THE Alba party are looking to “force” the UK Government into agreeing to a fresh independence referendum through parliamentary interventions and protests.
Alex Salmond’s party have called for a tougher approach from the independence movement to pressure the Tory government into actioning a Section 30 order, which they say should include “popular street agitation”, international diplomatic initiatives, and interventions from independence-supporting MPs at Westminster.
The demand is part of a resolution to the party’s conference which is supported by Salmond and the members of his Alba Party National Executive Committee (NEC).
Alba will also set out that the next UK Election should be contested by pro-independence parties on a united front, with a majority of MP’s elected being a mandate to enter into independence negations with the UK Government.
The NEC of Alba has said: “It is the golden thread of Scottish history and the constitutional tradition of the sovereignty of the people to determine whatever form of Government best suits our needs.
“Scotland’s Claim of Right asserted by the Community of the Realm through history, from the 14th Century to the cross-party agreement of the 1980s is supported by international law on the right of self-determination, and does not require the permission of the UK Parliament to be brought into effect.”
The UK Supreme Court is set to hear the Scottish Government’s case next month on why it should be allowed to hold a referendum without the UK Government’s permission, just after the SNP party conference in Aberdeen and two days before Alba Party members will gather in Stirling for their second annual conference.
However, Salmond’s party are calling on Scotland’s parliamentarians to create the circumstances to facilitate a future test on independence and not rely on the UK Supreme Court.
The party further will call for “the recognition by the elected MSPs and MPs of Scotland that they are the custodians of Scottish sovereignty and that it is their responsibility, not that of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, to create the political circumstances which will allow Scotland’s right of self-determination to be expressed next year.”
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has stated that she intends to turn the next UK election info a “defacto referendum” if she is unable to deliver a referendum agreed by Westminster or authorised by the Supreme Court.
An Alba party spokesperson added: “Independence and tackling the cost-of-living crisis will be front and centre of our discussions at conference.
“Both matters are fundamentally related as it is an absurdity Scotland is an energy-rich land of plenty but we have Scots living in fuel poverty.”
Alba Party’s Conference will be held in the Albert Halls on Saturday, October 15, and Sunday, October 16.
