THE UK Government is “running scared” of a second independence referendum because not one of the arguments the pro-Union side made in 2014 still holds up, Alex Salmond will tell the Alba conference.
The former first minister will point to key Better Together arguments from nine years ago during an address to Alba delegates in Inverness on Saturday.
Arguments such as how voting No would protect Scotland’s EU membership and prevent grocery and energy bills from skyrocketing will be highlighted in Salmond’s speech.
He is expected to say: “The Tory Party have junked every commitment they made in the 2014 referendum – they have destroyed their own case for the Union while Labour offer less of the same.
“In 2014 they told us that we would be safe in Europe. Now we are out of the single market and every household in Scotland is paying the price – the Danegeld of Brexit.
“In 2014 they told us we would be safe in Sterling. Now Sterling is kept afloat by sky high interest rates and every household in Scotland is paying the price – the Danegeld of Sterling.
“In 2014 they told us that staying in the UK would mean lower energy bills – falling by £50. Now every household in Scotland is paying thousands extra – the Danegeld of higher heating bills.”
“The Tories have not just wrecked the economy – they have wrecked their own economic case for the Union along with it.”
Salmond will add: “The No campaign in 2014 sneaked home on a false prospectus. Tory and Labour – the Better Together coalition – conned Scotland out of independence.”
In a detailed list accompanying the trailed speech, Alba have provided receipts for the promises made by the No campaign and pro-Union politicians in 2014.
In a report called “Scotland analysis: Energy”, published by the Tory government in April 2014, it stated: “The UK Government has set aside £1 billion for the development of projects in its [Carbon Capture and Storage] Commercialisation Programme and is making £100 million available now to the Peterhead project in Aberdeen … “In the event of a vote for Scottish independence, under the competition criteria, it is unlikely Peterhead would be eligible for further funding from the £1 billion available.”
But in November 2015, the entire £1bn pot was scrapped.
The party also quoted a report from November 2014 where the UK Government estimated that the cost of energy bills would have fallen by around £50 by 2020, from £1369 to £1319.
Instead, energy watchdog Ofgem’s price cap is currently at £3280 for a dual-fuel household paying by direct debit, based on typical consumption.
Elsewhere, a Better Together leaflet compared the cost of groceries in a Tesco in Ireland against the same items in a British Tesco, concluding that it was “16% higher” outside of the UK.
Alba highlighted how grocery price inflation was at 17.5% over the four weeks to March 19, 2023.
