Hopes that IndyRef2 debate will be respectful are miles away from reality

Sir, – Alistair Heather’s commentary piece (IndyRef2 is coming for all) on June 17 was not worthy of a serious newspaper aimed at adults. His faith and exuberance in the second independence referendum following the first minister’s announcement may be touching, but it is based on nothing more than a wish and a prayer.

The bottom line is that constitutional matters lie outwith the powers of the Scottish Parliament; they are fully reserved to Westminster. The Westminster government has made it repeatedly clear that it won’t grant a Section 30 order, which would transfer the powers to Holyrood necessary to hold a referendum.

Of course Nicola Sturgeon could try to copy Catalan which held an unconstitutional referendum in 2017, although she has said she wouldn’t go down the illegal route.

There are numerous problems with holding a referendum without a Section 30 order. There would be legal challenges, a boycott by unionists (as occurred in Catalonia) rendering it unrepresentative and then there is the strongly signalled lack of EU and international recognition.

It’s also far from clear that

Scottish councils, who have to organise polls, could or would agree to lay on such a referendum. The new Labour administrations would hardly do so willingly, which may be a reason why the SNP has been so sore about losing control in Fife and Edinburgh.

Needless to say, the first minister did not deign to go into the detail of how IndyRef2 was to happen when she waved her carrot this week; she is nothing if

not Scotland’s greatest tease when it comes to IndyRef2.

What Alistair Heather should be asking himself amid all the fun and games which we can doubtless look forward to is this: what will agitating for an invalid, if not impossible, referendum do to improve life for people in Scotland?

One thing we can say with certainty: it will harden the constitutional division which has maimed Scottish political culture for the last two decades and it will fuel the strife among colleagues and neighbours, friends and relatives, we saw in 2014.

It’s all very well for Alistair Heather to “want to hear you, whatever your life experience, whatever your opinion” and to “want this debate to be inclusive, intersectional, respectful”, but he is a million miles away from reality.