THE SNP have said there was never a “positive argument for Scotland remaining under Westminster control” after Gordon Brown admitted the independence campaign was stronger than Unionism.
The former Labour prime minister, a key figure in the Better Together campaign, warned those on his side they must put forward a “positive argument” if they wanted to keep the UK intact.
Speaking with the Financial Times, Brown said: “You’ve got to put a positive argument. You can’t just say the SNP have failed, therefore independence is off the agenda [...] In the long run, the forces pulling Britain apart are greater than the forces holding it together, unless something is done about it.”
The SNP leapt on his comments, saying the “damage Westminster has inflicted on Scotland is unforgivable”.
Keith Brown, the party’s deputy leader, said: “There has never been a positive argument for Scotland remaining under Westminster control and it seems that even Gordon Brown can now see that to be the case.
“During the 2014 independence referendum, the 'No’ campaign was built on nothing more than scaremongering and, what we can now see to be, broken promises - and, since then, the damage Westminster has inflicted on Scotland is unforgivable.
READ MORE: Gordon Brown admits independence campaign is 'greater than' Unionism
"Westminster isn’t working for Scotland and there is no positive case for broken Brexit Britain - only the SNP and independence offers a better future for our country.
“Just like other comparable independent nations, Scotland has the resources, skills and people to be a successful country but the failing Westminster system is holding us back from reaching our potential.
“With the Tories and Keir Starmer’s Labour Party offering no meaningful change, the Westminster election is an opportunity for people to vote SNP to build a stronger, fairer, wealthier country where decisions about Scotland are taken in Scotland with independence.”
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