It’s more important than ever that the Yes cause is separated from the SNP - Kenny MacAskill

It’s been assumed by some in the SNP and indeed by others outwith it, that the formation of a larger Yes movement organisation is a threat to either the party or the cause.

Pro-Scottish independence supporters march in Glasgow in 2016. Picture: Andy Buchanan/AFP via Getty Images

That’s wrong in my view and the creation of such an umbrella group is not just good for both but actually essential for success.

2014 had Yes Scotland but it was late into the game and indeed the professionalisation that came from SNP resources and staff being put in was essential.

On the ground Yes groups sprung up spontaneously, but again experience and resource lay with the party. That’s not to decry or denigrate in anyway the outstanding work done by the likes of Dennis Canavan or the unstinting efforts by local Yes groups, especially in so many deprived areas.

But this is 2021 and the terrain and time has changed. Now it’s more important than ever that the Yes cause is separated from the SNP. The latter has to govern the devolved Scotland but the former need to portray the opportunities for an independent Scotland.

Being in administration is not just hard but requires hard choices. That can affect popularity. Moreover, some recent policy positions and internal tensions have angered some not just party members. So, separating the party of government from the cause of independence is therefore essential.

In any event, whilst the SNP is the largest party supporting independence, it’s not the only one. Others large and small need respected not directed. More importantly the cause transcends all those parties. Just as there’s a Labour party but a wider Labour movement, so there is the SNP and an independence movement. Many people are neither in a party nor want to be. But their support and involvement is vital. That can be political but equally it can be in other ways that are just as important.

The SNP may be “primus inter pares” with its size and resource but its not alone. That’s why there needs to be a wider grouping and those bringing people together should be welcomed by the SNP, just as they’ll be feared by unionists.