Those who oppose independence should not be dismissed, Yousaf to say

People who oppose Scottish independence should not be dismissed, the country’s First Minister is expected to say in a speech on Monday.

Humza Yousaf will make an address at Glasgow University, the first of a series which will centre on the economy as he sets out his party’s case ahead of the next general election.

As well as being likely to detail industrial policy in an independent Scotland, the First Minister will also tell attendees he believes leaving the UK to be “urgent” to address economic issues facing the country.

But, in an attempt to offer an olive branch to those who do not want to see Scotland leave, the First Minister will say: “There will be those who will never support independence.

“That doesn’t mean those people should be dismissed. Far from it.

“There is much to learn from an opposing perspective.

“And we can all still engage, even if to disagree, respectfully.

“There will be others who are sympathetic to independence but who are not yet persuaded or who don’t think this is the right time.

“It is my argument that independence is urgent.

“It is urgent precisely because the cost of living is top of people’s concerns.

“Because it is through independence, and in particular the powerful combination of independence and EU membership, that we can raise living standards.”

But supporters should not simply shout “independence ever louder”, instead the Scottish Government must set out an “alternative path: one that leads to a renewed sense of possibility”.

“It should then be for the people of Scotland to decide between those two futures,” he will say.

“And this is where the case for optimism comes in.

“Scotland has extraordinary resources such as renewable energy and key economic strengths such as our great universities.”

The First Minister will go on to detail Scotland capabilities in renewable technologies, the food and drink and financial sector as reasons to be optimistic about an independent Scotland, adding: “There is further reason for optimism, the real-life shining example for Scotland that we can aspire to: independent countries that are significantly fairer and wealthier than the UK.

“Countries like Ireland, Norway and Denmark have both higher productivity and lower inequality than the UK.

“In other words, they combine economic dynamism with social solidarity. So, with all our strengths, the key question is this: why not Scotland?”

The First Minister is also expected to say that independence would raise living standards and productivity in Scotland, claiming Scottish families would be £10,200 better off outside the UK, which he called “the prize of independence”.

His speech will take place just hours after Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar will make an overt pitch to SNP voters to lend his party their support to beat the Tories.