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| Independence pledge whets appetite, but SNP faithful are in no rush | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| “It’s what people want to hear,” says Nicky MacCrimmon of Nicola Sturgeon’s pledge to delegates on the first morning of Scottish National party conference to publish a draft bill next week calling for a second Scottish independence referendum. | “It’s what people want to hear,” says Nicky MacCrimmon of Nicola Sturgeon’s pledge to delegates on the first morning of Scottish National party conference to publish a draft bill next week calling for a second Scottish independence referendum. |
| “They want to know it’s not off the agenda. I don’t think they really thought it was off the agenda, but the party needs to make these public pronouncements. Then again, a consultation about the first draft of a bill to hold a vote means that a referendum is still a long way down the road.” | “They want to know it’s not off the agenda. I don’t think they really thought it was off the agenda, but the party needs to make these public pronouncements. Then again, a consultation about the first draft of a bill to hold a vote means that a referendum is still a long way down the road.” |
| MacCrimmon, from Perthshire, is one of the party’s burgeoning membership who joined in the aftermath of the last independence referendum. He is also the land reform activist behind the SNP leadership’s only defeat of last autumn’s conference. MacCrimmon is no seasoned loyalist. But neither is he pawing the dust in anticipation of a second referendum, as his cohort are often characterised. | MacCrimmon, from Perthshire, is one of the party’s burgeoning membership who joined in the aftermath of the last independence referendum. He is also the land reform activist behind the SNP leadership’s only defeat of last autumn’s conference. MacCrimmon is no seasoned loyalist. But neither is he pawing the dust in anticipation of a second referendum, as his cohort are often characterised. |
| “Of course there are people who want a referendum to happen now,” agrees Margaret Young, of SNP Ayrshire branch, “and for very good reasons, which are not to do with being old or new members but because the country is in a desperate state with Brexit and austerity.” | “Of course there are people who want a referendum to happen now,” agrees Margaret Young, of SNP Ayrshire branch, “and for very good reasons, which are not to do with being old or new members but because the country is in a desperate state with Brexit and austerity.” |
| Young, a committee member for campaign group Women for Independence, describes Sturgeon’s announcement as “an important moment to settle people, to help them understand that there are things happening, and to know when they are happening”. | Young, a committee member for campaign group Women for Independence, describes Sturgeon’s announcement as “an important moment to settle people, to help them understand that there are things happening, and to know when they are happening”. |
| “I’ve been in the SNP since 1983, and independence has always been such a long-term thing for me, perhaps it’s easier for me to understand why we have to wait,” she adds, quoting Sturgeon’s own observation from her welcome address that “there’s not a day that passes without someone advising me to hurry up with a referendum. And not a day that passes without someone advising me to slow down”. | |
| A veteran of more modest SNP gatherings, Young admits that the scale of the Glasgow event will take some getting used to. The party has commandeered the city centre’s premium conference centre as well as the 3,500-capacity Clyde Auditorium and the five-star hotel next door for the overflow. | A veteran of more modest SNP gatherings, Young admits that the scale of the Glasgow event will take some getting used to. The party has commandeered the city centre’s premium conference centre as well as the 3,500-capacity Clyde Auditorium and the five-star hotel next door for the overflow. |
| For a membership once known for its love of quirky tartan outfits, the sartorial giddiness has been kept to a minimum, and perhaps this is mirrored too in the lack of referendum-related zealotry. The atmosphere is sober and serious-minded, with first-time speakers – of whom there are many – encouraged to the stage by an attentive and engaged audience who continue to fill the auditorium throughout the day. | For a membership once known for its love of quirky tartan outfits, the sartorial giddiness has been kept to a minimum, and perhaps this is mirrored too in the lack of referendum-related zealotry. The atmosphere is sober and serious-minded, with first-time speakers – of whom there are many – encouraged to the stage by an attentive and engaged audience who continue to fill the auditorium throughout the day. |
| There is also the Heathrow-sponsored private lounge bar, located in a premium site above the main conference auditorium, which is particularly notable just days after the SNP government announced its support for a third runway and so far appears to have become the preferred venue for MPs and MSPs to meet and greet. | There is also the Heathrow-sponsored private lounge bar, located in a premium site above the main conference auditorium, which is particularly notable just days after the SNP government announced its support for a third runway and so far appears to have become the preferred venue for MPs and MSPs to meet and greet. |
| Across the river, at IdeaSpace, the free alternative fringe festival organised by veterans of the yes movement following complaints that the increasingly corporate character of the main conference, the focus remains on granular policy debate about alternative currencies in the event of independence. | Across the river, at IdeaSpace, the free alternative fringe festival organised by veterans of the yes movement following complaints that the increasingly corporate character of the main conference, the focus remains on granular policy debate about alternative currencies in the event of independence. |
| The referendum bill was meat for the party, said organiser Robin McAlpine, “but I’m not sure how many calories it had in it”. | The referendum bill was meat for the party, said organiser Robin McAlpine, “but I’m not sure how many calories it had in it”. |
| “It feels too much like ‘something has to be done so let’s do something’,” he adds. “They keep setting things up, like the listening exercise [which Sturgeon announced last month, asking SNP members to survey no voters to discover their concerns about independence].” | “It feels too much like ‘something has to be done so let’s do something’,” he adds. “They keep setting things up, like the listening exercise [which Sturgeon announced last month, asking SNP members to survey no voters to discover their concerns about independence].” |
| “The SNP are aware of the potential damage of putting this on the back burner again, but the problem is that there’s still no agreement on strategy, other than looking like you’re doing things that don’t actually commit you to doing anything.” | “The SNP are aware of the potential damage of putting this on the back burner again, but the problem is that there’s still no agreement on strategy, other than looking like you’re doing things that don’t actually commit you to doing anything.” |