Scotland’s bid to leave the union is ‘a national pride thing’

For those of us who want to keep our country together, and who believe it would be a tragedy if Scotland turned its back on part of itself, the need to fight for the union is becoming urgent. Opinion polls suggest the Scottish National Party will win more than 50 per cent of the votes in next year’s Scottish parliament elections, and that more than 50 per cent of people living in Scotland now support independence. 

Which is why focus group research carried out by These Islands might be important. The pro-union group published its findings last week, which looked at the arguments that might sway Scottish swing voters. These were taken from Zoom discussions among groups of Scots who voted to stay part of the UK in the 2014 referendum, who voted to Remain in the EU in 2016, and who are now leaning towards independence. 

The most striking finding was that the groups simply did not accept that Scotland gets back more in public spending than it raises in taxes. “I just don’t believe that,” said one participant. “England would get rid of us if that were true,” said another. “I’m sure somebody could supply another set of figures,” said a third. 

As Kevin Hague, chair of These Islands, commented: “If the official numbers fail to fit the narrative then people will look elsewhere for a set of numbers that do. Unfortunately – in the age of social media and with widespread efforts by nationalists to undermine the Scottish government’s own figures – the indy-curious won’t have to search far to find a Facebook meme, Twitter post or hastily written blog that will give them permission to ignore the facts.” 

But what I thought was most interesting was what happened next. Alan Barnard, the focus group moderator, challenged the logic of saying “Why does Boris want to keep us?” if Scotland gains £2,000 per person each year from UK revenue-sharing. “Why would an independent Scotland want to keep the Outer Hebrides or Ross and Cromarty?” he asked. 

At this point the tone of the discussion changed. “It would help if Westminster said why they need us,” said one. “What do we bring to the table?” asked another. Others said, “It’s about self-esteem”, “It’s a national pride thing”, and “They could sweet talk us a bit more.” 

As Hague commented: “This desire to be made to feel valued was a thread that ran through the groups.” It was something that the pro-union side realised rather belatedly during the 2014 referendum: that the economic case against independence is strong, but that it can be overwhelmed by identity politics and the demand for respect. 

So while those who want to keep their country together are right to ask the SNP what it intends to do about the loss of £2,000 a head on independence, what currency an independent Scotland would have, and all the other awkward questions, we have to find better ways of saying what the Scottish people bring to the table. 

Those of us who temporarily (for most of my life in my case) live outside Scotland, and who value the union, have to say why we need the people who currently live in Scotland to stay with us. I don’t know if it’s our shared history, our family ties or just saying that independence would be for ever, whereas Boris Johnson as prime minister won’t be, but these discussions point the way: “They could sweet talk us a bit more.” 

Yours,

John Rentoul

Chief political commentator