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

New research highlights how hard facts are outweighed by emotion and identity in the Scottish independence debate, says John Rentoul

Saturday 28 November 2020 23:28 GMT
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<p>Nicola Sturgeon, doing another interview and managing to get another headline saying she wants a second independence referendum</p>

Nicola Sturgeon, doing another interview and managing to get another headline saying she wants a second independence referendum

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. 

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