Normally at this point we’d be giving an update on the various activities going on within IFS, but we’ll cover those in next week’s newsletter. Over the past few days, there’s been a far bigger story to discuss.
Many people, across the political spectrum and on both sides of the constitutional divide, will have reacted to Saturday’s news of the sudden death of Alex Salmond in North Macedonia in exactly the same way – with a profound sense of shock and sadness. Even now, it seems difficult to absorb the fact that someone who should still have had so much to offer has been removed from the scene at such an early age.
His political legacy, about which many column inches have already been written, is undisputed. He was the pre-eminent Scottish public figure of the post-war years: a formidable debater, a thorn in his opponents’ sides, and a passionate and compelling advocate for Scotland on the international stage.
Between 2007 and 2014 he changed the course of Scottish political life, with effects that have not yet fully run their course. His belief in Scotland and what it might achieve swept through the whole independence movement and gave us hope, even though at the first attempt we fell just short. Amidst the movement’s travails in more recent years, that hope still persists. In Alex’s own words, ‘The dream shall never die’.
On a personal level, his legacy is often described as ‘complicated’. That appellation has been all too prominent in certain commentators’ remarks in recent days. What we can say with certainty is that Alex Salmond had many friends, often with political views that differed from his, who were and remain fiercely loyal to him. In an evaluation of his character that must surely count for something.
He also possessed an extraordinary amount of personal charm: unlike many politicians, he genuinely enjoyed meeting people, often stopping for lively discussions with ordinary folk, with little regard for the clock. Our colleagues at Perth & Kinross Yes Hub saw this for themselves one Friday afternoon recently, when during a campaigning visit to Perth he called in, with his entourage, and stayed for nearly an hour of jovial conversation. His minders may not have been too pleased at the disruption to their timetable!
The overwhelming feeling since Saturday, even for those who were disappointed by Alex Salmond’s estrangement from the SNP and the political direction he subsequently took with the Alba Party, is that we’ve had taken from us someone irreplaceable, who’ll be missed more than we yet realise. Our heartfelt thoughts go out to Moira, his wife of 43 years, and the rest of his family.
You may also have noticed the report in yesterday’s National that there’s now a Book of Condolence open at the Scottish Parliament. It’s available during the Parliament’s normal opening hours, between 10 am and 4:30 pm from Monday to Saturday. There have been calls for other means of expressing condolences, for those who live too far afield of Edinburgh to visit, and if any other outlets become available we’ll let you know.
It’s the end of an era. Now a new era begins, and in memory of Alex Salmond and countless others who have not lived to see the future Scotland for which they strove so hard, it’s up to the rest of us to make it the era of independence.
Best wishes,
IFS Media & Communications Team
