JEREMY Corbyn seems to be spending an inordinate amount of time in Scotland of late. He is promising Scotland “Home
Rule,” which has been on the Labour party manifesto since 1907, thanks to Keir Hardie’s Independent Labour Party formed in Lanarkshire, Scotland. The next few months will see the born-again Labour messiah and his disciples banging on about federalism and home rule, but nothing about independence. Here are my thoughts on the matter.
Jeremy Corbyn knows nothing about the aspirations of the Scottish people. His aim, of course, is to woo the Scottish people into voting Labour. Corbyn is doing this for one reason and one reason only. He is attempting to seduce the Scottish people into voting for him, as without our votes he will never be Prime Minister. Let me be quite clear on this. He has no intention of delivering home rule to the Scottish people. After all, his party has been promising this for 110 years! Additionally, with 111 powers including taxation available to the Scottish Government, what is left to tempt us with?
Furthermore, at a meeting last year of the Keir Hardie Society, myself and another pro-independence member questioned the speakers (including Richard Leonard) about Labour’s intransigence on home rule. The answers surely demonstrate how divided their party is on this. The first attempt was the view that Keir Hardie was “a bit vague” on what home rule actually meant. Mr Hardie has been called many things, but vagueness was not one of his traits. The next speaker appeared to have a change of heart and said that we already had home rule. Yet another gem was that Scotland would be completely independent but still within the United Kingdom! It is clear, therefore, that not only has the Labour Party no intention of delivering home rule, it doesn’t even know what it is!
WJ Graham
East Kilbride
SATURDAY’S letter about the latest episode of disgraceful behaviour by yet another Tory MSP, while ringing home in its sentiment, struck an unfortunate chord with me. The correspondent described the offender as a landowner, elite and of the “ruling class”.
To be a landowner only takes money – or perhaps even only historical treachery. But we fall into their trap if we acknowledge, or worse, if we actually believe they are either elite or of the so-called “ruling class”. We live in a democracy and it is the people that decide who should rule us. We don’t always get it right, but it is our choice and not something that should be thrust upon us because of a fluke of birth or privilege.
So I make an appeal. Please let us all be grudging in our use of these special words and phrases and do not demean ourselves by awarding praise to the unworthy.
Robert Johnston
Airdrie
I HAVE only missed a few issues of The National and Sunday Herald since publication started and I am constantly uplifted by the honesty of the reporting and the sterling quality of the Readers’ Letters. JF Davidson’s and Sandy Allan’s letters yesterday were a real tonic with their positive comments on the Wee Ginger Dug, however Bob Costello’s comments hit the nail right on the head, viz: “I spoke to an SNP MP last night and was most concerned that they are in a state of self-denial ... and still do not realise that their present state is down to their neglect of independence ... Words fail me.”
Let’s put real commitment back into our party and start by bringing back Scots Wha Hae at the close of the conference on Tuesday 10th, and re-demonstrate that we are really committed to the business in hand: Scotland as a free and INDEPENDENT nation.
Eric McArthur
Dalmuir
WELL said, JF Davidson of Bonnyrigg. Our “next” referendum will clearly be hamstrung by pseudo-legal claptrap. We do, though, have the chance to democratically elect our own government and mandate them to negotiate immediately for independence.
I would like not to wait until 2021, but to look to 2019 for our next election and so recommence the rhythm of four-year elections – four years of negotiations, discussions and agreements, and then a new election as an independent country in 2023.
Donald McGregor
Edinburgh
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