BOTH sides of the Scottish independence debate should join with civic Scotland to chart a course for a second independence referendum, Stephen Flynn suggests.
Speaking to PA News Agency, the SNP Westminster leader says it would take “bravery” for nationalist and unionist sides to take part in such a process.
His comments came as he said he did not believe voters “would say no again” if a second independence referendum were to be held.
He added that Scotland is stuck with people evenly split on remaining part of the UK in what he calls a “constitutional impasse”.
“Neither side has won” he adds, “We are still roughly 50/50 each way, give or take a percentage here or there. It is the one thing that hasn’t shifted.”
“In order to come to a conclusion and to move things forward we need to understand the framework.”
He suggested that “the leading figures of unionism and the leading figures of Scottish nationalism” should be “in a room alongside civic society in Scotland plotting out how we come together and find a reasonable solution.
“I think the time has come for the grown-ups to get into the room and work together in the best interests of the Scottish people to get to a conclusion on this.”
He continued: “Obviously, my views are well known, I want Scotland to be independent. But we need to move this forward and the only way to move it forward is dialogue.
He added that any framework drawn up by such a group for a second referendum “maybe doesn’t meet all of our expectations on either side” – but said that it would allow the Scottish people to “understand how they can have a vote on their future” – with Flynn declaring this to be the “most important thing”.
“It would serve Scotland well for that to happen because we can’t, in my view, as a society prosper if we have another 10 years of people saying, ‘next time’ or UK politicians saying this isn’t happening, ‘now is not the time’.
“People on both sides of the constitutional divide need to come together to chart a course through which people can have their say. That is going to take bravery on the side of nationalists, who believe you can just get on and do this and I think it is going to require bravery on the side of unionists.
“For the vast majority of the Scottish public, that is what they would expect serious politicians to do in serious times.”
He continued: “I think it is probably a reflection of maybe all of us in politics over the last 10 years that we haven’t yet came to a grown-up position about the terms through which the people of Scotland can express their view.
“Maybe with the new Government in London and an SNP Government in Edinburgh we can do that now.”
