WHILE Boris Johnson has been making controversial attempts to bolster the Union, a committed group of SNP activists on his London doorstep are beavering away to boost support for Scottish independence.

Now with membership approaching an impressive total of 700, London SNP branch is currently embracing digital campaigning during the Covid-19 restrictions and gathering resources ready for the next independence referendum.

The group are already campaign veterans, attracting news crews from as far afield as Canada in the run up to the 2015 Westminster election after setting up a hugely successful call centre operated from Clapham.

There has in fact been an SNP presence in London ever since the formation of the party in 1934 and its members have a rich history of supporting the Scottish independence movement. From activists campaigning in Scotland, to fundraising, participating in conferences or activism in London, the branch has always had a role to play, including during the 2014 independence referendum campaign.

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“I remember particularly during the last month of indyref 2014, people were calling me from all across Scotland,” said David Nummey, who was branch convener at the time.

“Members who had never been active were suddenly taking unpaid leave from work. People who normally had two weeks in Lanzarote in August decided to have two weeks in Lesmahagow. I had people contact me from the London-Glasgow train asking if I could get them accommodation as they only had £20 on them. And, by the way, they were getting into Glasgow in 45 minutes!

“Others were phoning in sick to work, concerned about their grannies in Stirling or Ullapool. The grannies – who all made a miraculous recovery on September 19 – often turned out to be stalwarts of the local Women for Independence group.”

Branch members have continued to be on the ground in every national election in Scotland since.

SNP 2019 Westminster candidate Paul Robertson said the branch was one of the first to offer help when he was selected as the party’s candidate for Banff and Buchan.

“The willingness of the London members to jump in a car and drive 650 miles or more to chap some doors in the rural north-east was hugely helpful and appreciated by our local members,” he said.

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In addition, Fife, Stirling, Edinburgh and Glasgow all saw London branch members chapping doors and putting leaflets through letterboxes throughout November and December for local SNP candidates.

While the Clapham call centre is on a hiatus due to General Data Protection Regulation concerns, members are using their spare time to undertake other important campaigning tasks remotely from home, such as data entry and inputting marked-up registers to Activate.

The branch is also embracing digital campaigning in other ways, such as the Natters podcast on their newly updated London branch website which is in the process of being launched and aims to offer a more enhanced digital experience.

“Natters builds on the hugely popular blether concept by taking the idea that having a wee natter can be a powerful tool,” said digital campaigns officer Jonathan Spink.

“It will primarily focus on offering SNP MSP candidates a platform to talk about issues that are important to them. There is an urgency around digital campaigning and giving our MSP candidates platforms for their voice is more important than ever.”

The Natters podcast aims to give candidates a “stall” to set out their aims, personality and opinions so that people can listen to their main campaign points from the comfort of their own homes.

Spink is also helping advise branches across Scotland and spoke at the recent National Assembly sharing his campaign experience and fresh ideas on maximising digital campaign tools.

Like other branches, the London branch saw a dramatic rise in membership following the 2014 referendum. Whilst the branch’s biggest role will be to arrange transport and reach out to local organisers to see where members could be most useful, there are other initiatives under way.

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“With membership approaching 700, it is important we understand who our members are,” said convenor Finlay Royle. “Through a skills audit, we are hoping to identify members with unique skills and expertise by tapping into the wealth of talent that’s seen many top professionals move to London as part of their careers.

“We’re a unique branch with a very diverse membership, and our members really are our biggest asset.

“The enthusiasm from those of us who’ve moved down from Scotland is just as great as that from Londoners and others who’ve joined the party in solidarity with our cause. When indyref2 comes along, London branch members will be volunteering side by side with activists across Scotland to win us our independence.”

For support with campaigning, constituency associations and campaigns can get in touch with London branch www.londonsnp.scot, directly by email admin@londonsnp.scot or via Twitter www.twitter.com/londonsnp.