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Independence Campaign Review (Believe in Scotland 2024)
Believe in Scotland in a nutshell - We campaign for Scottish independence.
We are a collaborative movement of 142 local and national independence campaign groups. A fully democratic campaign with 33 elected members to our National Campaign Steering Group truly representative of the grassroots Scottish independence movement.
What makes us different is that we are 100% non-party political and focussed on reaching outside of the social media Yes bubble, reaching the undecided with positive messages on independence.
Our Goal is to make Scotland become an independent nation. We believe that independence is the only way to make Scotland a fairer, greener, wealthier, healthier, happier and more successful country.
Our Mission is to help the grassroots movement professionalise, to educate and engage, raise funds, and access materials that will help them reach both undecided and open minded No voters.
Here are just a few of the highlights of Believe in Scotland’s independence campaigning and educational activities in the last twelve months.
Five ways Westminster's NHS privatisation plans will hurt Scotland's health service
Private health providers are bidding for a bigger share of the NHS in England - and health secretary Wes Streeting has said “Labour will be holding the door open” to more private involvement. There was a significant increase in NHS funding in the next budget - but it is an open question how much of that money will end up as profit for private businesses?
A wish for Scotland - this is what the independence movement truly hopes for
On Wednesday the 18th of September the Believe in Scotland family marked the date of the tenth anniversary of indyref with our Billboard campaign, Still Yes poster campaign and a series of events put on by local groups across Scotland along with our midweek rally at Holyrood - A successful day of activity which overall sent a clear message of both hope and defiance, challenging the unionist narrative that independence was dead for the next ten years.
UK damages the life chances of young Scots with youth visa block
Keir Starmer claims he wants to ‘reset the relationship’ with Europe but yesterday’s trip to Brussels turned out to be just another disappointing “mood music” meeting. The slogan ‘make Brexit work’ is meaningless because of the UK’s red lines.
We are Still Yes. Billboards, flags, rallies, gatherings and posters to mark the 10th anniversary of indyref
Grassroots Yes groups across the nation marked the tenth anniversary of indyref with a range of activity throughout Scotland. A day that culminated with a Believe in Scotland rally and online broadcast from Holyrood on what was a warm and bright Wednesday evening.
Iconic Yes image at heart of our programme to mark tenth anniversary of indyref
Believe in Scotland's Indyref anniversary programme aims to fire up the Indy movement, and send a message of both defiance and hope. We are working with several of our affiliated local Yes campaigning groups to organise a series of events around Scotland on Wednesday September 18th, the tenth anniversary of the indyref and a programme of campaigning activities that include a series of billboards, videos and social media campaigns.
Mediawatch: BBC misrepresents Scottish pupils' reading performance
Listeners to BBC Scotland’s flagship lunchtime news show were told this week that “in Scotland there has been a decline in reading performance among 15-year-olds according to international tests.” That is a very misleading account of what the international test PISA shows. In fact, Scottish pupils’ reading performance in the last test was above the OECD average and just half a percentage point below England’s. It was among the highest performing countries in the developed world.
Scottish Independence Congress overwhelmingly backs Believe in Scotland’s Citizen’s Convention proposal.
The Scottish Independence Congress meets four times a year and is open to all independence campaigning groups across Scotland. Believe in Scotland launched its Yes group organiser meetings in 2019 (initially called the Big Yes Gathering), which was renamed the Scottish Independence Congress in Feb 2023.
Furore deepens over winter fuel cut that shows limits of devolution
The furore over the winter fuel payment is deepening as energy prices rise. Pensioners - many of whom live in fuel poverty - fear that they won’t be able to afford to heat their homes.
Too wee, too poor for independence? Malta didn't think so - lessons for Scotland
Today, Malta is a successful small independent country, the smallest in the EU. But when it sought its independence from Britain, it was told it was too wee and too poor to make a go of it. Sound familiar?
New Zealand's century-long journey to independence
New Zealand gradually became independent of the UK in a slow and gradual manner - one tiny step after another until one day they basically realised they were an independent nation. So much so that they do not have an independence day, because no one really knows when it was. This century-long journey to independence might seem rather rapid in comparison with Scotland, where even establishing a Parliament took longer. But there are interesting lessons to learn.
What an independent Scotland can learn from Denmark
Denmark is about two thirds the size of Scotland with a slightly larger population of 5.8 million. It comes in the top five of the Scotianomics Wellbeing Index. It is also far wealthier – the GDP per head is about twice that of Scotland. So how does independence work for Denmark? Here are five lessons for an independent Scotland.
Independence lessons: How Ireland built a strong economy
Ireland is a stable and prosperous independent country. It has used the powers of independence to build a strong and diverse economy.
Why Norway Chose to Become an Independent Country - Lessons for Independent Scotland
Norway, of course, is one of the richest countries on the planet - in part due to its sovereign wealth fund which holds a share of the oil profits from Norwegian waters and stands at $1.3 trillion. It is also one of the most egalitarian, with a strong sense of social cohesion. Norway celebrates its national day on May 17, as a community event, with picnics, sports and festivities.
Why Quebec's independence dream went wrong - lessons for Scotland
Between 1990 and 2005, about 50% of people in Quebec said they wanted independence from Canada. But since then, that has fallen to a third. Here are three reasons why Quebec independence support fell away and why those circumstances differ from the Scottish independence movement.