GB News: Kirsty Gallacher and Darren McCaffrey host show

When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Sometimes they’ll include recommendations for other related newsletters or services we offer. Our Privacy Notice explains more about how we use your data, and your rights. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Jamie Blackett took to TV this morning to speak about Scotland’s terms for independence and the question of who would be able to vote in another SNP vote on the divisive question. Speaking on GB News, Mr Blackett highlighted the pros of having an independence deal for Scotland similar to the terms of Canada’s agreement with Quebec. The party leader explained how independence is “not off the table”, but “there have to be rules” and referenced “what they did in Canada”.

He said: “That has settled the question there, they haven’t denied that Quebec could ever be independent, but they say ‘these are the rules’.

“I think this is what we do now in the United Kingdom, we say that you have to get so many votes in an election to trigger a referendum, and if there was a referendum, this is what the rules would be.

“This is what the franchise would be, it would be all Scots, there would be a second people’s votes to allow those parts of Scotland that don’t want to go independent to opt back into the UK if they so desire.

“I mean, that is democratic, that is what Nicola Sturgeon argued for in the context of Brexit and in the context of Scexit, that is what we should do – we should make the whole thing as democratic as possible so that we don’t end up with a very unhappy nation.”

What is Quebec’s deal with Canada?

Quebec is a French-speaking region of Canada, and one that has tried to gain independence since 1867.

The area has had two independence referendums, the most recent of which took place on October 30, 1995.

Voters were asked: “Do you agree that Quebec should become sovereign after having made a formal offer to Canada for a new economic and political partnership within the scope of the bill respecting the future of Quebec and of the agreement signed on June 12, 1995?”

The question had to be answered ‘yes’ or ‘no’, and the results proved incredible close.

On an astonishingly high turnout of 93.5 percent – far greater than Scotland’s turnout in 2014 – and 49.42 percent voted for ‘yes’, while those who voted no represented 50.58 percent of voters.

Even allowing for spoiled votes, the difference was extremely narrow with only around 53,000 votes out of more than 4.7million cast at the ballot box.

Quebec was first established via the Constitution Act of 1867, in which functions were similar to the Westminster system governing the Union and the region is both a liberal democracy and constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system.

The premier of Quebec, currently Francois Legault, acts as head of Government and holds office by commanding the confidence of the elected National Assembly.

DON’T MISS
Sturgeon’s Euro 2020 failure after data shows RISE in Scotish cases [INSIGHT]
Panicked Sturgeon lashes out at Boris for plot to ‘rig IndyRef2 rules’ [REPORT]
Expert hits out at Sturgeon rule changes to fix indy vote [ANALYSIS]

Quebec’s political culture variates mainly in terms of nationalist v federal, in the same way Holyrood and Westminster clash, rather than the standard left v right.

The parliament of Quebec is the legislative body of the region and is comprised of the lieutenant-governor (representative of the Crown) and an elective chamber entitled the National Assembly.

Each legislature has a maximum term time of five years, however aside from exceptional circumstances, Quebec conducts fixed-date elections in October every four years.

The society of Quebec is based on three unique statutory documents, including the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms, the Charter of the French Language and the Civil Code of Quebec.

And unlike in the rest of Canada, law in Quebec is mixed; private law is exercised under a civil law system and public law works under a common law umbrella.

Quebec’s economy is advanced, and sectors of the knowledge economy such as aerospace, information and communication technologies, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals play leading roles.

The region is also very rich in natural resources, most notably hydroelectricity, forestry and mining capacity, bringing it to be the second-biggest Canadian province or territory by GDP.

The Government of Quebec takes the majority of its revenue through a progressive income tax, a 9.975 percent sales tax – various other taxes such as carbon, corporate and capital gains – as well as the federal government, transfer payments from other provinces and direct payments.

Unlike numerous other countries, in Canada there is no division of the judicial system and with a few exceptions, all courts of the administration of justice can hear appeals based on provincial laws as well as federal.

Source: Read Full Article