Sturgeon warns party must convince voters Scottish independence will not damage economy

She announced the SNP was also setting up a Social Justice and Fairness Commission to look at redistributing wealth in an independent Scotland.

She said it would show how independence could “end poverty, achieve full employment, and drive equality for all”, including “fairness for pensioners”, a key group of No voters.

However there were no details on its remit, membership or timeframe for reporting.

The First Minister declared a “climate emergency” to highlight the threat to the planet from carbon emissions, hinting at tougher targets for reducing greenhouse gases.

She also announced a £150m scheme for helping first-time buyers get a home, and a council clampdown and tax on short-term lets such as Airbnb.

Ms Sturgeon’s focus on the economy followed a setback on Saturday, when a grassroots rebellion saw the conference vote 781-729 to ditch the pound “as soon as practicable”.

Ms Sturgeon, her party deputy Keith Brown and Finance Secretary Derek Mackay had advocated a more gradual approach, keeping the pound for a decade after a Yes vote before considering a switch to a new Scottish currency.

In her closing address to SNP spring conference in Edinburgh, Ms Sturgeon put a brave face on the result, but did not mention the word currency.

Her critics said she was running scared of her party’s “chaotic plan to dump the pound”.

The First Minister told delegates: “Independence is about the children we can lift out of poverty, and the fairer, more equal society we can create. That starts with building confidence in the economic case - answering people’s questions, addressing their concerns, and inspiring them about the future.

“The conversation we have had within our party, is one we must now have with the country.

“In endorsing our new economic plan, we took a big step - the right step - and in the process, we demonstrated what a vibrant, engaged and democratic party we are.

“Make no mistake about this: if we can now show what is possible with the economic powers of independence, we will win a referendum.”

Ms Sturgeon last week announced a new referendum bill to pave the way for another vote before the Holyrood election in 2021.

However it relies on a transfer of power from Westminster, a so-called Section 30 order, which the UK Government has said it will not grant.

Revealing the bill would be introduced in May, the SNP leader said her party would start distributing a leaflet setting out "an alternative to the inevitable economic decline of Brexit” to all 2.4m households this summer.

She said: “So friends, you know what that means…it is time to get your jackets on.

“We will tell people about Scotland’s strengths.The extraordinary success of our food and drink industry, our renewable energy, our advanced manufacturing, technology, life sciences, creative industries, tourism.

“Above all, we will show that Scotland has a talented and educated people.”

Reflecting the emphasis on deficit reduction and reining in public spending in the SNP’s Growth Commission, she said an independent Scotland “must be responsible with or finances” and would “face challenges”.

She said: “Our new economic plan demonstrates the potential of an independent Scotland.

“It stresses the importance of social justice and equality.

“The point is this: a strong economy is the bedrock of a fair society. And a fair, inclusive society leads to a strong economy. That is the case we must make.”

Urging her members to avoid rancour in the months ahead, she said the next referendum would not be a re-run of 2014 and the labels of those days should be dropped.

She said: “We must recognise that these are different times and new circumstances. The UK that existed then does not exist any more. Our approach must be different.

“We should not enter this campaign thinking of people as No voters or Yes voters, Remainers or Leavers, but as fellow citizens who all want the best for ourselves, our families and for Scotland’s future.

“We must acknowledge the ties of family and friendship across the UK. We must always make our case with the decency, respect and dignity that we want to be the hallmark of our independent country.”

She said the new Fairness Commission would build on the work of the Growth Commission and “set out how the proceeds of economic growth in an independent Scotland can be shared much more fairly”.

She said: “It will demonstrate how we can use the powers of independence to end poverty, achieve full employment, and drive equality for all.

“It will look at how we can deliver fairness for pensioners. Be a nation that sets a gold standard for equal pay. And create opportunity for all of our young people.

“All of that is what independence is for.”

On policy, she announced a £150m scheme to loan first-time buyers up to £25,000 to fund or top up the deposit on a new house, provided they found 5 per cent of the home’s value.

The scheme will start later this year and run to the end of the parliament.

There will be no restriction on the property types eligible, no upper limit on the value of properties, and the scheme will be open to couples even if only one partner is a first-time buyer.

The loans will be secured against the homes and must be repaid in full when they are sold.

Also on housing, Ms Sturgeon announced a consultation on allowing councils to regulate short-term lets, such as Airbnb flats, as they would other types of accommodation.

It would let councils such as Edinburgh, where short-term lets have crowded out city centre residents, cap numbers and charge owners a “contribution” to local services.

She said: “For many people, accommodation provider Airbnb has enabled cheaper, more flexible travel. But for others it is making it harder to find homes to live in.  

“We are asking for views on a new system of regulation to make short term lets subject to the same controls as other accommodation.

“To give councils the power to control the number of lets and ensure they make a contribution to the services they use.”

On the likely European elections, she said the SNP would be unapologetically Remain.

She said: “Let me be blunt.I don’t trust Theresa May. But, on Brexit, I don’t trust Jeremy Corbyn either.

“The SNP will not vote for a Tory Brexit and we will not vote for a Labour Brexit. Our policy is no Brexit. That is what the people of Scotland voted for, and that is what should happen.”

In a nod to the quarter of SNP supporters and 1m Scots who voted for Brexit, she added: “I do not, for a single second, dismiss those who voted to Leave.

“I understand the desire for change.  And the sense that political institutions can feel remote.”

The EU is far from perfect. But membership is not just about economic and social benefits – substantial though those are. It is also about the values we cherish. Freedom, democracy, the rule of law, equality, respect for human dignity and human rights.”

Tory MSP Adam Tomkins said: “With her chaotic plan to dump the pound and push ahead with an unwanted referendum, Nicola Sturgeon has made it clear this weekend that she is more interested in her party’s narrow priorities, not those of the majority in Scotland.”

Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard said: “Nicola Sturgeon is more interested in uniting her party than uniting our country.

“There was no attempt justify the SNP’s new policy to scrap the pound as soon as possible, a move which would ramp up austerity and force hundreds of thousands of families with mortgages to gamble their house, pensions and savings on an untested new currency.

“Instead of harnessing the powers of devolution to tackle poverty, she is intent on using her time in office to stir up support for a referendum that a majority of the country does not want.”

Patrick Harvie, Co-convenor of the Scottish Greens, welcomed the declaration of a climate emergency, but questioned the SNP’s commitment to translating it into action.

He noted SNP MSPs recently voted against Green calls for a climate emergency and still backed a tax cut for the airline industry and maximum extraction of North Sea oil and gas.

He said: "It’s actions, not words, that matter if we’re to make radical changes which the crisis demands.”

Pamela Nash, chief executive of Scotland in Union, said: “Nicola Sturgeon’s new campaign blitz to ditch the pound will put wages, mortgages and pensions at risk.

“When her supporters put their jackets on and speak to the people of Scotland, they will discover how deeply unpopular the SNP’s plan to scrap the pound is.”