Q and A on the SNP walk-out
On Wednesday 13th June, all 35 Scottish National Party (SNP) MPs walked out of the Westminster parliament after their group leader, Ian Blackford, was suspended during prime minister’s questions. The action was widely supported by among pro-independence workers and young people across Scotland. More than 5,000 new members joined the SNP in the hours after the walk-out. The SNP have now said they intend to “frustrate what the government are doing as much as we possibly can” in defence “of our parliamentary democracy, our parliamentary sovereignty and the rights of the Scottish people”.
Why the walk-out?
Brexit, basically. The SNP are big supporters of the neoliberal EU, bolstered by the fact that Scotland voted by 62% to 38% against Brexit in the referendum of June 2016. Powers that are currently held at European level will return to the UK after EU exit. As part of the EU Withdrawal Bill, it is proposed by the Tories that of the 153 powers to be transferred, 24 of those due to the Holyrood parliament in Edinburgh, including areas covering agriculture and food labelling, should be retained at Westminster for up to seven years.
This has been condemned by the SNP as a “power grab” that “drives a coach and horses through the devolved arrangements” and has created a “constitutional crisis”. The Scottish parliament has already voted to withhold consent from the Withdrawal Bill, supported by MSPs from all parties except the Tories.
So, the walk-out was justified then?
Socialist Party Scotland calls for all the competences (powers) currently held at EU level and covered by devolution to be returned to Holyrood. The walk-out by the SNP MPs was actually triggered by the fact that the day before no Scottish MPs were allowed to speak in the debate on the Withdrawal Bill, specifically the amendments that impact on devolution. This was the issue that Ian Blackford protested. He was then suspended for refusing to abide by a ruling of the “speaker of the house”.
While the SNP MPs are right to protest, their policy is actually to return these self-same powers back to the anti-democratic, anti-worker bosses’ EU, if and when Scotland becomes independent. In addition, they have also put forward a compromise “solution” that would allow Westminster to hold these powers as long as the Scottish parliament has a full say in how they are used.
Socialist Party Scotland campaigned alongside the RMT rail workers’ union for a left, anti-racist and internationalist exit from the EU. We fight for a socialist Europe that ends austerity, privatisation, mass youth unemployment and poverty pay. To achieve this means standing against the capitalist treaties, rules and neoliberal policies that are enshrined in the DNA of the single market and the customs union etc. The European capitalist establishment’s backing for the Spanish State government in their attempts to crush the democratic rights of the people of Catalonia underlines the real nature of this bosses’ Europe. And yet the majority of British big business, the SNP leaders and the right wing Labour Blairites want to remain part of it.
What happens now?
The SNP have said they will now seek to “frustrate” the passage of the various Brexit bills. As Blackford commented: “We will remain civil, we will remain polite, we will remain courteous. But they need to understand that a line has now been crossed.” – the Conservatives are enacting legislation without the support of the Scottish Parliament.” The Trade Bill is likely to be next to be targeted. Though SNP parliamentarians will focus on using “parliamentary procedures”, much as the Irish land reform and home rule campaigner Charles Stewart Parnell did in the 1880s.
What the SNP have not sought to do is to build a mass movement in opposition to the Tories austerity programme. In fact, SNP politicians in Scotland have voted to implement Tory cuts at Holyrood and local councils. They have refused to call on their councillors and MSPs to set no cuts budgets. Nor have they fought to mobilise a struggle for a return of the £3 billion stolen from the Scottish parliament budget by the Tories.
Will there be a boost of support for independence?
The main issues driving support for independence are the capitalist economic crisis, the impact of austerity policies and a hatred of the political establishment. It’s clear that demands for a second independence referendum are growing. The SNP have posed as being an anti-establishment alternative but recently have seen their support eroded, mainly because they have not delivered on that promise. They lost 21 MPs and 500,000 votes at the 2017 general election.
Increasingly, SNP leaders are using justified grievance among working class people to try to regain lost electoral support. Nicola Sturgeon has said that the Brexit process is “the most clear and powerful evidence so far that the Westminster system simply does not work for Scotland”.
But they are not offering a real fighting opposition to cuts, which would, for example, mean supporting strike action by workers against cuts carried out by SNP politicians. In addition the recent SNP Growth Commission document has been savagely attacked by the left of the independence movement in Scotland for its commitment to austerity policies for up to 10 years after independence. There has also been the largest demonstrations ever in favour of Scottish independence and a second referendum recently, organised without the active support of the SNP leadership.
Nicola Sturgeon, Ian Blackford et al are under growing pressure from their social and electoral base. Recent actions are an attempt to respond to this pressure while not yet conceding to growing demands that they must now call an indyref 2.
What about Labour?
With a growing vacuum to the left of the SNP, a fighting socialist, anti-austerity alternative should be able to capitalise. But the Richard Leonard leadership is continuing all the errors of the “Better Together” Labour right wing on the national question. They have turned their face against any idea of a second referendum on principle.
The Labour leadership condemned the SNP MPs Westminster walk-out as a “stunt” and a “diversion”. The consequences of this, alongside the role of Labour councillors in voting through cuts, is now weakening Labour. Recent polls indicate that Labour is now losing support in Scotland. As we have warned, Jeremy Corbyn’s continual efforts to appease the Blairite wing of the Labour Party with concessions can only weaken their appeal further.
Socialist Party Scotland has always defended the right of the Scottish people to self determination. We fight for an independent socialist Scotland that would end austerity and reverse all cuts. Socialist policies, including widespread public ownership of the economy under democratic working class control, a £10 living minimum wage, and a massive investment in public services are the only way forward. Join us today.
For an independent socialist Scotland
- Nationalise, under democratic workers’ control, the oil and gas industry, the renewable energy sector, and the major sectors of the Scottish economy. This would release billions to invest in a massive programme of job creation and to rebuild our public services.
- Bring the banks and finance sector into public ownership under democratic working class control.
- Renationalise gas, electricity, transport and the privatised sectors of the economy. Scrap all PFI/PPP schemes
- Tax the rich and big business. Increase the minimum wage to £10 an hour, scrap zero-hours contracts and end the attacks on welfare.
- No to Nato. Trident and all weapons of mass destruction out of Scotland. Invest in socially useful jobs.
- Abolish all anti-trade union laws.
- Build a mass working class party to fight austerity and for socialist change.
- Reverse the cuts. Councils and the Scottish government must set no cuts budgets and defend jobs, wages, public services and pensions.
- For a socialist plan of production in an independent socialist Scotland as part of a voluntary socialist confederation with England, Wales and Ireland as a step to a socialist Europe.
