Sturgeon will slam Tory xenophobia in her opening speech to SNP conference
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon will today call on progressive parties to join forces in opposing a Tory hard-Brexit.
She will make the call on the first day of the SNP’s annual conference in Glasgow.
During her remarks, Scotland’s First Minister will warn that ‘the right wing of the Tory party is now in the ascendancy and it is seeking to hijack the referendum result.’
Dubbing the rhetoric about immigration at the Conservative Party conference last week ‘a disgrace’, she will go on to tell the party faithful:
“They are using it as licence for the xenophobia that has long lain under the surface – but which is now in full view.
They are holding it up as cover for a hard Brexit that they have no mandate for – but which they are determined to impose, regardless of the ruinous consequences.
I suspect that many of those who voted to leave now look at the actions and rhetoric of the Tories and think ‘that’s not what I voted for’.”
The first minister will tell the Conference that SNP MPs will vote against the ‘Great Repeal Bill’ when it comes before the House of Commons, noting that it was not what Scotland voted for in the referendum.
She will also pledge to ‘persuade others — Labour, Liberals and moderate Tories’ — to join with the SNP to form ‘a coalition against a hard Brexit: not just for Scotland, but for the whole UK.’
“The Conservative Party manifesto, on which Theresa May and all other Tory MPs were elected said this: ‘We are clear about what we want from Europe. We say: yes to the Single Market’.
The prime minister may have a mandate to take England and Wales out of the EU but she has no mandate whatsoever to remove any part of the UK from the single market.”
Her remarks follow new polling suggesting that even the prospect of a hard Brexit is not winning Scots around to the idea of a second referendum on independence.
Carried out by BMG for the Herald newspaper, the poll found that 47 per cent of respondents were against holding a second independence referendum, compared to 38 per cent who were in favour. 12 per cent said that they were undecided.
Interestingly, when the prospect of a hard Brexit was added to the equation, just 12 per cent of those opposing a second vote said this would change their mind with 75 per cent saying it would make no difference to their views at all.
Asked about the potential timing of a second referendum, 39 per cent of those in favour said it should be before Article 50 is triggered, 33 per cent said it should be later than this and 28 per cent did not mind when a vote happened.
BMG then sought to provide an overall picture of support for a second referendum by factoring in the question about the potential form of Brexit. This found that 43 per cent supporting a second referendum, 42 per cent did not and 15 per cent were undecided.
Ed Jacobs is a contributing editor at Left Foot Forward
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4 Responses to “Nicola Sturgeon: SNP, Labour and moderate Tories must form ‘a coalition against hard Brexit’”
Richard MacKinnon
An alliance of the left should happen, it is common sense, but it wont happen. Why? because Scottish Labour will never let it.
Their hatred of the SNP is their only reason to exist.
James Kemp
Err No it won’t happen because the tories will use it to say Labour is in bed with the SNP again! More lost votes for Scotland if not a total wipeout of seats. Why would Labour want to sign up with a party that is prepared to side with the Tories, for more votes we haven’t forgotten the last election you know! Plus a lot of policies Labour and SNP are miles apart could never work.
John Woods
Will it matter? Scotland will obtain its independence and become an independent member of the EU. It will have to adopt the Euro and there will be difficult negotiations over the number of Commissionors it can nominate and the contribution it must pay. However, at about 5 million population there are many other nations of similar size that have favourable terms and it can demand the same terms. I would.
Alasdair Macdonald
Unusually, I am in agreement with Richard MacKinnon. An alliance of the left should happen, it is, indeed, common sense. The majority of Scottish Labour has a visceral hatred of the SNP and does oppose any association between the Labour Party UK wide and SNP. The former MP for Govan,, Mr Ian Davidson is quite explicit about that. However, Scottish Labour is leaking voters as was seen in the recent Council bye election in Glasgow in a ward which has been Labour for decades. In a bye election in Highlands it came 7th in the popular votes.