A former SNP justice secretary has warned against a “headlong rush” into a second independence referendum.
Kenny MacAskill, who played a key role in Alex Salmond’s government before departing his post when Nicola Sturgeon took charge, said his party still has many questions to answer after the Brexit vote before it could convince people to vote Yes.
His former boss Mr Salmond, now the Nationalists’ foreign affairs spokesman at Westminster, has predicted a second independence poll in 2018.
Writing in the Herald newspaper, Mr MacAskill stressed that he was still committed to the cause of independence but argued that Scottish history was “littered with headlong rushes to disaster”.
He added: “As with Highland charges it’s not the passion of the participants that’s in doubt, but the wisdom of the tactic.
“Scottish success, whether on the battle or sporting field, has come through more cerebral actions, not rushes of blood to the head.
“Glorious defeat would put the dream back catastrophically, even if some enjoyed the journey. Wiser counsel must prevail.”
Mr MacAskill said the unanswered questions left by the Brexit vote included: “Would we be in the EU, would there be a hard border and what would the currency be?”
He continued: “None of those can be answered but would be questions being asked. Some clarity on them is needed.”
Pro-independence campaigners took to the streets of Glasgow and other Scottish towns and cities at the weekend.
Mr MacAskill, who stood down as an SNP MSP before May’s Holyrood election, said the passions of activists keen for a fresh independence campaign had to be restrained, which he argued would be “frustrating but essential for ultimate success”.
He added: “The SNP would be wiser to be working on the answers to critical questions that cost victory in the last referendum. It should also be working in and cherishing the constituencies won in its wake.”
Former health secretary Alex Neil similarly cautioned against holding an independence referendum in the near future in a recent article for Holyrood magazine.
In the immediate aftermath of the UK voting to leave the EU, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said a second referendum of leaving the UK was “highly likely”.
But a series of opinion polls in recent weeks have suggested a narrow majority of voters still oppose independence, despite Scotland voting by 62% to 38% in favour of remaining in the EU.
