Tuesday 15 April 2014

Spent yesterday making the case to Scots that people south of the Border want them to stay

I spent yesterday afternoon around Galashiels and Jedburgh with the Better Together team led locally by John  Lamont, the Conservative Borders MSP; this is canvassing but with a difference to the usual conversation on the dorrstep: - you simply canvass "are you proposing to say No in the September Referendum?". The conversation that follows is then a discussion of the merits or otherwise of independence. The response enjoyed in the village of Clovenfords by myself, John, and the local councillor Gavin, was very positive - around 70-75% of the 100+ doors we knocked on were in favour of the Union. I only came across a couple of SNP / pro Independence voters on the doorstep . Later on I attended a meeting with Unionist supporters just outside Jedburgh. I was preaching to the converted but still several of those present made the case that the English need to communicate that we want the Scots to stay. For my part I have no doubt we are better together, but I will be making the hour long drive over the border many times over the coming 5 months.
The message is simple: Please Don't Go!