Sometimes it is useful to take some time to digest an event fully, and come to some considerations about it. A few weeks ago, on April 26th, the Electoral Reform Society Scotland collaborated with a range of civic organisations, democracy campaigners and academics to bring together a conference titled: A Scottish Spring – Building a democracy fit for the 21st Century.
Taking place against a backdrop of political polarisation, institutional alienation and rising anxiety about the future, the event sought to discuss a variety of topics, seeking answers to some big questions. How could we enhance and encourage a culture of debate and consensus building? How can we take the debate about Scotland’s constitutional future forward in an inclusive and constructive way? After 25 years of devolution, what next for the Scottish Parliament? What is the role of civic Scotland in politics and society today? How can local democracy be more responsive to local communities? How can we overcome performative policy, and address the implementation gap?
In the heart of Edinburgh, people from across Scotland packed into The Great Hall in Nicolson Square to join the debate. The day started with Willie Sullivan, ERS Senior Director, in conversation with Professor Nicola McEwen, Director of the Centre for Public Policy. They set out the broad issues confronting democracy today, and set an open and discursive tone for the event. We also wanted to ensure that we were able to assess the public mood, and commissioned exclusive polling for the event to aid in this process. In the next session, Mark Diffley of Diffley Partnership who conducted the survey, provided an overview of some of the most important findings. These findings reached the front page in the Herald on the eve of the conference.
This was followed by a fascinating discussion on the constitutional divide, and the post-2014 landscape. Dr Lynn Bennie, co-author of Parties, Movements and the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum: Explaining the Post-Referendum Party Membership Surges, joined Ben Macpherson, SNP MSP and Katy Clark, Labour MSP. The panel invited a range of interesting questions from the audience, and there was a sense that while Scotland was entering a post-referendum era, there had also to be an inclusive and non-tribal approach to the Scotland’s constitutional status.
Building on these themes, we then moved into a Question Time style format to appraise the Scottish Parliament, the role of civic Scotland and the state of local democracy. Esther Roberton, former Coordinator of the Scottish Constitutional Convention; Alison Payne, Research Director, Reform Scotland Think Tank; Craig Dalzell, Research Director, Common Weal; and Pauline Smith, Development Trusts Association Scotland provided a wealth of experience and expertise on these subjects, and again we were not short on pressing questions from the floor.
To finish we were treated to a fantastic panel composed of Mark Drakeford, the Former First Minister of Wales; Eddie Barnes, Director, John Smith Centre and Lena Swedlow, Compass Campaigns Manager. Lena spoke in the most inspiring way about the involvement of young people in democracy, and her own experiences of campaigning to make our institutions more responsive and accountable. Eddie made the case for the virtue and importance of being able to “disagree agreeably.” This is a cornerstone of a vibrant democracy. Mark provided an outline of his thinking in a deeply thoughtful key-note speech about a union of nations based on social solidarity, and about the role democracy can play in creating a society in which people from all backgrounds can thrive.
The event was the first public outing after a period of roundtable discussions with the speakers and organisations involved. In the coming months there will be further opportunities for such an approach, as Scotland enters into key set of Holyrood elections, which will see the entry of new parties, new challenges and new opportunities in democratic space.
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