Since January, I have been planning to get strong at some unspecified point later in the year.
I am pathetically weak in comparison to my peers. I cannot complete one single press up. Squats are beyond me.
If somebody needed rescuing from a burning building the best I could offer would be to Google how to build a wheelbarrow.
The preparation is under way, however.
I signed up to the gym. I have protein yogurts in the fridge that I occasionally remember to eat before they go out of date.
I’ve even stuck a picture of a strong woman lifting a very heavy barbell on the cupboard in my bedroom. I hope that if I stare at it often enough I’ll magically start to feel my muscles grow.
My half-hearted approach to achieving a body capable of taking on a mid-sized chimpanzee in a fight to the death is very similar to the one currently being pursued by the Scottish Government towards a second independence referendum.
Next week, the government will publish a document outlining the next steps towards Indyref2.
As things currently stand, the SNP insists it will fulfil its election pledge to hold the poll before the end of next year.
Muscles aren’t built in a day and neither are successful referendum campaigns.
We don’t even know whether legally we can have another referendum without Westminster’s consent.
Constitutional experts are split on the issue and if, as expected, Boris Johnson refuses to grant a Section 30 order then we could see a messy court battle ahead between the two governments.
Will SNP Indyref2 document move the plans on?
Cards on the table time: I want Scotland to become an independent country.
I voted yes in 2014 and I will vote yes again, if they ever get round to asking me the question.
🚨 FM @NicolaSturgeon will publish the first in a series of papers outlining our vision of an independent Scotland next week.
🏴 We will seek to build the better, fairer, nation that is only possible with independence.
🤝 Join us in making that national ambition a reality. pic.twitter.com/Oo3FpKCQYu
— Dave Doogan MP (@DaveDooganSNP) June 10, 2022
Not least because it seems ludicrous to me that a sovereign nation doesn’t have the power to decide when and if it polls its citizens on their country’s future.
It’s crazy that our right to vote on an issue of such importance is dependent on the whim of a law-breaking, lying Prime Minister whose party hasn’t won an election in Scotland in my lifetime.
But this period of stasis is pleasing nobody.
Many who support Scottish independence are frustrated with the Scottish Government’s insular approach to the timing and strategy behind its Indyref2 plans.
They might finally get the answers they are looking for in the weeks ahead.
Or they might be subject to yet another document that sets out the aim without addressing the not inconsiderable matter of the how.
Westminster refusal is a barrier to progress
Unionists aren’t happy, either.
BREAKING: Scottish Government have published, for the first time, aspects of legal advice relating to IndyRef2.
The central question of competency is not in the advice released, instead it confirms the gov believes it can
1) Test the 2014 question
2) Undertake prep work on indy— Conor Matchett (@conor_matchett) June 7, 2022
They are sick of what they see as an ever-present threat of a second independence referendum looming just over the horizon.
I understand those concerns and the frustration that while Scottish politics is stuck on the constitutional question, there are real issues in the country that need to be addressed.
NHS waiting times, the drug deaths crisis and the devastating impact of the cost of living crisis all deserve this government’s full attention.
The SNP has a mandate to hold a second independence referendum.
It won that fairly and squarely at the last Scottish Parliament election.
Regardless of your views on what Scotland’s future should look like, we can all agree that we want it to be something better – more hopeful – than it is now.
Westminster’s refusal to allow a vote is a barrier to that progress.
SNP still the only party reaping Indyref2 rewards
The SNP has been in power for 15 years. All governments have a shelf life. And this one is starting to look tired and worn after so many years at the top table.
Opposition parties often appear baffled about the SNP’s continued success.
They should ask themselves why, if what the SNP is offering is so underwhelming, are voters not convinced that their parties could do any better?
But with the country split down the middle on whether or not Scotland should go its own way, our politics is stuck in limbo.
Every election is dominated by the constitution.
We can’t go forward but we can’t go back, either.
For as long as the SNP is the only party capable of delivering the second independence referendum that half the country say they want, it will continue to reap the electoral rewards.
SNP voters expect – and deserve – answers on Indyref2 plans
Scottish Labour saw what happens when you take voters for granted.
In recent months, the SNP has revealed glimmers of arrogance and complacency that shows it hasn’t learned from that mistake.
While it’s unlikely that the SNP will lose power any time soon, the party should be wary of letting a feeling of resentment grow among its supporters.
I hope that in the weeks ahead we will finally get the answers we deserve about the process the Scottish Government plans to follow to secure a referendum.
Not least because if a campaign is imminent then I need to crack on and improve my upper-body strength.
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