I guarantee that we will reject any request from the SNP
‘We’ll mark that letter return to sender and be done with it’
Launching the Scottish conservative Party manifesto today, there’s one thing above all i want to make clear: the only way to put an end to the threat of a second independence referendum once and for all is to vote for the Scottish conservatives in this election.
Be in no doubt that a vote for any other party – be it the SnP or Jeremy corbyn’s Labour Party – is a vote for more dither, deadlock and indecision.
it’s a vote to give Jeremy corbyn the keys to Downing Street, and threaten the end of the union. We cannot allow this to happen.
if the outcome of this election is a strong conservative majority government – then i can guarantee that we will reject any request from the SnP government to hold an independence referendum. There will be no negotiation – we will mark that letter return to sender and be done with it.
Because people throughout Scotland already rejected Sturgeon’s plan to break up our union only five years ago, when two million Scots said no to independence. She promised this was a once-in-a-generation decision.
and we will make sure this promise is kept. as Prime Minister and Minister for the union, i will never allow there to be another chaotic and divisive independence referendum.
Since entering Downing Street just over three months ago, i have made it clear that keeping our union intact, as we get Brexit done and move on, will always be my government’s most important priority.
if re-elected, i will work every day to make our union stronger.
The alternative is Jeremy corbyn, a man who can’t even make up his mind on Brexit, trying to negotiate a pact with nicola Sturgeon and we already know what terms she will demand – another divisive referendum on Scottish independence.
The financial cost of this to taxpayers across the country will be in excess of £155million. But the real cost will be much higher: the chaos of two referendums in 2020 grinding the country to a halt and the world’s greatest political union reduced to the status of a bargaining chip.
a corbyn-Sturgeon coalition of chaos would lead to more costly delays for Scottish business and would guarantee that we remain shackled to the common Fisheries Policy, unable to take back control of our waters – not to mention an uncontrolled and unlimited immigration policy.
ThE Scottish conservatives are the party who will get Brexit done and in doing so strengthen our union by enabling Scotland and the whole of the uK to move forward. i want to get on with unleashing the potential of the whole of the united Kingdom.
My government is delivering a transformational programme of investment that is delivering massive benefits already for Scotland. We are investing £5billion to ensure that every single home and business has access to gigabit broadband, connecting Scotland’s most remote and rural communities.
Thanks to the hard work of Scottish conservatives, we are delivering £211million in additional funding for Scottish farmers, to finally end the issue of historic convergence payment allocations.
We are continuing the great tradition of Royal navy shipbuilding in Scotland, with a £1.25billion contract to build five Type 31 frigates in Rosyth.
and if re-elected then we will go further still. We will aim to raise the national insurance threshold to £12,500, giving Scottish workers an almost £500 respite from the SnP government’s higher taxes.
We will review the tax on Scottish whisky and gin to ensure that we are backing our drink producers and we will finally take back control of our fishing waters in December 2020.
But we can only seize these exciting opportunities if you elect a strong conservative majority government. it’s up to Scottish voters, who have the chance to avoid two more referendums next year, halt Sturgeon and corbyn’s damaging plans and end the constitutional paralysis that has seized Scotland for a decade.
Let’s end the threat of a second independence referendum for good and enable Scotland and the whole of the united Kingdom to move forward together.
2020 is the year we’ll host the conference of the Parties 26 in glasgow, providing a chance to showcase our world-leading work to tackle climate change. We’ve been clear that we want to be carbon neutral by 2050, but let’s go a step further and become corbyn neutral by christmas so next year is a year of growth for Scotland.