Salmond shuns offer of talks to break deadlock
ALEX Salmond has been accused of dragging his feet over fresh talks with the UK Government to settle the terms of the independence referendum.
The First Minister kickstarted his dream of destroying the Union last week with the launch of the ‘Yes to Independence’ campaign.
But the Scottish Mail on Sunday has learned that the SNP leader is ignoring the offer of high-level talks to resolve a constitutional crisis which means Scots voters still do not know how many questions they will have to answer in the 2014 poll.
The deadlock between Westminster and Holyrood affects other vital issues, such as the wording of the question and who will be eligible to vote.
Scottish Secretary Michael Moore wrote to Mr Salmond on May 10, the day before the Scottish Government’s referendum consultation closed, with the offer of resuming talks ‘within weeks’.
But more than two weeks on, he is still waiting for a response and it could be as late as September, after the result of the consultation is announced, before discussions resume.
The power to hold a legal referendum on separation is reserved to Westminster, so as things stand, Mr Salmond is only able to hold an advisory poll.
However, David Cameron has offered to hand these powers to Holyrood as long as ministers stick to a clear, single question agreed by the Electoral Commission.
Critics claim Mr Salmond is
‘We see no need for a delay ’
drawing out the negotiations to justify his plan of making Scots wait more than two years for a referendum.
A Scotland Office spokesman said: ‘Scotland wants a legal, fair and decisive referendum. The SNP has ended its consultation and launched its campaign.
‘We see no need to delay a resumption of talks.’
The only response from the Scottish Government has come from Parliamentary Business Secretary Bruce Crawford, who has set up talks with Scotland Office minister David Mundell. It is understood, however, that the two ministers will not discuss major issues such as how many questions will appear on the ballot.
A UK Government source said: ‘The question for Alex Salmond is why is he dragging his feet over substantive talks? The sooner we get the process finalised, the sooner we can move on to more substantive issues, he has to explain why he is delaying.’
The last substantive talks took place in February when David Cameron visited Mr Salmond in Edinburgh.
The Scottish Government’s consultation, which closed on May 11, attracted more than 20,000 responses.
But SNP ministers have claimed it will take up to four months to analyse and publish the results.
A spokesman for the First Minister said: ‘The terms and the timing of the referendum are matters to be decided in Scotland – not imposed by Westminster.’
Meanwhile, latest figures from the Yes Scotland campaign show that 7,500 people have signed a declaration to say they will vote for independence in 2014.
A spokesman for the campaign said: ‘These are hugely encouraging figures, just one day on from the launch.’