Dear friends,
Greetings from the self acclaimed centre of the British universe, also known as London. I look on with no small envy at the evolving debate on what is quietly described in these parts as 'The future of the UK'. My friends from outside the UK have taken to asking me 'where I stand', so here, for posterity is the answer to that question.
It is something of a taboo in these parts to raise the question of independence. Conversations even with some of my oldest friends from Scotland and outside, veer toward and away from the subject at equal pace. Scots away from home share a great deal; a warm camaraderie, a sense of safety in a celtic sense of humour and self-deprecation, the sauce vs vinegar question... But the idea of independence drives a coach and horses through this that even a shared appreciation of the deep fried pizza cannot reconcile.
I'm trying to understand why.
Michael Gove, Alexanders Douglas and Danny, Andrews Neil and Marr, Kirsty Wark to name but a few… Whilst the number of Scots in power has declined somewhat with the fall of Labour and the Scottish Raj, these are the faces we see on television, day in and out, shaping the United Kingdom and the discourse around its politics. All of these people oppose independence. All of them have, like me, made something of a success of not being in Scotland, arguably taking advantage of Britain as an entity.
For them, perhaps, the notion of nationalism is in itself, small minded, petty, couched on that which divides us not unites us. They may feel, as I do that separatism for its own sake is as unattractive and ripe for the same derision as they heap upon Nigel Farage and UKIP.
And yet…
I look upon the argument of the case for independence as a false debate that has been unhelpfully shifted toward fear and the question of 'could'. Any Scot, even if pushed, those of a Unionist disposition will tell you that 'could' isn't even up for debate. Not for a people who have at various points not only run Scotland, but arguably the whole UK, not to mention a role on the international stage that belays our size. Ask a Scot to do something for you. See what happens.
For me, I think the debate falls into a question of stepping back to go forward and the reason for this, is oddly enough, UKIP. History tells us that the Scots have always been a people who are unafraid of change, unafraid of travel, unafraid of risk. We are a people of innovation and of culture, education and both literal and metaphorical bridge building. We are a people who have always had friends, in Europe and across the world.
Therefore, it is untenable for me as a Scot to see my country's international interaction shaped by people who look inward. UKIP, and the pressure they exert on Cameron's Tories and Milliband's Labour are shaping our relationships with our key friends in the most powerful economic market on the planet. The worst moment of political cowardice I can remember was for me the day when Cameron retracted his pronouncement on UKIP as 'Clowns and Closet Racists'. The phrase was childish for sure but more depressing than the words themselves was the reason for their retraction - in effect that UKIP had garnered enough people in support of their policies that they must therefore be of some merit. It reminds me of a phrase on a postcard that used to sit on the door of my University halls. 'Never underestimate the ability of stupid people in large groups.'
As a Scot, a Brit and an internationalist who has worked on projects in India, Libya, Nigeria, South Africa, France, Italy and the US, I do not want my political leaders to be wasting time discussing UKIP with our neighbours. (We are likely to be sending a brigade of UKIP MEPS to Brussels in the next two months) I, like many Scots support close ties with our European friends and if Britain cannot build on her relationship and abandon her fear of 'the other', address the inability of her citizens to outcompete migrants for jobs in their first language, I would like to see that relationship taken up by Scotland for Scotland.
I would have much more faith in the negotiation platform of the current Scottish Government - the only majority administration in the UK - than in David Cameron's almost schizophrenic, laboured struggles which are more about UKIP and his own backbenchers than any real progressive policies.
Opposite to Cameron, the Scottish Nationalists for all their faults are not short of one key element - that of political courage. In a country where the three main UK parties fight over the same six inches of political ground and policies are determined and discarded upon the whims of the focus group, it is refreshing and invigorating to see a party trying to achieve something difficult, fighting against the odds, knowing the the reality and likelihood of defeat but doing it anyway for a genuine belief in a better future. If the UK had a shred of that kind of political ambition, I might not be writing this letter.
I can't tell my fellow Scots how to vote. Not living in the mother country and unlike David Bowie, I reluctantly forfeit my right to do so, but I can implore you/them to vote for the right reason, to really consider the political structures and interests that shape this country and honestly ask yourself if they represent you truly and fairly. I would also ask you not to fear the detail. In truth, no one can say what will happen with certainty. To face uncertainty is to be human. In many ways, uncertainty is the opposite of conservatism, and Scotland has with some success, defined itself against conservative principles for over thirty years.
When I was younger, I wanted to be an astronaut. More accurately, I wanted to be a Science Officer on the Enterprise D and bring Jean Luc Picard his tea (Earl Grey, Hot) But as I get older and realise my lack of affinity for science is only surpassed in its unsuitability by my fear of heights, I realise that it was the five year mission I really wanted; going out into the unknown with a set of values and testing those values against whatever the universe could throw. Scotland and Scots at home and abroad have a chance to embark upon such a mission, unencumbered by 'little England'.
I know a Star Trek metaphor, even one between friends is unlikely to sway anyone, but I will say this. When the Captain of the Enterprise needed more power, needed the engines to perform above their design specifications, there's a reason why he always asked Scotty.
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