For the avoidance of doubt, the featured image does not represent reality.
There is no such polity.
However, the possibility of such a state is discussed in Native Shore by Róisín Ní Fhlaithearta.
She is the Sinn Féin Taoiseach who is keenly interested in the unfolding constitutional crisis in Scotland.
I’ve been thinking about this issue since a noisy event in the British Parliament last week.
The two honourable members (Neale Hanvey and Kenny MacAskill) represent Alex Salmond’s Alba party.
Their leader thinks he knows about the history of this island.
He doesn’t.
Someone with more patience than me should let the Scot know that Parnell failed and his successor John Redmond fared no better.
I offer without comment the observation that it was a sex scandal finally felled the leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party.
Of course, in order for Hanvey and MacAskill to indulge in their stunt, they first had to be admitted as MPs in the first place.
To do so, they had to swear the Loyal Oath to the Saxe-Coburg family.
Here is one of their erstwhile SNP colleagues doing just that.
After this degradation ceremony is complete, then the well-paid legislators are allowed, within limits, to indulge in fierce-sounding performance art.
This tweet from SNP parliamentary leader Ian Blackford is a case in point.
I know I shouldn’t, but I had to point this inconvenient fact out to the British MP.
I have addressed the Redmondite nature of the Royalist SNP before in this piece from September 2020.
Since then, their unserious nature seems, if anything, to have become more entrenched.
I was encouraged to read this piece from Kevin McKenna in the Herald.
Full disclosure, I know the man and have a lot of time for him.
Consequently, he isn’t beholden to any vested interest and can call it as he sees it.
I did smile when I read Kevin’s piece.
In the 1987 British General Election, I convinced the SNP candidate in my native east end to put out a leaflet stating that he would not take his seat at Westminster if elected.
This sent the folk at HQ in Edinburgh reaching for the Andrex.
Yet abstentionism is the ONLY thing that denies democratic legitimacy to Westminster to rule over Scotland.
That did for the Irish Parliamentary Party in the khaki election here in 1918.
The message was clear: the Irish people believed the Westminister Parliament had no right to rule this island.
It moved the dial from Home Rule (i.e. a form of devolution) to full independence.
That essential truth also seems to have escaped the SDLP MPs elected from the Six Counties.
Swearing the Loyal Oath “under protest” is still bending the knee to take the shilling Colum.
Moreover, the Brits know that too.
I reckon that with £84,144 plus lavish expenses, there isn’t any cost of living crisis for Honourable Members.
Attending Westminster simply states that the legitimacy of the legislature to rule over the specific constituency is duly accepted.
That SHOULD be a problem for anyone believing in Irish reunification or Scottish independence.
Abstentionism is THE conversation that has to be had now in Scotland amongst those who would style themselves as being in the pro-indy camp
Until they do, I fear that they are as phoney as that pretendy Scottish passport.
Now to conclude, here is the real one that your humble correspondent travels on.
It’s much better in every way…
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Scotland should aspire to being an outright republic. It’s logical to cut ties with the Windsor freak show. Ireland shouldn’t be complacent about anything though. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have always been an embarrassment. Succesive Taoiseachs have repeatedly had this cozy relationship with Washington, and its various collection of insane presidents. They could be sleepwalking towards the war criminals of Nato. Sinn Fein have waited a century to take the country forward. That’s been too long.
Westminster… The Pantomime. Living in the 17th or 18th century. State opening of Parliament where a guy in fancy dress and a big stick, or rod, bangs on the door to get it opened.
650 ‘Right Honourable and Honourable’ members… yeah right.
Being brought up in Glasgow to an Irish family l joined the SNP as a naive 17 year old in 1967. I believed, wrongly, that when a majority of SNP MP’s were elected to England’s parliament, sorry the Yookay Parliament, that would open negotiations for independence. So just as the old Labour Party in Scotland joke went, the Northern branch official title, Keep Scotland Tory… vote Labour, it matters not if the whole of Scotland votes SNP… we still need to ask our bosses in London if we can have a referendum to decide if we want to leave Westminster’s clutches.
Now that Bunter has gone we will wait for the verdict of Tory England’s new PM whether we can have a choice to stay or leave.
As Enoch Powell rightly remarked when we were allowed our token talking shop… “Devolution allowed, note the allowed, means Power retained”!
As SNP MP’s continue to trudge down to London to take part in the Pantomine and occasionally voice their concerns to a hostile Westminster nothing will change. Holyrood stands by and allows the shame of Orange racist and anti RC marches in our towns and cities in the name of Kulture. These peepul have pledged their loyalty to the Crown, so banning their triumphaist parades won’t lose the SNP many, if any, votes. The NF is banned from marching as they offend our ethnic minorities. In Scotland it seems that anti Irish/Catholic marches are exempt
As things stand we’re going nowhere fast.
ps, loved your book Native Shore… but as a former member of the SNG who knew Willie McCrae l find it hard to believe that after he suicidedly shot himself twice in the head in that lonely deserted Glen… he threw the gun 50 yards away.
Now where were all out investigative journos then, like now nowhere to be seen.
Many regards Phil…
Don`t take the oath: just the expenses.
Sinn Fein candidates in the North have never taken the oath of allegiance. The six counties remain in the UK and reunification, while possible, is hardly imminent. The remaining counties fought a guerrilla war for independence. It is undeniable that that had more to do with eventual independence than refusing to take an oath. It remained a British protectorate, with the British monarch as head of state for 27 years after that. Do you think Scotland should fight a war? Is there anything in the actual material situation which necessitates that or suggests it would be successful?
There’s not much point in going to great pains to point out the differences between the Irish and Scottish situations (when, so far as I can see, there is no one saying otherwise), while at the same time criticising pro-independence Scots for not using the same tactics. The situation, as everyone who knows anything knows, is not the same. It’s not entirely illegitimate to invoke Parnell, because that era of the Irish movement is at least comparable. But it’s a limited analogy for Salmond to use because, as you point out, it was unsuccessful.
Has Nicola not all but declared her, and her party’s allegiance to the Saxe-Coburg-Goethe lineage in perpetuity should Scotland achieve independence? Scotland therefore, would never be a republic. As a Scotsman I will not be voting for a party which expounds such a policy and, if no other party will offer opposition to this, then they will not receive my vote.
When you state that Scotland was a coloniser prior to 1707 are you referring to the botched Darien Scheme?
That was one of them.
The Scots also had embryonic colonies in what is now the USA during the Restoration period.
Also Nova Scotia(1621) under James VI and Cape Breton (1625)
East New Jersey (1683) was granted by Charles II during the Restoration Period after Cromwell’s Commonwealth.
The Scottish appetite for colonising did not start when they became part of the new state of Great Britain.
It’s a bit late now. Once the oath is taken, it is taken for all time as it swears allegiance to all her descendants. In my opinion, swearing the oath applies not to just you but the party you represent. I believe that the SNP and the SDLP are queens parties, british parties and no longer Irish or Scottish
It,s getting near the point where abstention is becoming a nesessity! After that it can only be armed insurrection as was the case with our Irish Cousins
It must be stated that physical force is not an option in any way.
Ireland was colonised by Britain. Scotland was never a colony. Colonies do not have their own legal system. Scotland was a coloniser and was in the empire game before it joined with England in 1707 to build Great Britain and plunder the planet. This is an imperialist divorce. Nothing more. Any comparisons with Ireland are, frankly, asinine.
To clarify, your argument is that because an unelected group of wealthy land owners in the 18th century signed a document that Scotland isn’t a colony? Are you aware that the UK Supreme Court has the power to overrule both the Scottish Parliament and the Court of Session? That doesn’t seem like Scotland having its own legal system to me. And to be clear, I’m not referring to Nicola Sturgeon begging the UK Supreme Court for a referendum, I’m referring to the UK Supreme Court overruling legislation passed by the Scottish Parliament.
Scotland was a coloniser. Never a colony.
Throughout the 17th century, the Scottish state was an ambitious imperilaist.
1707 was a marriage of two states already in the imperialism game.
Together they made the state of Great Britain and plundered the planet for centuries.
The so-called Scottish Parliament is a regional assembly playing dress-up.
Westminster is sovereign.
Scotland, or at least the nobles(Lords) that controlled Scotland at the time, were forced into the union with England, and it was these people that had aspirations of being colonisers, which spectacularly backfired when they became the natives colonised by their more powerful neighbour.
Colonised nations do not keep their own legal system.
The Scottish nobles of the 17th century were indeed ambitious, and cowardly, stupid and greedy. However, what you’re failing to recall is that the people of Scotland supported the House of Stuart. The old catholic monarchy. The line of kings and queens of Scotland that was ousted by “King Billy”. Upon the signing of the Acts of Union 1707 there were riots up and down Scotland. This civil unrest continued until the eventual defeat of Bonnie Prince Charlie (the heir of the House of Stuart) at the Battle of Culloden 38 years later. The House of Stuart were very likely just as ambitious and greedy however they were the people that the Scots wanted to remain in power over Scotland. The people of Scotland had the House of Orange-Nassau and later the House of Hanover forced upon them. Indeed the heir to the House of Stuart has to frequently make clear that his family have no intention of trying to reclaim the Crown of Scotland, I assume out of fear of the House of Windsor. So I really struggle to see how you can think that the Scottish people were ever in favour of a union with England.
“However, what you’re failing to recall is that the people of Scotland supported the House of Stuart.”
This is stunning historical illiteracy.
It’s probably just as well that you’re courageously concealed.
I don’t have the patience for this level of ignorance.
For the hard of thinking here it is:
More Scots raised arms against Charlie in the ’45 than for him.
The reasons for that are complex and nuanced.
So I won’t even offer them to you.
Please don’t reply.
Westminster is not sovereign in Scotland. The Claim of Right (a truly despicable bigoted document written by the Scottish nobles that you quite rightly criticise) states clearly that sovereignty in Scotland lies with the people, popular sovereignty. Even Westminster doesn’t dispute the fact that this fundamental piece of the Scottish Constitution still applies in Scotland.
Then the Westminster MPs representing Scottish constituencies should simply withdraw and fight by-elections on an abstentionist platform.
That will withdraw legitimacy from the UK parliament to rule over Scotland.
Of course, that would beman that the honourable members would have to forfeit their extravagant salaries.
Hi Phil, couldn’t agree more . Scottish “mp’s” attending the Palace of Westminster to cowtow to there imperialist masters gives them legitimacy to ride roughshod over anything that the devolved tried to legislate . Also swearing allegiance to the asylum seekers (coburg) is neauseating to behold . For gods sake grow a pair and withdraw from this criminal , warmongering murdering institution . Now . Sorry about the rant , it’s passion and realism .