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(THREAD) Yesterday marked the 20th anniversary since the Scottish Parliament reconvened. It has dramatically changed Scotland for the better.
1. It functions & exists on its own merit, not as an extent of Westminster, producing sound legislation w/out an unelected upper chamber.
1. It functions & exists on its own merit, not as an extent of Westminster, producing sound legislation w/out an unelected upper chamber.
2. It has given Scotland a platform on which to prove that we can lead the world by example, from tackling climate change with renewable sources of energy, to putting forward minimum unit pricing to fight the alcohol epidemic, to taking enormous steps towards LGBTQ+ rights.
3. Although in an ideal world Scotland would be independent, the fact remains that the SNP-led Scottish Gov has used ScotParl's powers to mitigate a significant portion of the harshest austerity measures coming from the Tory/LibDem coalition in Westminster.
4. Where Westminster excludes, Holyrood does the opposite. Immigrants like myself can't vote in Westminster elections or referendums like Brexit, but we can vote for Scottish Parliament and were allowed to take part in 2014's independence referendum. Same for 16-year olds.
5. It functions like an effective 21st century Parliament, with electronic voting for MSPs rather than Westminster's obsession with arcane, obsolete rituals and a "walking" voting system that costs a lot of time and resources, and respects women's right to motherhood.
6. Scotland's sovereignty was sold away by its Parliament to form the Union. Decisions regarding this country's constitutional future can and should be left, ultimately, to this country's legitimate Parliament in Edinburgh.
7. Brexit, particularly in its No Deal manifestation, will give Westminster a chance to bring back Holyrood into its control. This is most likely to be achieved under the false pretence of having to unify the UK to face up to the catastrophic, self-imposed dystopia of No Deal.
I'm a new Scot and yet even I can see how Holyrood is at the core of Scotland's identity, how it is the engine powering Scotland's rising presence on the world stage. But I'm vigilant and afraid. We must do everything to maintain the integrity of the ScotParl, for our sake. (END)
