Scottish Independence Referendum

Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale Excerpts

Tuesday 14th March 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Wigley (PC)]

My Lords—

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Lab)]

The last referendum left a deep legacy in Scotland of division that affected families, friendships and communities. During that referendum, there was regularly a real problem of aggression and, occasionally, violence. Can the Government guarantee that, in any discussions that take place over these next two years about the possibility of another referendum in Scotland, they will keep uppermost in their mind the need to ensure that any debates are conducted properly and that the leadership of those debates behaves in a way that inspires people positively?

[Lord Dunlop]

All political debates should take place with courtesy and respect; the Government would obviously want to promote and uphold that. The key question here, however, is whether there should be another Scottish independence referendum. The Government are absolutely clear that there should not be.