Sturgeon tells faithful: Stop obsessing on date of second referendum
NICOLA STURGEON has told her party to “stop obsessing all of the time” about the date of a second independence referendum.
The First Minister said the coming months were an “opportunity” to persuade No voters of the case for Scotland maximising its potential.
She said SNP activists should not “worry all the time about when we might vote again”, but instead engage on the substantive arguments for independence. She also appeared to concede there would be no referendum before Brexit.
The blunt message risks antagonising some of her own supporters and parts of the wider Yes movement that have been agitating for a referendum.
About 40,000 supporters marched in support of independence in Glasgow last month, and another 10,000 took to the streets in Dumfries last week. In the SNP deputy leadership contest, most members cast their first preference vote for a candidate who wanted a referendum by the 2021 Holyrood election, and non-committal Economy Secretary Keith Brown won only after a redistribution of ballots.
However, Ms Sturgeon, who says she has a “triple-lock mandate” to call a referendum by 2021, said she still expected another vote while she was First Minister.
The “stop obsessing” message, amid opposition claims Ms Sturgeon’s independence plans have stalled, reinforced more subtle comments to the SNP conference on Saturday.
Then, Ms Sturgeon told activists that, until the “fog of Brexit” lifted, they had a responsibility “not just to focus on the ‘when’ of independence, but to use our energy and passion to persuade those who still ask ‘why?’ Right now, that is the more important task.”
After the SNP lost a third of its MPS in the General Election, Ms Sturgeon
“reset” her March 2017 plan for another referendum linked to Brexit.
She said she would set out her view on “the precise timetable for offering people a choice over the country’s future” when Brexit came into focus this autumn.
But on The Andrew Marr Show she appeared to row back from that, saying she would not even consider the issue until there was more clarity.
The SNP leader was asked whether it was possible to have a second referendum before Scotland left the EU next March . She said: “Anything in life is possible, but... I feel the uncertainty around Brexit right now is such we shouldn’t make any decisions on timing about a possible second independence referendum.
“What I was saying to my party conference was let’s stop obsessing all of the time about when we might get the chance to vote on independence again. Instead, let’s engage people in the substantive arguments, let’s address people who still ask the question ‘why should Scotland be independent?’
“This is a very good time to have a debate that is focused on maximising our opportunities as a country, rather than just resigning ourselves to the inevitable damage that Brexit seems destined to do to us.”
Pressed on whether there appeared to be enough time to hold a referendum before next March, she said: “No, but even if doesn’t happen before then Scotland will still have options.”
Later, on Sophy Ridge On Sunday on Sky News, Ms Sturgeon was asked whether there would be a referendum while she was First Minister.
She replied: “I think there will be. I think Scotland will become independent. My view is that is the direction of travel.”
Tory MSP Maurice Golden said: “The one person who needs to stop obsessing about independence is the First Minister. She could do that by taking the threat of another independence referendum off the table altogether. That way, the Scottish Government, for once, could concentrate on the job at hand.”
Labour MSP James Kelly said: “Nicola Sturgeon is the person that put a second poll on separation on the table, it’s now time for her to rule it out for good. Her plans for at least another decade of austerity with her Cuts Commission has gone down like a lead balloon with the public.”