proposition of their own choosing.
The launch of a petition to hold a referendum on Scottish independence reinforces the principle that the people of Scotland are sovereign, and aims to put pressure on the Scottish Parliament to hold such a plebiscite, persuading MSPs to acknowledge the basic right of popular self-determination.
It also affirms the fact that, when the Scottish electorate is surveyed, 70 to 80 per cent consistently want to see a referendum on Scottish independence. The aim is to try to get 100,000 names on the independence referendum petition, which will then go forward to the Scottish Parliament, the biggest petition by far submitted to date.
Such an initiative also reflects the use of so-called "citizens' initiatives" in the likes of the United States, Switzerland and New Zealand. Recently introduced elsewhere in the world, particularly in the new democracies of eastern Europe, this has seen major issues such as education policy, healthcare reform and environmental questions put to the people. In England and Wales a referendum on local government constitutional change can be invoked by petitioning, so the concept is not even new in the UK.
An initiative such as this also serves to restore trust and credibility to politics, re-engaging a disillusioned electorate. It is no secret that democracy in Scotland, as in other parts of the western world, is in serious trouble. A trend of falling turn-outs at elections, dramatic falls in party membership and a growing cynicism about politicians of all parties are signs that faith in our entire political system is at an all-time low.
Most people no longer feel any real sense of ownership of politics, fewer people are voting and there is widespread cynicism and disillusionment. Politics is something that, for the vast majority of the general public, happens to them and around them, not something they feel they can control in any meaningful way.
Trust in politicians has also plumbed new depths. The Power inquiry was set up to examine why people were alienated from the political system and set out, in damning detail, research that revealed the extent to which people hold politicians in contempt and have lost faith in the political system itself. In addition, a recent poll found 78 per cent of people agreed that, in order to win elections, parliamentary candidates make promises they have no intention of keeping; 70 per cent believed that most MPs did not care deeply about the problems of ordinary citizens; and 71 per cent said MPs cared more about special interests than people such as themselves. In addition, a Hansard Society poll found only a third of people believed the "present system of governing works well". Sadly, it is clear most citizens no longer feel any real sense of ownership of our democracy.
A citizens' initiative, such as the launch of the "people's petition", not only strengthens our democracy and improves wellbeing, but clearly has a particular relevance to the circumstances in which Scotland now finds herself. Proportional representation is justified on its own democratic merits, but it is no secret that part of its attraction for some champions of devolution was that it would create an additional barrier to the advance of political nationalism – in the famous words of one campaigner against independence, that devolution would kill nationalism "stone dead".
A citizens' initiative challenges this by giving a sufficiently large number of frustrated voters an opportunity to intervene in politics on terms of their own choosing, rather than on the terms dictated by the politicians' club. As highlighted above, it also acknowledges the fact that 70 to 80 per cent of the electorate want to see a referendum on Scottish independence. The petition will not only serve to "let Scotland decide" but tackle voter apathy and cynicism towards the political system, with the potential to revitalise democracy, re-engage people in the political process and make politics work for people: a valuable prize indeed.
• Alex Orr is a member of the Scottish Independence Convention.
The full article contains 1007 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
