Skip to main content
Scotland’s ‘generation Yes’ after a decade of disappointment
The independence referendum’s youthful energy has dissipated, leaving Holyrood disconnected from voters as the constitutional question fades and Labour gains ground from a stagnant SNP, writes COLL MCCAIL

AS Scotland slouches toward the 10th anniversary of the independence referendum, few in the SNP seem remotely enthusiastic about the occasion. If anything, there’s a distinct sense that many would rather September 18 passed without note.

Two years ago, when Nicola Sturgeon announced a second referendum for October 2023, such a scenario was difficult to imagine.

However, lacking intellectual leadership and a theory of change to achieve their ultimate goal, the timidity with which John Swinney and his government have approached the occasion is hardly surprising. It is nonetheless a compelling illustration of the depth of the crisis within their party.

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
More from this author
SOMETHING CHANGED: Nigel Farage, seen here chased through the streets of Edinburgh in 2013, now commands the support of some 10,000 Scots
Features / 29 April 2025
29 April 2025

COLL McCAIL rejects the Scottish Establishment’s attempt at an ‘elite lockout’ of Reform UK and says the unions should be wary of co-option by their class enemies in Holyrood just to keep one set of austerity-mongers in power instead of Reform UK

Coins and Scottish bank notes
Features / 19 April 2025
19 April 2025
From Labour MPs obsessing over Easter egg shapes to SNP ministers celebrating pay rises while marking zoo animals’ arrivals, Scottish politics is really deteriorating, says COLL McCAIL
Scottish Greens co-leader Lorna Slater addresses members, Ma
Features / 30 October 2024
30 October 2024
COLL MCCAIL reveals how party members rebelled against the current leadership’s attempts to block democratic debate on opposing SNP budget cuts at their Greenock conference
Flames and smoke rise from an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh,
Voices of Scotland / 8 October 2024
8 October 2024
The British government actively supports Israel’s escalating violence across the Middle East through arms sales, military assistance, and diplomatic cover, writes COLL McCAIL
Similar stories
Coins and Scottish bank notes
Features / 19 April 2025
19 April 2025
From Labour MPs obsessing over Easter egg shapes to SNP ministers celebrating pay rises while marking zoo animals’ arrivals, Scottish politics is really deteriorating, says COLL McCAIL
Alex Salmond, April 14, 2005
Britain / 13 October 2024
13 October 2024
Yes campaign supporters in George Square, Glasgow, as ballet
Britain / 18 September 2024
18 September 2024