Over a decade has passed since the Scottish referendum on independence, and the issue has faded into the background in spite of a chain of electoral mandates for renewed pressure for a second referendum. Today the issue has been overtaken by austerity at home and dramatic events abroad, but veteran campaigner Jim Sillars has written this call for a renewed campaign and a plea for optimism.

Now in his eighty-eighth year, Sillars has plenty of campaigning experience behind him and says that this will be the last one. His support for Scottish independence goes back to the seventies when he founded the Scottish Labour Party, establishing the connection between the left and independence.

With this move he hopes to kick off a process and a debate that reach out not only to those who have always maintained their enthusiasm for independence but also to those how have been distracted by other political and social developments and those who have never supported independence in the past. Independence, Sillars argues, is not about dislike of the English, but the wellbeing Scots in the context of a dramatically declining UK economy.

About the Author
Jim Sillars, born in 1937, followed his father into work on the railways before joining the Royal Navy as a radio operator. When he later joined the Fire Brigade, he started his political career, active in the Fire Brigades Union and the Scottish Trade Union Congress. He became the Labour MP for South Ayrshire in 1970 and worked tirelessly for the establishment of a Scottish Assembly. He split from the Labour Party in 1976 to help form the Scottish Labour Party (SLP). Having lost his seat in 1979, he worked in South-East Asia before returning to Westminster in the Govan by-election as an SNP MP. e Govan seat was lost in 1992, and he worked as Assistant to the Secretary-General at the Arab-British Chamber of Commerce in London, promoting trade and advising Arab governments on economic development and preparation for joining the World Trade Organisation. Sillars continues to write a column for Holyrood magazine and occasional articles for various newspapers. He is married to the independent MSP Margo MacDonald and is an articulate spokesman for the cause of socialism and independence.


Book Information
ISBN 9781913212421
Author Jim Sillars
Format Paperback
Page Count 218
Imprint Vagabond Voices
Publisher Vagabond Voices
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 130mm * 16mm