SNP NORTH AMERICAN NETWORK NEWSLETTER

Issue 3, July 1998

UPDATE

NOTE-- due to regulations set by the Labour party in London

Welcome to the third edition of the SNP's North American Network Newsletter. The response to our second edition has been as encouraging have circulated a questionnaire to all North American supporters and members asking for details and contacts. The response to this has been good but we still await many to reply. If you can spare the time please send in your details.

We can also announce that a North American Network Advisory Committee is in the process of being set up to co-ordinate SNP activities in the US and Canada. We will release further details when it is fully in place?

POLLS STILL SHOW GROWING SUPPORT FOR SNP AND INDEPENDENCE

The July Systems 3 opinion poll for the Herald newspaper has shown the SNP's lead over the Labour party extend from 9% to 14%. This places the SNP at 48% and Labour at 34%. The Tories and Liberals are on 9% each. A further ICM poll commissioned by the Scotsman newspaper showed support for independence grow by 4% to 56%.

The SNP leader, Mr Alex Salmond MP, said: "This poll position for the SNP is unprecedented and surely reflects the Scottish public's growing confidence in the SNP. However the real poll that matters is 10 months away in May 1999. Only then can we prove ourselves as the party worthy to govern Scotland. Therefore we must avoid complacency and work twice as hard for an SNP victory next year."

LABOUR PARTY IN PANIC

As support for the SNP grows in elections to the Scottish Parliament it was revealed that Labour's leaders in Scotland had held a high profile meeting to discuss how to regain the political initiative. The meeting was meant to be held in secret but was well known to all jounalists in Scotland. In fact the lack of "secrecy" about the meeting was exemplified by six photos of Government Ministers and Special Advisors arriving for the discussion.

Mike Russell, Chief Executive of the Scottish National Party, said: "This high profile meeting was designed to relaunch Labour for the fourth time in Scotland in the face of rising and continuing support for the SNP. The whole episode reminds me of the Tories' panic measures to relaunch themselves in the face of growing support for Labour. However they fail to realise, like the Tories, that there problems are self-made. They result from internal splits and whispering campaigns against Donald Dewar - the Scottish Labour leader. It looks like they are not learning and arrogantly assume they have a right to rule.@

SCOTTISH BILL OF RIGHTS - THE US CONSTITUTION COMES HOME

Just as the United States has a Bill of Rights amended to their constitution, the SNP believes that a sovereign Scotland requires a written constitution to ensure the rights of our citizens are protected by law. The basis of this constitution will ensure that no-one is dicriminated against on the basis of race, religion, gender or beliefs. George Reid, the constitutional spokesperson for the SNP said: "The SNP believes in civic nationalism - that a nation should be based on common principles that are inclusive. As Bashir Ahmed of Scots Asians for Independence said: 'It's not where we come from that really matters; it's where we are all going together'."

It could be said that the SNP's vision of a wriiten constitution and Bill of Rights is the US Constitution coming home. Many of those that drafted the US Constitution were also signatories to the Declaration of Independence and, as Trent Lott has said, many of them were Scots-Americans inspired by the Declaration of Arbroath - Scotland's declaration of independence in 1320.

SNP POLICIES - TOURISM AND EXPORTS

Present day Scotland is indebted to the many US and Canadian companies who have invested in Scotland and helped create jobs in may of our depressed industrial areas. However to make a really prosperous economy we need to mix the success of inward investment with a thriving domestic manufacturing that can export successfully.

A major SNP policy is the creation of a Scottish Exports Unit to promote Scottish goods and services all over the world. In particular North America will be a market at the forefront of Scottish exports. To compliment the Exports Unit we also plan to bring the Scottish Tourist Board under an umbrella organisation to promte Scotland as a tourist destination. Tourism the fourth largest business in Scotland and many of those visitors come from North America. This is something the SNP wants to see expand and grow.

BLAST FROM THE PAST - SCOTS REACH SOCCER WORLD CUP SEMI-FINALS

Even though both Scotland and the USA failed to get past the first round of this year's Soccer World Cup Finals in France there was a time when Scots and Americans reached the semi-finals. The year was 1930 and the finals were held in Uruguay when five Scots born players represented the USA in the semi-finals.

With Scotland out of the running this time, the SNP leader Alex Salmond backed France to win the trophy. This they did with a comprehensive 3-0 defeat of 1994 World Champions Brazil. A portent of the future of Scottish politics?

SNP SHOP & PARTY DONATIONS

The opening of the SNP shop on our website page is imminent. Remember the SNP has a large number of products available to supporters to show their support for the party. Prominent amongst these goods are watches bearing the SNP symbol and whisky decanters engraved with the party symbol. You can also learn more about the party and it's history from a wide range of publications.

To purchase these goods you can make enquiries about purchasing this material by contacting Irene White or Beverley Murray on snp.administration@snp.org.uk. Credit card purchases can be made by telephone on +44 131 226 3661; or you may want to wait till the opening of our SNP Shop on the internet.

IDEAS FOR THE NETWORK NEWSLETTER

If you have any ideas for articles or policy briefings you would like to see in the Network Newsletter please feel free to contact me at the above e-mail address.

In the meantime keep sending in the completed questionnaires, questions, suggestions or names of other known supporters. See you next month.

SNP