DAILY disruption of Westminster business has been suggested by the Alba Party as a method of securing permission for a second independence referendum.
The party urged SNP MPs to follow the lead of Kenny MacAskill and Neale Hanvey, who were kicked out of the Commons earlier this year for continually interrupting Prime Minister’s Questions this summer.
Alex Salmond’s party believes that pro-Yes MPs could “grind Westminster to a standstill every single day until Westminster accepts Scottish democracy” and grant a Section 30 order giving Holyrood the power to hold indyref2.
The UK Government has repeatedly blocked requests from the Edinburgh administration to grant the ability to hold another vote and there has been no indication since the most recent Prime Minister took office the position will change.
Alba have also urged Scots to take part in protests in London which they said “would open the world’s eyes to the cause of Scotland”.
It comes after the Supreme Court rejected the Scottish Government’s bid to hold an independence referendum without Westminster’s permission.
Chris McEleny, Alba’s general secretary, said: “The ruling by the Supreme Court to reject, not just the Scottish Parliament’s legal right to hold an independence referendum, but to go even further, in denying the ancient nation of Scotland’s right to self-determination will go down as one of the key defining moments of 2022.
“But we should be in no doubt that the Supreme Court ruling and the UK Government’s ongoing refusal to transfer the power to the Scottish Parliament to hold an independence referendum pose challenges to the Yes movement which we have a duty to meet head-on.
“Either the Westminster Parliament is sovereign or the people of Scotland are sovereign. It cannot be both.
“How then should the Yes movement respond? The aim must be to bend Westminster to the will of the Scottish people.
“But for that to happen it will be necessary to utilise all of the tools at hand and to implement a clear strategy of parliamentary disruption, diplomatic initiative and to take direct action - on the streets of London, if necessary.
“Each of these tactics has a part to play in driving home the message that the people of Scotland are sovereign and that Scotland’s democracy will not be silenced.
“Alba have shown in the last year, when we disrupted Prime Minister’s Questions, what two MPs can do to command parliamentary and media attention, if they are determined to do so.
“Just think what more could have been achieved if the 40 plus SNP MPs were to exert their political muscle, day in and day out, at Westminster.
“Scottish MPs could grind Westminster to a standstill every single day until Westminster accepts Scottish democracy and peaceful action outside of the parliament in London would open the world’s eyes to the cause of Scotland.
“In the coming year Alba will be setting out ways in which the Independence movement can give voice to Scotland’s democratic right to choose its own future and challenging others to follow our lead.”
