INDY-supporting Yessers in Inverness have set a date for the opening of their new shop in what used to be the constituency office of former LibDem MP and one-time chief secretary to the Treasury Sir Danny Alexander.
The waterside building at No 45 Huntly Street will be officially opened on August 5 by The National columnist Lesley Riddoch.
Artist Morag Frame inherited the premises from her mother and will now share it with the Inveryess2 group’s YesHub sitting alongside her own gallery.
Prominent campaigner Kay Frew Harris told The National: “It will be a joint opening for both the gallery and the YesHub. We’ve painted the room and have carpet tiles arriving, also flags, craft materials and maps and books to go on display.
“We’ll have the opening at the shop with up to 40 people, because that’s as much as it will hold. We’ll go from there to a hall where Lesley will give a talk. Morag been really great and is putting in a fire so we’ll have a wood-burning fire and it’ll be a really good hub. We have one window of the shop and Morag has the other and we intend to compete for the best display.
“Volunteers have painted the room and we have had donations of chairs, tables, computer, shelving, a hoover, and so on. We need a printer, but I’m sure after opening that will be easy.”
Alexander had leased the office when he was MP for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey until he lost the seat to the SNP’s Drew Hendry in 2015. Hendry held the constituency in last year’s General Election with almost 40 per cent of the vote.
Frew Harris said support for independence was still strong in the Highland capital, although people were aware that next time, the approach would have to be different from 2014.
“Theresa May loves to say now is not the time, but now is the time,” she said. “It’s unbelievable what’s happened. We’ve never seen a political climate like this in our lives. But we think the way we’ve got to get more support for independence is through more talking and debating, more events – we’ve got a Scottish quiz night coming up – and we think the shop has to be open to everybody, regardless of what you vote.
“We have people from the Green Party, Radical Independence and others who simply support the cause.
“It’s to talk about independence for Scotland and to be ready for when a campaign proper begins. We’ve got a big group and we have regular meetings every month. We have nearly 300 people on the mailing list and there are a lot of strong supporters on it.
“So we have a good following, a big database, and we also realise that this time the approach is going to be different. It’s got to be more serious, with less music and flags.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel