An Interview with Angus Robertson, SNP MSP

Author’s note: I initially asked Angus several more questions, but as the SNP is the Holyrood majority, he could not comment on Government policy.

Official portrait, 2021

Why is Independence the right choice for Scotland?

Where to start! It is totally normal for the decisions people make to be made by people in their countries and who are close to them. In Scotland, policy is determined by the UK as a whole, even if the whole of Scotland disagrees with it – the most recent example is Brexit. Independence would give us the ability to choose a path that delivers the needs and wants of Scottish people, by the Scottish people. This logic can be applied to all sorts of issues beyond Brexit, be it greater provision of health and social care; funding of education; more ambitious climate targets.

When will IndyRef2 take place? Is it dependent on COVID ending?

Indyref2 is entirely dependent on COVID. We would like to have the vote in 2023. But we must take stock and ensure the safety and wellbeing of citizens and the economy is assured to carry out a referendum in a fair environment.

Has COVID affected the outlook on a second Independence Referendum?

COVID has shown they yawning gap of competence and quality of governance between Scotland and the UK Government. We have not got everything right in Scotland. But the nation has had honest, daily informative conversations all the way throughout the pandemic led by Nicola Sturgeon. It delivered policy with a seriousness and with the empathy it deserved. The UK Government, by contrast, has bluffed and blundered and now, as we have seen, did not adhere to the rules it was setting for everyone else.

The SNP is best known for your policies on Independence, but which policies do you wish had more publicity?

Just today, Scotland has become the first country in the world to launch commercial scale opportunity for floating offshore wind - worth £700m to the Scottish Government and billions of pounds more for the supply chain.

17 projects around the eastern, north-eastern and northern coast of Scotland have been offered the rights to specific areas of the seabed for the development of offshore wind power, with a massive combined potential generating capacity of 25GW. At least £1 billion in supply chain investment is expect for every gigawatt of installed capacity, guaranteeing high-quality green jobs for decades into the future.

Petra Pender

16/03/2022