Democratic mandate clear

Sir, - Some of your recent correspondents have suggested the SNP consulting on a new independence referendum is undemocratic.

Indeed, it is tantamount to “dictatorship” in the words of one (October 22) and a contempt for the electorate is implied by another .

However, it was explicit in the SNP’s Holyrood manifesto that a material change in circumstances, such as Scotland being taken out of the EU against her democratically expressed wishes, could be a catalyst for such a re-think.

That manifesto secured the SNP a historic third term of government.

Therefore, I would like to remind those readers of the words of Ruth Davidson prior to the 2011 Holyrood election.

She stated quite unequivocally: “You don’t get a referendum for free, you have to earn it. So if the Greens and the SNP – and the SSP or any of the other parties who have declared an interest in independence get over the line and can make a coalition, make a majority, get the votes in the parliament, then they’ll vote through a referendum, and that’s what democracy’s all about… it is perfectly simple”.

I hope these words are clear and concise enough to re-assure your readers that even the Tories accept the democratic mandate of the Scottish Government in our current circumstances.

Cllr Kevin Cordell. The Ferry Ward, The City Chambers, Dundee.