Indyref2: 'It's time SNP did what they actually stood for' says Kenny MacAskill after Westminster independence protest

An Alba MP has said protests on independence have been ‘too polite’ and the SNP must act on the principles they claim to stand for.

Kenny MacAskill’s call comes as himself and his colleague Neale Hanvey were told to “get out now” by speaker of the House Lindsay Hoyle after staging a protest in the House of Commons.

The Alba MPs were ejected from the chamber ahead of Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday and suspended from the commons for five sitting days.

However, Mr MacAskill said he believed this protest would “kick off” a “Summer of campaigning” for independence as he said “Scottish democracy cannot be denied”.

Alba MP Kenny MacAskill (Photo: John Devlin).

Nicola Sturgeon will launch the second paper in the Building a New Scotland series today, setting out the case for independence.

The first minister will say whoever replaces Boris Johnson will have no democratic endorsement from Scotland and she will argue that the country is being denied the democratic right to choose an alternative path.

Speaking about the protest on Wednesday, Mr MacAskill told BBC Good Morning Scotland: “I was making it clear that we have a mandate in Scotland for a referendum and yet we have a Prime Minister who is not only denying Scottish democracy, he’s also distorting parliamentary procedure.

"The speaker was shouting at myself and my colleague Neale Hanvey. Perhaps he should have been dealing with the Prime Minister who refused a motion of no confidence. That is fundamental to democracy.

"We have a Prime Minister who has decided when he is going to go and who he is going to pass over will be chosen by a handful of Tory MPs and then a very small amount of Tory party members which will be foisted upon Scotland. It’s time Scotland had some democratic choice.”

Mr MacAskill said previous “too polite” protests have not worked as Scottish independence mandates “have been ignored and rejected by a Tory government out of hand”.

The MP went on to say that “we don’t need nonsense” from SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford about Scotland not being dragged out of the EU against it’s will, as he added: “We self-evidently have.”

Mr Hanvey and Mr MacAskill were both previously SNP MPs before leaving to join Alba when it was formed by Alex Salmond last year.

Mr MacAskill said: “I am endorsing the same position I took when I was returned as an SNP MP.

"The SNP who were intent in 2019 on saving Scotland from Brexit, intent on protecting Scotland from Johnson and intent on delivering a mandate on Scottish independence, it’s time they did what they actually stood on the picket for. They refused to do so and hence why we moved to Alba.”

Mr Johnson rejected Nicola Sturgeon’s call for an independence referendum for October last week, before announcing he would be standing down as prime minister once a successor is chosen.

Asked if he agrees with the ‘routemap’ Ms Sturgeon is proposing, Mr MacAskill said: “I would prefer if Boris Johnson gave a section 30. We, myself and my colleague Neale Hanvey, have written to him explaining Scotland should be given a section 30. If they will not give us a section 30 then other steps have to be taken to demand Scotland’s democratic rights.”