Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party
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Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party | |
|---|---|
 Official logo registered with the Electoral Commission | |
| Leader | John Mortimer[1] |
| Nominating officer | John Ferguson[1] |
| Founded | 3 August 2020[2] |
| Ideology |
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| Scottish Parliament | 0 / 129 |
| Scottish local government | 0 / 1,227 |
The Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party is a unionist single-issue political party in Scotland. It seeks to abolish the Scottish Parliament, and hand its powers to the Secretary of State for Scotland, Scottish local government, and the UK Parliament.[3]
History
[edit]
Although the party was first registered with the Electoral Commission on 31 January 2018,[4] it did not officially launch until 3 August 2020.[5] Its founder and current leader, John Mortimer, previously campaigned for Better Together and established the British Unionist Party.[2] He also stood in the Glasgow electoral region in the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, receiving 2,453 votes.[6] Mortimer was critical of the Scottish Conservatives in comments made to the Daily Record, stating that they "have been weak opposition to the SNP on a number of levels."[7] Despite gaining the backing of former UK Independence Party candidates John Ferguson and Mitch William, Mortimer insisted that the party was not a vehicle for former UKIP voters, although UKIP has endorsed abolishing the Scottish Parliament.[7][8]
On 31 March 2021, the party announced that they would be contesting each of the eight electoral regions in the 2021 Scottish Parliament election.[9] They endorsed tactical voting similar to other nationalist and unionist parties like Alba and All for Unity. In order to deprive the SNP of a majority or a coalition with the Scottish Greens, they encouraged supporters to give their constituency vote to either the Conservatives, Labour, or the Liberal Democrats, and their list vote to Abolish.[10]
In their first contested election, the 2021 election, the party did not win any seats, achieving 7,262 votes (0.3%).[11]
Policies
[edit]Abolish the Scottish Parliament's single issue is the end of Scottish devolution. They claim that the current devolution system does not resemble what was promised in the 1997 referendum.[12]
They decry the £100 million cost of the parliament as "shocking", pledging instead to spend the funding on the NHS and education.[3] They propose returning executive powers to the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland, returning legislative powers to the UK Parliament in London with a revival of pre-devolution role of the Scottish Grand Committee, and turning the Holyrood parliament building into a museum for the British Armed Forces.[3][13] The party supports increasing the number of Scottish MPs to the seventy-four which Scotland had until 1950, elected on a proportional system. The party also opposes what it sees as "damaging, unpopular policies" pursued by the SNP, such as their "Named Person" system and the minimum pricing of alcohol.
Electoral performance
[edit]2021 Scottish parliament election
[edit]| Region | Candidates[1] | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Scotland | John Mortimer, Lee McLauchlan | 841 | 0.3 |
| Glasgow | James Dunsmore, Robert Pressley | 702 | 0.2 |
| Highlands and Islands | Jack Malcolm | 686 | 0.3 |
| Lothian | John Leckie, David Nichol | 828 | 0.2 |
| Mid Scotland and Fife | Ian Mann, John Duff | 945 | 0.3 |
| North East Scotland | Callum Buchanan | 1,218 | 0.3 |
| South Scotland | John Ferguson, Simon Bellord | 1,126 | 0.3 |
| West Scotland | Robert Watson | 916 | 0.2 |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c "PEOPLE & CANDIDATES". Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ a b Cochrane, Angus (19 August 2020). "New Unionist party wants to abolish the Scottish Parliament". The National. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ a b c "POLICIES". Abolish the Scottish Parliament. Archived from the original on 21 April 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ "Registration summary - Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ Mortimer, John. "Let's Take on the Holyrood Establishment in May 2021". Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ "John Mortimer". Who Can I Vote For?. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ a b McCall, Chris (20 August 2020). "New political party aims to abolish Scottish Parliament by winning seats at Holyrood". Daily Record. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ "UKIP Scotland: Scrap Holyrood now to Save the Union". UKIP. 18 December 2020. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ Mortimer, John. "Abolish to Contest All Scottish Regions!". Abolish the Scottish Parliament. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ Mortimer, John. "Vote Smart to get the SNP and the Greens Out!". Abolish the Scottish Parliament. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ Sim, Philip (10 May 2021). "Scottish election 2021: The numbers behind the result". BBC News. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
- ^ Mortimer, John. "Devolution: A Costly, Divisive, Failed Experiment". Abolish the Scottish Parliament. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
- ^ "FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS". Abolish the Scottish Parliament. Retrieved 7 April 2021.