An Immigrant’s View on Citizenship & Voting
In 2015 I made the decision to retire from my entire way of life in Scotland. Not only would I not be working, I was determined to enjoy my latter years with my family, travel, gardening, and recreation only, no politics whatsoever.
I had joined the SNP in 1968 while still at school and I had been actively campaigning for independence since the 1970 UK GE. So, I wanted a completely different way of life in my retirement. Reducing my golf handicap was another big incentive to enjoy in what is often termed the golden years.
The SNP had 56 out of 59 MPs at Westminster. The English Nationalists were squaring up for a fight over EU membership that was likely to cause civil unrest in England. The Union was creaking at the seams; everything was set fair for Scottish independence. The SNP had the largest membership of any party in Western Europe. Happy days! What could possibly go wrong?
I am more fortunate than most; I had lots of options when it came to where I was going to retire to. I could remain in Scotland, although with both my children and all my grandchildren living overseas, this was not the most appealing location. I was also made aware of a health issue that is not best suited to damp, wet Scottish weather.
I finally chose to be in different parts of the world at different times of the year. A great advantage of retirement is that time is all your own. So, I chose to spend the majority of my time in the warmer climes of Spain. I also spend a good part of the year in the UAE as well as several months of the year in Poland. My family also have a property in Argyll & Bute that is being renovated at present. When that work is completed, this will be a perfect location for me to spend more time ‘at home’ in the future.
That was the plan and, as the old saying goes, “The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.”
What changed everything for me was the 2017 UK GE. My SNP friends back in Barrhead made me aware of the Sturgeon plan of “a vote for the SNP is not a vote for independence.” When I began to investigate this, it proved to be much worse. All talk of independence in the SNP campaign was discouraged. This seemed very strange and suspicious to me. Although, I was told not to worry that Nicola had a secret independence plan. It took me another few years before I saw through that lie.
When I began my new life in Spain, I knew that I would not be actively involved in Spanish politics. For a start, this being a normal country, only those born/citizens in Spain are entitled to vote in both the provincial or national parliamentary elections. Also, it is strictly forbidden for non-citizens to stand in these elections.
I absolutely and unequivocally support that rule. I chose to live in this part of the world for numerous reasons and conditions. All of those reasons were created by the indigenous Spanish people over generations of their national struggle. While I sympathise and can empathise with the Catalan independence supporters, it would be quite wrong in my opinion for me to get involved in their nation’s constitutional matters. I am neither Catalan nor Spanish. I know very little about their history, literature, poetry, music, or traditions. I have no idea how it feels to be Catalan or Spanish.How dare I come here and think I could take a seat in one of their parliaments and make laws for the indigenous people. That would be the height of self-interest and very narcissistic!
That is why I take exception to people like Maggie Chapman, Chou Yi-pei, Lorna Slater, or Q Manivannan being MSPs. Not because of their politics, sexuality, race or the colour of their skin. I object to their participation because for their own reasons they chose to live in Scotland, just as I, for my own reasons chose Spain. Just as I think I could never be properly qualified to make laws in Spain, I do not think any foreign national is ever properly qualified or should be making laws in Scotland.
It would be totally inappropriate for me to be elected to the Barcelona or Madrid Parliaments, by the same token I do not think non Scots should be making laws for Scots or participating in the constitutional politics of Scotland. You will note that throughout the UK none of the Celtic nations registered parties stand candidates in England. They only stand candidates in their own nations.Why then should English registered parties be allowed any standing in Edinburgh, Cardiff or Belfast? The answer is, of course, they should not be allowed to stand candidates.
I also think that only Scottish registered political parties should be entitled to stand at local authority or Holyrood elections. Parties registered in other parts of the Union should only be permitted to stand in the UK general elections. If it was indeed a ‘union of equals’ that would already be the norm.
Therefore, let me say this; I will not allow anyone inside or outside of my party of choice to accuse me of being anti-trans, anti-lesbian, anti-gay, anti- Asian, anti-brown people, or any other kind of anti! I am pro democracy and pro Scotland,there is a huge difference!
This is about what is right and what is wrong. In practically every other country in the world, the rule is simple: non-citizens with or without a valid visa, do not have the right to vote or stand for parliamentary elections in the countries they emigrate into.
Scotland should be no different. My views on the voting franchise are exactly the same. No non- Scottish citizens should be allowed to vote in Scottish national elections, only in local elections.
Migrants like me make life choices; that does not give us the right to make choices for the indigenous population in whatever country we have chosen as our home for the time being.
These people can at anytime return to their own nations of birth and away from any laws they may have created in Scotland. The indigenous Scots will all have to live with those decisions and laws, there is no escape for them! Surely, we can all agree that is neither just or fair?
I’m Scottish, 67 and have always been pro- independence. In my late teens I moved to England for work, met and English girl and got married and lived down there. I support our football team and never felt English or British – Scottish first…European second.
In 2013 I moved to Portugal and during indy ref 1 I advocated Yes but understood that not having lived and worked in Scotland for 35 years I couldn’t vote for Yes…I didn’t have to ask I knew it was unfair much as I would have loved a vote, for me to have an electoral influence on a country I love with all my heart but didn’t work or live in. In 2024 I moved back to ‘end my days’ in Scotland and I love the fact I can now vote here. ( 2nd vote ATLS by the way!) So I totally agree with you..I also never voted in Portugal as I didn’t have residency residency or citizenship there. So it should be for anyone who isn’t born in Scotland or have Scottish citizenship.Fair’s fair!
Over time I have come to the same conclusion. The swearing in of the next session of Holyrood certainly brought that message home to me.
100% agreed!
Can we go back to a world where speaking common sense like this isn’t controversial? Off-topic here, but has anyone seen the news on the new adaptation of the Odyssey? I’m asking because this highlights just how off the rails crazy western society has become. Hollywood has changed the rules for films to be considered for an Oscar, there are diversity quotas that mean if the Greek Odyssey had all Greek actors then it couldn’t be considered. The really crazy part is the unconfirmed casting of transgender Ellen “Elliot” Page as Achilles the perfect masculine warrior. What is confirmed is that Hellen of Troy is to be played by a black actress. The Western leadership, MSM etc is clinically insane.
Well said, Roddy, but I wonder about the question of non-Scots voting in local elections. I suppose local councils only make local by-laws, not legislation. I wish our “friends” in the BBC and STV would highlight the voting rules and practices in other countries, starting with our near-neighbours.
Well said BarrheadBoy, I am with you 100% in everything you wrote, I am a great believer even if you visit a country you obey their laws and if you break them you are dealt with under their law.
I wrote to every political Party asking them to display Scotland on their banners or their manifesto, that way they would let me count the votes that were cast for them on the Regional Ballot, also they had to have their HQ in Scotland, every party except one did as I asked, the one that did not put on DEMAND. Vote for your party but also your country, nothing Scottish because the Regions make up the country, the country is Scotland.
I set out those rule to try and get Blair to the Hague for war crimes, I did not ask for Independence, I did not demand Independence, but Independence was going to be the prize what did I do, I volunteered and put that to Westminster, Mrs May had just become Prime Minister, I let her know why Scotland was wanting Independence, nothing to do with hating the English, it was to get Blair to the Hague, they had tried, they could not do this retrospective, I am a Scots Guardsman, I took an oath to Protect my country, I help Defend theirs, and even protect the Royals, well that is technically not true, we ensure that they do not escape to cause wars, that is what Cromwell promised to get them out of Parliament and put the Crown in Parliament making Parliament Sovereign, we had to ensure their safety. We failed when Mountbatten was blown up in Ireland, we failed when Dianna was murdered in the tunnel when her car hit pillar 13, we failed when Blair ran roughshod over the Sovereign Citizen’s of Scotland when Blair brought the Illegal war to Mrs Windsor’s door, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Door, and all the other places they had as their homes for their family in Scotland.
Blair got one Scots Guardsman killed Stephen Ferguson age 31, killed 13th December 2007, our MOTO NEMO ME IMPUNE LACESSIT, as is Scotland’s, I volunteered to stand up for his voice to be heard, after all Blair was above the law in England, he is Scottish, and if we cannot prosecute our own we do not have the moral high ground to prosecute anyone else. I wrote to the Queen who was my Colonel in Chief if she minded not being above the law because I do not have two laws in my world, one for the rich and famous and one for us mere mortals. She must have agreed, because Boris prorogued parliament and our Joanna Cherry QC along with her counter part in England took the Lord Advocate and the Supreme Court on to stop Boris running the clock down, they won.
That came after Mrs May got a thumping loss on a vote, where in fact she used the SNP to strengthen her hand by going for a snap election, taking out all of the SNP big guns and having a good cross section of MP’s from Scotland all she did was put the question on the table, Deal or no Deal, Blair to the Hague, NO, or Blair to walk away Scot Free, Yes, she knew the SNP wanted to stay in the EU because that is what David Cameron promised them, vote No and you will be in the EU, we did and we are not. that was because Blair had set a trap even if we had won the 2014 vote we would never have got out and we would be blaming the Tories, just like folk are doing just now, Brown came up with the VOW, that was because he knew that trap was there and there is no love loss between Brown and Blair so he Protected the Tories. So everything is not what it appears. At 08:30 19th September 2014, David Cameron came outside at 10 Downing Street, and his first words were English Laws for English Votes, EVEL, that is what he was saying about Blair.
Even today with the Voting System, it is rigged to stop the SNP getting Independence and I am sorry to say the SNP have now abused it along side the Scottish Green Party with this SNP1 and SNP 2, I would like to know what the Scottish Green Party has on John Swinney, who leaked to the press about Alex Salmond’s case, it was a total fiction to test out the Scottish Legal System to ensure there was nowhere Blair could get let off, we ditched the Not Proven verdict, England brought in the Double Jeopardy verdict from away back in Henry IIIV times so that they can also get him tried for war crimes and who is in place to do that, Sir Keir Starmer, he was head of the Crown Prosecution Service at the time.
I did a ballot on 7th May 2026 using the Regional votes, hence the parties putting Scotland on their tickets, I was not stopping them voting any way they wished, that would be undemocratic, I was only counting Ballots, there were however Independent candidates for those who did not or could not vote for any one they had a place to go. I got the total number of people eligible to vote from the Electoral Commission, 4,320,981, I put the question out along with my manifesto and what you were voting for, Scotland for Independence. Your Choice. The question is Blair to the Hague, YES, or Blair to walk away Scot Free, NO., who is going to vote Blair to walk away Scot Free? that would be now 4,320,981 said YES 100% there were no spoilt ballot papers. Now to get him there we had to have Scotland out of the Voluntary Political Union, a tad too long to put on the banner, don’t you think? Scotland for Independence. Your Choice. The number of Ballots cast in the Regional Boxes total, 2,298,714 YES and the total number of ballots not used, 2,022,267 NO, so there you have it 53.7% of the whole of Scotland wants Blair to the Hague and the Total number of folk too young or are so teed off with the SNP 1 and SNP 2 strategy could not be bothered voting 46.3% where as if the SNP had said SNP 1 Scotland 2 there might have been near on 100% for Scotland to be Independent.
There is some lessons to be learned here, folk have died to let you have a vote, please use it, Blair could quite easily have got let off with the low turnout all because the big mighty SNP wants to be in power, Well Mr Swinney you failed to get Scotland Independence like you said you would, now you are wanting a section 30 order to let Blair walk Free by reversing this decision. Under SALVO, Mr Swinney you are Fired and take your Scottish Green Party with you because they were not under my Banner.
Now we need to ditch Blairs way of voting. The King will have to Dissolve Westminster, which in turn dissolves all of the Devolved Parliaments then both England and North Ireland will have to go to the poll and all parliaments reconvene as Independent Parliaments. They said in 2014 we were Better Together, they were right, we worked Shoulder to Shoulder Together all as Independent Nations, working Shoulder to Shoulder apart. We are not willing to Harbour any war criminals, I have asked that Blair foots the bill, for it is not I that is bringing him to book, it is all of the 181 personnel, 21 from Scotland, 160 from the rest of the UK and further afield, Blair celebrated his 73rd birthday on 6th May 2026, they did not see their next one. It is the end of the Iraq war 15 years on, 22nd May 2026, would it not be fitting that Blair has been caught by his rigged voting system and also arrested on the anniversary.
The Scots Guards Honour our dead, we also Honour their, they were only obeying orders, they paid with their life, what is Blair going to pay, L S D. for the youngsters that is cash from before the 1970’s.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old; age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn; at the going down of the Sun and in the morning; we will remember them.
24134671, Scots Guardsman ,William Findlay
NEMO ME IMPUNE LACESSIT
Good heavens that was a long read!
Despite having read your previous comments, there are still a number of assertions that are made or assumed but not explained.
I have no way of knowing what you mean here:
“vote No and you will be in the EU, we did and we are not. that was because Blair had set a trap even if we had won the 2014 vote we would never have got out and we would be blaming the Tories, just like folk are doing just now”
Be explicit. What is this trap that you say Blair has set?
” he knew that trap was there”
What trap? That needs to be explained.
I do not understand, and therefore probably any intelligent reader will not understand.
What is this mechanism that you suppose would ‘ get Blair to the Hague’?
“We failed when Mountbatten was blown up in Ireland”
You do understand that Mountbatten was highly likely killed because of his sexual predation on young Irish boys, don’t you?”
Obviously the BBC and the British establishment never mention this, but if this is news to you, you should have little difficulty now that you know what to search for.
“all she did was put the question on the table, Deal or no Deal, Blair to the Hague, NO, or Blair to walk away Scot Free, Yes”
This is nonsensical. Can you explain it to me with simple words?
“John Swinney, who leaked to the press about Alex Salmond’s case, it was a total fiction to test out the Scottish Legal System to ensure there was nowhere Blair could get let off”
what was this alleged ‘leak’ from John Swinney?
How can/did a leak ‘test the legal system’?
What is this mechanism that you speak of “to ensure there was nowhere Blair could get let off” ?
Establishment figures are not held to account in Establishment dominated ruritanian UKania. So no change there then.
The Conservative & Unionist party were not held to account when they cheated in two referendums or two General elections. The is the norm under the English caste system.
Only the little people are held to account.
Like you or I, or our host here Roddy might be if one of us were to libel on of the ‘made men’ of the ruling gang. 😉
I have just posted THIS on WOS , as the hierarchy in ATLS were fully and eagerly supportive of Craig Murray’s inclusion in ATLS as a candidate, do you echo and support Craig’s accusations that For Women Scotland are a radical anti trans campaigning group
Sarah and anyone else interested in donating to Craig Murray’s blog I would advise them to check out his latest blog where he supports the election of the DROSS rejects from everywhere and anywhere to sit in the gayest wee parliament in the world to REIGN over NORMAL Scots, and if you don’t support the election of these parasites you are a RACIST
link to craigmurray.org.uk
Sarah you sent him books and tapes to support him while imprisoned, you donated to his crowdfund as I did, I voted for the ATLS who supported his inclusion in the party whilst alienating ISP members and a founding member of ATLS Allan Petrie who I disagreed with in relation to immigration and was rewarded by being called a racist
IF I had been aware of Craig’s support for a situation similar to manivannan’s before the election I would most certainly have done my utmost to dissuade people from voting for ATLS as they were eager to have Murray on board , so much so that they insisted that Petrie accepted him or leave
His post is aggressively accusatory and derisory claiming that For Women Scotland are a RADICAL ANTI TRANS CAMPAIGNING GROUP
He wrote
” This argument was first adopted by the radical anti-trans campaigning group For Women Scotland. This group was founded in order to oppose self-ID for trans people. 99% of its output is anti-trans rights argument.”
He also asserts that all the alternative independence supporting parties that opposed the GRA and trans rights including ATLS almost NOBODY voted for them
Whilst the Greens who were fully indoctrinated in the woke lunacy received many more votes
So effectively Craig is claiming that the electorate is supportive of the GRA and Woke lunacy, that is why they vote green , and the alternative indy parties are NOT getting votes because they oppose the GRA and trans lunacy
Thank fuck he did’nt get elected , IF ATLS defend his or any similar position I will vehemently do my utmost to encourage people to vote AGAINST them , FFS we have had 12 years of this BIOLOGICAL LUNACY ruining Scotland, Craig can fuck right off
ATLS has from day one made it very clear they have a single policy. Independence nothing else,independence nothing less.
Candidates thereafter are entitled to their own opinions on matters. Some people seem to have difficulty or short and selective term memory loss when it comes to this.
We purposely wanted a single policy so as not to get dragged into cul de sacs like Gender,EU/EFTA ,currency, defence, foreign affairs etc etc all the areas the Brits love.
This especially on gender which has been the most divisive policy ever and has split the movement and I truly believe destroyed the SNP in the medium to long term.
If you truly want my personal opinion, it is not the same as that of Craig as I have made abundantly clear on numerous occasions and on numerous platforms. Certain individuals and organisations have obsessed on this very topic to the exclusion of our core aim INDEPENDENCE, How the unionists must love it when our zealots concentrate on the topic of gender and relegate the topic that scares them the most, the constitution.
We, and I will stick to independence and leave others to their individual beliefs on the other topics.It is a distraction and an obstacle to Scotland’s liberation.
Just an afterthought. Did you actually read the article? For in that I made my position 100% clear or was your question just rhetorical so you could have a pop at ATLS and Craig at the same time?
FYI I was on social media day and daily, also throughout the night promoting ATLS and pleading with voters to give them their second vote , I was promoting the honesty and integrity of the party alongside their DIRECT DEMOCRACY ambitions , I donated what I could afford to the party coffers , so save your childish comment about just having a pop at ATLS, I commented about your and Allan Petrie’s promotion of immigration as contrary to your statements of INDEPENDENCE NOTHING LESS , INDEPENDENCE NOTHING ELSE , you and Allan decided that any comments not aligning with your beliefs and opinions deserved to be labelled as RACIST ,and yet despite both of you branding me a RACIST I still promoted ATLS as the best option and avenue to independence
Did YOU even read Craig’s post , did it strike you as appealing to 50%+ of the electorate who are REAL women , do you believe that Craig’s beliefs and promotion of the gender lunacy is any different to the Scum Nonce Parties policies and actions or the greens policies and actions , do you genuinely believe that Craig’s accusations of FOR WOMEN SCOTLAND as a aggressive RADICAL ANTI TRANS ORGANISATION will not be associated with ATLS and their aims, if so you are the one who is deluded
WE independence supporters in Scotland and Scots broadly, have suffered this abomination of biology denial for the past 12 years which has devastated the independence movement and created fear and loathing from deviants and perverts threatening the safety of OUR womenfolk and children , and yet you support a candidate who espouses those same views and opinions that the majority of the electorate despises
YOU obviously see anyone who disagrees with your opinion as an enemy and goes directly to personal attack , it has similarities with the actions of your good friend Peter A Bell , it’s no wonder the two of you cannot stand each other ,TBQH I couldn’t give a flying fuck what your opinion of me is , my only concern is for my fellow Scots and the protection of our womenfolk and children , we have had enough of enablers prioritising everyone else over indigenous Scots
I was not an ATLS candidate and I repeat the party has one policy anything else is the personal opinion of that person. I have tried to make that as plain as I can also Allan Petrie was an ISP candidate not a ATLS candidate. He could not accept the single policy mantra he has agreed previously. However if he had remained his personal opinion on immigration or any other topic is his opinion not party policy
Independence nothing else it really is quite simple and straightforward
Roddy, your analogy falls at the first hurdle. Spain is a sovereign nation-state; Scotland is a devolved region of the UK. The comparison only works if Scotland is already independent — which is precisely what’s still being argued for. You’re assuming the conclusion.
Beyond that, you compare yourself — a retiree with no Spanish citizenship who chose not to engage in civic life — to MSPs who are British citizens. Chapman, Slater, and Chou Turvey went through the same legal settlement process available to any immigrant. You didn’t. Of the four you name, only Manivannan isn’t a British citizen, and that case was already debated at length.
You also never mention English-born, Welsh-born, or Irish-born MSPs. The four people you chose to single out are a Zimbabwean woman, a Taiwanese woman, a Canadian woman, and an Indian-born person. The “I’m not racist” disclaimer doesn’t strengthen your argument — it suggests you already know how it reads.
I was quite clear I believe only Scots born should be allowed to stand for our national parliament. The fact is that in no other country in the world can non citizens stand for national parliaments.Indeed,in the USA the alleged protector of democracy only those citizens born in the USA can run for President.
Almost every EU nation permits parliamentarians with acquired citizenship. I believe that none allow non-citizens to run for national parliament. The distinction is significant.
Standing for EU parliament does not require national citizenship. It only requires EU citizenship.
Standing for local elections anywhere in the EU does not require national citizenship and depends on EU citizenship only. This includes Spain.
The US only sets out a rule for President. There is no such rule for any of its legislative chambers at federal or state level.
Barring people with acquired citizenship from entering parliament would be at odds with almost every modern democracy. Barring non-citizens would be about normal. But these are very different things.
In UK law, Holyrood is not a national parliament. I wish that wasn’t the case but there you go. With it not being a national parliament, the principle that non-citizens get to participate in it is quite usual.
It is only usual because Scotland is a colony of England
Your claim is as follows: “only Scots born should be allowed to stand for our national parliament”. I engage only with this claim.
The entire point of acquired citizenship throughout the developed world is to be able to fully participate in democracy. It is more than normal: it is by design that people with acquired citizenship may fully participate in democracy. Your wish is to go against the international grain and introduce two tiers of citizenship with one of them being completely useless.
I am right now in the process of acquiring citizenship of a European country. Please trust me when I say that the point of the process is to prepare you for participation in democracy. I need to understand how elections work, be culturally aware, distinguish the competences of the various legislative chambers, and be able to discuss hot topics in the local language. I urge you to do the same in Spain because it is a positive experience.
Democracy depends on engagement in civic life. Discouraging it is dangerous.
Allowing foreign nationals to vote in your national elections is not engagement ,it is colonialism
“Allowing foreign nationals to vote in your national elections is not engagement ,it is colonialism”
You do realise that ATLS fielded multiple Holyrood candidates just 5 weeks ago who were not born in Scotland.
Craig Murray – England
Konrad Rekas – Poland
Dhruva Kumar – India
Are they all colonialists? Is ATLS colonialist?
I don’t know how many times I need to repeat what I made clear in my article
I am quoting your comments below the line.
Your claim is as follows: “only Scots born should be allowed to stand for our national parliament”. I have copy-pasted your text. I am engaging with this specific quote.
Your other claim is as follows: “Allowing foreign nationals to vote in your national elections is not engagement ,it is colonialism” Again, I have copy-pasted your text.
Despite the text you published here, ATLS fielded several candidates who were not born in Scotland. The discrepancy between words and actions is significant and worth probing.
If you wish to withdraw your quotes, that’s fine. Maybe they were in made in haste and don’t express your views. So far, however, you have not withdrawn your quote. Isn’t this worth clarifying?
What ATLS does is its business please tell me you are not as ill informed or as stupid as James Kelly to believe ATLS is my party?
I am merely an ordinary member.
I am also a republican and abstentionist and an anti war,anti NATO anti EU none of those positions are ATLS positions
There is a single game policy,independence nothing else,independence nothing less
I don’t believe it is your party.
But you are clearly a prominent supporter of the party. You urged people to vote for ATLS across multiple blog posts.
I just found it interesting that ATLS has a policy of candidate selection that you consider to be an act of colonialism. It’s in a very different category from a policy disagreement about transport subsidies or potholes.
Also, if ATLS supports “independence nothing less, nothing else” why does it have policies on NATO and the EU? The “nothing else” part is clearly hogwash.
I don’t read James Kelly cos there is no point whatsoever in doing that. If I want to find out about polls I’ll tune in to the guy who runs Ballot Box Scotland.
I agree only citizens should be allowed to vote in elections, in Scotland that, of course, means that anyone having a UK passport is entitled to vote as per the sovereign decision of the Scottish people in 2014.
That is not the position of Mr Barrhead Boy.
His position, stated here in the comments, is that only people born in Scotland should vote in elections ie those with acquired citizenship would not have voting rights.
Personally, I’m comfortable with a rule that permits only citizens to vote in national elections. I’m not that bothered about it, to be honest. I am very much against any introduction of two tier citizenship.