Majority rules

Having voted unanimously to approve the Scottish Parliament Bills enshrining the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the European Charter of Local Government into Scots Law it is hypocritical for Unionist MSPS to attack the SNP for introducing those sensible measures which Scotland’s Chief Law Officer and the Scottish Parliament’s Presiding Officer deemed to be competent.

Apart from the opinion that the UK Supreme Court is in breach of Article 19 of the 1707 Treaty of Union and the 1689 Scottish Parliament Claim of Right Act, which outlines Scotland’s constitutional law, the Supreme Court decision should remind everyone that power devolved is power retained and that under the current arrangements we can’t stop a UK government trampling over democracy in Scotland.

Scottish Secretary Alister Jack claims that a generation is 25 years and opinion polls need to show 60 per cent support over 12 months for a Westminster government to allow a referendum on independence.

However, the 1998 Northern Ireland Act clearly defined a political generation between referenda as seven years and that the NI Secretary of State is legally obliged to order a border poll if at any time it appears likely to him that a simple majority of “plus one” of those voting would express a wish that Northern Ireland should cease to be part of the United Kingdom.

The previous majority vote in our Scottish Parliament for a referendum was further endorsed at May’s election, with 62 SNP constituency MSPS elected on such a mandate compared to the five Tories, four Lib Dems and two Labour members who campaigned on a “no referendum” platform.

FRASER GRANT

Edinburgh