‘Immigrant votes’ bid to skew separation poll
IMMIGRANTS from all over the world would be allowed to vote in Scottish elections under controversial new SNP plans.
The party will debate radically extending voting rights at its conference in Aberdeen, later this week.
At present British, Commonwealth and EU citizens have the right to vote in Holyrood elections.
But proposals to expand the franchise would see non-EU citizens also given the right to vote if they have lived in Scotland for five years or more. That would mean thousands of people originally from countries as
diverse as the US, China and Nigeria allowed to choose MSPs.
Christian Allard, a former Nationalist MSP and French national, will launch a motion arguing the vote should be extended to include those from other countries ‘who make their home in Scotland’, by having lived here for five years or more.
He will insist that would send the message that Scotland is an ‘inclusive nation that believes in equal rights’. It would see tens of thousands of people suddenly given voting rights.
There were 393,000 people living in Scotland who were born outside the UK, in 2015, according to the National Records of Scotland – and 203,000 of those were from outside the EU. Such a huge number of voters could significantly affect the outcome of a second independence referendum, which looks increasingly tight.
But the voting rights for that would have to be agreed with the UK Government. If passed, the motion will spark a fierce debate about who should be allowed a say in the nation’s political future.
David Coburn, UKIP MEP for Scotland, said: ‘This is the SNP gerrymandering the vote for its own ends and I would never accept an election on that basis.’
A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘The franchise for Scottish parliament elections is currently reserved to the UK Parliament but will be devolved to the Scottish parliament in the near future.
‘It will then be open to the Scottish Government to put proposals to the Scottish parliament.’