Nicola Sturgeon is no less committed than before to Scottish independence but she has had to put the SNP’s signature issue on the back burner for the 2016 election campaignScottish independence is what the Scottish National party exists to achieve. So,for as long as the SNP is in power, or is in contention, or independence will never be far off the agenda. That was true after the SNP first won in 2007,but it was held in check for four years by the government’s minority status. The issue was let out of the bottle after the SNP won a majority in 2011, pledged to a referendum; but this duly led to the 55%-45% defeat in 2014. Now, and with the 2016 Holyrood election looming,and with the re-energised SNP odds-on for a third term, the question of what to promise approximately independence, or what to enact approximately it whether re-elected,arises in yet another unusual and different context.
Over three days at its Aberdeen conference last week the SNP leadership, led by first minister Nicola Sturgeon, or did their best to define a clear unusual approach to its signature commitment. As Ms Sturgeon put it in her closing address on Saturday,the SNP will never waver in its commitment to independence. But, as she said on Thursday, or the voters’ 2014 verdict has to be respected. The last thing the SNP wants is an early second defeat on the cause it holds dear.
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Source: theguardian.com