Labour moves to reclaim Saltire from Nationalists

Published on Saturday 7 March 2009 19:44

LABOUR has moved to reclaim the Saltire from the Nationalists by emphasising it is the flag for every Scot, not just those who believe in independence.

The Saltire was plastered all over the literature at yesterday's Labour conference in Dundee, has been displayed on Scottish Labour's website and has been used prominently in the party's most recent party political broadcast.

The move follows persistent claims that Alex Salmond has annexed the flag for the SNP by treating it as the Nationalists' exclusive property and using it for party political propaganda.

The flying of the flag on Scottish Labour's branded material is a deliberate ploy to show voters that Iain Gray's party is just as Scottish as the SNP.

"We don't own the Saltire. The Nats don't own the Saltire," a Labour spokesman said. "The Saltire is for everyone."

Strategists are also emphasising the fact that Iain Gray, Scottish Labour's leader and East Lothian MSP, lives within five miles of Athelstaneford – the site of the battle where the Scots Army observed a white St Andrews Cross against the blue sky after defeating the English in 832AD.

The idea that Scots can be proud to be both Scottish and British was articulated at the conference when a teenager took to the stage yesterday.

Callum Munro, 16, a pupil at Bishopbriggs Academy, told delegates: "I am proud to be Scottish. But the SNP try to tell us that unless you support their plans for separation, you don't have the right to be proud of your country."

The flag-waving theme will continue today when Jim Murphy addresses the conference and makes a patriotic case for the Union while emphasising that the Saltire is for all Scots whether they are Nationalists or proud to be British.

"No political party has a monopoly on patriotism," Murphy will say. "The Saltire is our flag as much as anybody else's. I believe that everyone in Scotland – every party in Scotland – has the right to celebrate the Saltire as a symbol of their Scottishness.

"There is a patriotic case for the Union and we should be proud to make it. It's precisely because we love Scotland so much that we do not wish to see it weakened by leaving the UK.

"Scotland is bigger because of the Union of the four nations of the United Kingdom. We are game-changing players in the UN, EU, NATO, the WTO and the G8. In truth, within the UK, we are probably the most influential small nation on Earth."

Labour's reclamation of the Saltire follows a similar move by the Scottish Conservatives. On St Andrews Day last year, the Scottish Tory leader, Annabel Goldie, reminded Scots that the Saltire was not a "flag of separatism", but was incorporated in the Union flag.

In his speech, Jim Murphy will also ask people to be wary of "recession racism" and call for tolerance.

"This is the first recession in a genuinely global labour market," he will say. "While understanding people's fears and insecurities, no-one should pander to credit-crunch racism. The way through this is about having fair immigration rules, strong border controls and a tolerance towards those whom we welcomed to the UK in better economic times."