Why I’m voting for independence

by Colin Fox, Scottish Socialist Party co-spokesperson Voting Yes on 18 September unlocks a door to previously unreachable possibilities for working class people in Scotland. It frees us from the economic neoliberalism of the City of London that puts the greedy pursuit of profit for a tiny elite ahead of satisfying the primary needs of millions.

Independence means we can rid Scotland of the child poverty, fuel poverty, food banks, low wage economy and the worst anti-union laws in the whole of Europe. It also frees us from the warmongering straitjacket imposed upon us by the British state at Westminster. They have sent our young men and women off to die in illegal and immoral wars for centuries. Independence means we are guaranteed the governments we choose and the policies we support instead of suffering those we did not.

Think about it, after 18 September there will be no more David Camerons in Scotland, no more Tory governments we did not elect, no more Bedroom Tax we did not vote for, no more Poll Tax we did not vote for either, no more Trident nuclear weapons stationed on our soil, no more immigrants and claimants blamed for an economic crisis caused by the bankers… those days are over!

In an independent socialist Scotland no one is left behind to live in poverty and squalor, forgotten by the complacent and all too comfortable middle classes and the important decisions in Scotland are taken by the people, openly and transparently, not behind doors by faceless, unelected, unaccountable corporations who have all the money.

Democracy and serving the needs of all citizens will always trump the interests of ‘the moneymen’ in the new nation I envisage. The Yes vote I will cast will therefore be for a modern, democratic nation that will, I believe, chose to become a republic where we elect our Head of State. And we elect someone representative of the population as a whole and who is accountable for the decisions they take on our behalf.

So I’m voting Yes on 18 September and I have never been more confident of victory than I am today. As I travel round Scotland I see evidence everywhere of the staggering achievements of the biggest political grassroots movement Scotland has ever seen. That superb independence coalition is truly the secret ingredient in the sweet Yes success we shall all taste on Friday 19 September.