Ash Regan: Independence for Scotland is not a paper exercise

I had thought the fact that there were 13 was symbolic of the luck they had produced on independence progress, but it seems we are to end on a round number.

To be clear, my concern is not the lack of budget funding for more independence papers – that no-one reads – but the failure of the old pro-independence parties to read the independence movement room and take determined action.

Scotland has seen little tangible action on independence since September 18, 2014, despite a pro-independence parliamentary majority for the subsequent 10 years. This lack of progress is not just disappointing; it’s deeply frustrating, given the ideal circumstances that should have been the catalyst for independence.

READ MORE: Support for Scottish independence reaches highest level in four years

In contrast, independence grassroots campaigning, which started my journey into political activism, has been truly inspiring. Led by ordinary citizens, this has shown remarkable resilience and creativity. The grassroots has pursued progress on the core independence issues those in front-line politics have failed to deliver.

Common Weal has produced detailed policies, underpinned by public attitude surveys and detailed analysis from dedicated expert working groups, to build urgently towards and beyond an independent Scotland. The Scottish Currency Group has turned the 2014 indyref debate “gotcha” into an opportunity for economic experts from Scotland and worldwide to explore options, implications, and consequences by asking critical questions and working diligently to find robust fiscal solutions. Many others have taken on self-funded projects that have helped win hearts and minds by keeping alive the optimistic spirit of the 2014 campaign.

State building to independence continued to an extent after 2014, with Social Security Scotland being the key advance to preparing the social safety net for Scots, placing dignity, respect and support at its heart, in sharp contrast to the UK DWP’s hostile processes, which have broken those who just needed help.

Completing ambitious infrastructure projects like the incredible Queensferry Crossing, Borders Railway, and the Aberdeen Bypass helped boost Scotland’s internal connectivity and inspired confidence in our potential.

However, the political will and ambition for real systemic change have unquestionably dwindled over the past 10 years – unfathomable from a government party constituted on independence for Scotland.

The distraction of the day-to-day management of a devolved government always posed the tempting danger of settling for power in perpetuity without definitive action to deliver independence. Success must no longer be measured by having a pro-independence devolved government; the delivery of independence must be the measure.

Alex Salmond and others saw the opportunity to use devolution as a step-change to transform independence from an idea into a normalised, tangible reality that required capitalising on, not capitulating to Scotland’s circumstances. Yet he also understood the danger of settling into devolved power. Historians will look at the Tory austerity brexit/” target=”_self”>Brexit era as the opening of the door for Scotland to exit, which Nicola Sturgeon quietly closed.

(Image: PA)

The “devolution trap” some in the SNP warned of before the Scottish Parliament, reconvened by Winnie Ewing in 1999, has now ensnared the SNP in a web of their own design; they must carefully navigate out, by focusing on the big picture of independence progress.

Support for independence has remained steadfast against a backdrop of volatile party polling, which is likely to continue as surveys react to events as we approach the 2026 Holyrood election.

In contrast to the second of four SNP first ministers’ previously stated belief, time is not on the SNP’s side to deliver independence.

We cannot risk leaving the independence movement’s power to an SNP who have grasped it so tightly since 2014. If Reform UK captures a “protest-to-power vote” in 2026, power risks slipping through the SNP’s fingers, taking the political capital for independence with them. No political party can afford to ignore a shifting political landscape, and we must all be alive to optimising progress to independence.

A Reform UK vote sold as an expression of dissatisfaction with the current political system and a desire for substantial change may be attractive to a scunnered electorate, even if what it wins them is unclear.

In 2014, independence was the vote for real change; a decisive shift in independence strategy must recapture this ground. If not, the SNP risks the cause it exists for, and the broader independence movement will not forgive it. An SNP/Labour coalition in 2026 will shamefully leave the SNP as an unpalatable skeleton of 90 years of principled dedication to a national cause.

SNP must stop using promises of independence like Christmas heirloom decorations – brought out of the attic and dusted off for every election to decorate their campaign, then carefully packed away once the votes are counted. Lack of follow-through on promises is ultimately self-defeating as it erodes fragile public trust in politicians, opening the door to snake oil promises from Reform.

The SNP can ill afford to be distracted by ideological policies that swim against the tide of public opinion. The Greens’ latest faux Budget red lines and their “hokey cokey” on 2026 deals with the SNP or Labour show that their height of independence ambition is now, ironically, a pile of papers – made from nature’s carbon capture technology, trees – showing that Scotland’s self-determination and even environmental protection have now been trumped by Green identity ideology and their desperation to stay relevant.

Fortunately, there is a path forward for independence if we listen to the electorate, and work with them by stepping step up our vision and ambition, and present a democratic opportunity to express their will for independence in 2026.

The Alba Party are unashamedly pro-independence and demanding tangible independence action, requiring work on many fronts, collectively and collegiately,action to cover all the moving parts needed to make independence a reality.

I have worked constructively in Budget discussions and on the legislative horizon to steer the SNP government back to a competent footing and build national confidence in independence.

I consistently warned the Scottish Government they would open Pandora’s Box by defending ill-thought-through gender self-identity plans, and they have now been embarrassed at the Supreme Court by their legal team presenting the opposite argument on rights that the SNP did in Parliament in 2022. I will not abandon the rights of women and girls, and the SNP cannot afford such folly in the run-up to 2026.

READ MORE: Major new independence poll could be breakthrough moment for Yes movement

Yet opportunities abound. Despite Unionist bravado, I suspect many on the Scottish Labour benches are now aware that Scottish Budget compromises directly result from the failed fiscal framework that traps resource-abundant Scotland in an exhaustive loop as a devolved nation in the UK.

The Scottish Government has made some progress in delivering my reasonable requests for Winter Fuel Payments for the country’s vulnerable pensioners, and fulfilling their 2021 election promise of universal free school meals for primary school children. I will continue working constructively to optimise our shared priorities as we approach the Budget vote in February.

There is much work to do, and Alba is building our team and constructing bridges across the political and non-political independence movement and civic Scotland. Next March begins with the Independence Forum’s National Convention on Scotland’s Future on March 1. The outputs will inform our members’ constructive independence planning for the 2026 election campaign at our Alba Party conference on March 28-29.

Join us on the journey to deliver independence – nothing less.