Meeting of the Parliament 18 September 2024
I am sorry, but I have already taken two interventions from members on the Government front bench.
As historians look back over the past 10 years, they will see them as Scotland’s lost decade—years in which we divided our country and fought bitter arguments against ourselves on an issue that we had already voted on. Generations of Scots will come to see that as a national act of self-harm. They will wonder why some chose to continue to make the same arguments again and again, why the Government of the day chose to indulge in fantasy politics instead of dealing with the real issues that our country faced, and why the national interest was ignored for the SNP’s nationalist interest. They will see through the empty promises and understand that, for the past 10 years, the independence debate has been a distraction and a deflection from other issues. The SNP has wheeled out its pledge election after election to avoid having to stand on its record. It is a way of blaming Westminster for all the ills that Scotland faces and, ultimately, of avoiding taking responsibility for the grave errors that the SNP has made.
Today, on the 10th anniversary of the 2014 independence referendum, my message to John Swinney and the SNP Government is this: you lost. Get over it, and let us all move on.
I move amendment S6M-14524.4, to leave out from “the Scottish Government” to end and insert:
“Scotland is a modern, diverse, dynamic nation as part of the UK, and believes that the Scottish Government should use all its powers to improve the lives of people who live in Scotland by prioritising health, education and the other devolved functions, and accept the result of the independence referendum of 18 September 2014, when Scotland voted to remain part of the UK.”
Motions, questions or amendments mentioned by their reference code.