Meeting of the Parliament 07 February 2017
Today’s debate is marked by omission, irony and confusion. [Interruption.] The SNP motion is significant in what it does not say. In fact, the minister was very disciplined today, and I do not think that the word “independence” passed his lips—certainly, the motion does not mention it. However, independence is all that the SNP really wants, and we know that to be true. The Conservative amendment is full of irony. It accuses the SNP of “division” when it is the Conservatives who have divided this country over Brexit, merely to heal the divisions in their own party. The Labour amendment is marked by its length, in an attempt to hide total and utter confusion over what the party’s position actually is. The Labour Party has sought to bring clarity on Brexit by opposing the position of the Labour Party on Brexit. That brings great clarity today, so I commend Labour members for the tautology.
What is consistent among the three parties is that each is giving up on the European Union. The Conservative leadership, having argued to remain, now favours a hard Brexit, no matter the consequences for our economy, our security or our environment. The Labour Party is simply following the Conservatives. It is a compliant and ineffective Opposition at Westminster, which does not serve our country well.
Further, we now learn that the SNP is abandoning the European Union, too. Instead of pledging to take an independent Scotland back into full membership of the European Union, there are reports that it will only make the case to join Lichtenstein in the EEA. Those pro-Europeans who thought that independence would be the answer to Brexit—that EU membership would follow independence as night follows day—need to think again. To get the independence-supporting Brexiteers back on board for independence, the SNP is preparing to sell pro-Europeans down the river. It will use the EU to get an independence referendum and ditch the EU to win independence.