ALEX Salmond will today tell the Alba Party’s second annual conference that an Independence Referendum Bill should be tabled right now in the Scottish Parliament. 

The former First Minister last week criticised the Scottish Government’s decision to refer its plan to hold a new vote on independence using devolved Holyrood to the Supreme Court.

During the Supreme Court hearing on Tuesday and Wednesday the Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain said a referendum like the one being proposed by the Scottish Government would be “entirely advisory” with no legal effect.

As judges were hearing the arguments the former First Minister raised concerns about the plan.

Speaking outside the Houses of Parliament in London Mr Salmond said the Scottish Government “seem to be risking a great deal to gain comparatively little”.

He said: “Let’s say that they win this case. They’re going to win it on a very narrow argument, that it’s within the competence of the Scottish Parliament to have a referendum because it doesn’t matter, it’s not going to have any legal effect.

“That would be the argument it was won on, in which case the opponent of independents would say, ‘it doesn’t matter, that’s what you said in court’.”

But he added if the Scottish Government lost the case,  it would mean the courts would have finally resolved the matter - while he argued the issue of Scottish independence should be up to people in Scotland to resolve.

Addressing the Alba conference in Stirling this afternoon, Mr Salmond is expected to underline that a point from the Supreme Court hearing that the Lord Advocate has no veto on the tabling of an independence referendum bill.

And he will argue a unilaterally referendum using only Holyrood powers would put pressure on the Conservative Government to agreed a new vote.

“Any minister can take suitable advice and do so. Indeed any individual MSP could do it,” he is expected to say.

“Surely there is one single MSP in the entire Scottish Parliament with the guts and the gumption to act. An Alba MSP would not hesitate. The prospect of a Scottish referendum initiative is an essential part of the pressure to force Westminster to concede an agreed referendum.”

He is expected to say: “The claim that Liz Truss’s chaotic and collapsing Government is strong enough to withstand a concerted political campaign from Scotland is ridiculous.

“Now is the time for Scotland to strike while Westminster is in turmoil. With the British economy steaming towards the icebergs it is time for Scotland to launch the independence lifeboat.”

Resolution
MEANWHILE, Alba delegates passed a resolution at the party’s conference yesterday that a majority of pro-independence seats won at the next General Election should be a mandate for the Scottish Government to enter into independence negotiations with Westminster.  

The SNP’s position is that if the Supreme Court rules Holyrood does not have powers to hold an independence referendum in October next year, it would use the next general election as “de facto” vote on independence.

However for the party to win this ‘de facto’ referendum it would require a majority of pro independence votes to be won, a much higher requirement.

As part of a motion on independence strategy, Alba have called for “an immediate and sustained campaign of parliamentary action, popular agitation and diplomatic initiative to force Westminster’s acceptance of an agreed referendum promised for October 19th 2023.”

Alba argue that if the Scottish Government fail to deliver the referendum next year,  the next General Election should be contested under a united pro independence banner, with one “Scotland United for independence” candidate contesting each seat. 

The party say this would be the best way to make a “de facto referendum” above party politics and to “focus minds” on the elections purpose as a plebiscite on independence. 

Speaking after the conference debate, the party’s Depute Leader Kenny MacAskill MP said: “The Scottish Government have promised to deliver a referendum next October “ come what may “, therefore at a time that the British establishment is crumbling all around us, Scotland should be pursuing  all avenues to bend Westminster to agreeing to a referendum. 

“ However, if the Scottish Government fail to deliver a referendum, using the next UK General Election as a de facto referendum is not without its risks.

"It would be contested using Westminster’s franchise, not Scotland’s, so 16 and 17 year olds and hundreds of thousands of new Scots would be denied a vote on their future. 

“Therefore to win we must make the election bigger than party politics to ensure that every single independence supporter casts their vote for independence. This requires a Scotland united for independence ticket, with a single independence candidate in each constituency. 

“ If we do this we can deliver a pro independence majority of seats that must then be used as a mandate to enter straight into independence negotiations with the UK Government.”