Highlights Scottish National Party Conference

They were told that they would not win parliamentary seats but they

did. And then we were told that we could never get a Scottish

Parliament but we did. And then we were told that you would never

become the government in that parliament but we did. And more

recently, we were told we would never be re-elected but we were!

And now the same people say you will never get independence. But we

shall. Welcome to Perth when SNP delegates

gathered in upbeat mood after Monday's agreements on the terms of

the independence referendum. Now with his game on for nationalists,

with two years to turn round the opinion polls and win a vote for

independence. Thank you, David. what sort of independent Scotland

does the SNP want? One inside NATO or outside? The SNP's long-standing

position has been to remove nuclear weapons from Scotland and leave

NATO. Despite the protests, polls suggest that the majority of Scots

want to stay in NATO. And the leadership instigated a debate on

changing policy. Scotland in NATO is good defence, good for

neighbouring nations who want historical continuity in defence.

75 % of people in Scotland support being in NATO with only 11 %

against. Delegates, I hope we can make it easy for that 75 %. We

talking politics of taking people on a journey. It is always easier

to do this if we keep the Jenny Short. Don't conjoin Scotland's

NATO status with independence. Let's concentrate our efforts on

the independence and keep Scotland in NATO. Keep the journey to

Independence as short as possible for people. If you vote to join

NATO, you will not get rid of Trident. You vote to join NATO and

there will be pressure and phone calls to this man and his deputy,

not to be involved with CND, not to support Palestinian and similar

causes around the globe. I strongly resent the paraphrasing of this

debate is you were either on board with NATO or you are an

isolationist, without exception, everyone in this hall is an

internationalist and it is inconceivable that Scotland, a

small country on the -- to the north of Europe, would not co-

operate with the British Isles and elsewhere. We await all -- we owe

it all to recognise their defence needs and security. But we also owe

it to our own fault here -- our own folk here in Scotland to provide a

proper defence system for our needs, that includes NATO. Let's look at

Germany. The largest nation in Europe. They have had to step back

from their stated desire to remove nuclear weapons from their shores

due to the stance of NATO. Similar has happened in Holland and Belgium.

If it is nigh-on impossible for Germany to remove weapons of mass

destruction, why should we expect it to be simple for Scotland to

remove it, let alone make our case any easier one? Conference, even if

it were possible to remove nuclear weapons from Scotland and remain a

member of NATO, where is the morality in asking and seeking to

rid our own country... Where is the morality in ridding our own country

of nuclear-weapons but sheltering under the umbrella of an

organisation that has a first strike policy. To reconsider

nuclear-weapons immoral because they are located in Scotland or do

we consider them immoral wherever they may be located? 75 % of

Scottish people want to remain in NATO, I ask you, who are these 75 %

of people? I have never met them! I speak to thousands of constituents

in my constituency, it is a very good constituency, very well

educated, no one has ever raised the issue of NATO with me. Who were

these 75 % to want to stay in NATO? Friends, I am no US poster boy.

And I am certainly no US lap dog, there are probably still a few

senators hunting me, let's be clear what this debate is about. It is

not about anybody being pro Trident or pro the obscenity of nuclear

weapons, no one in this chamber, irrespective of what side you are

taking in this debate, is in support of that. There are people

in Scotland who do need reassurance that we will be safe and secure.

Not from the Red Army, they cannot even tell us who they wish to be

secure from, but whether their fears are it irrational or rational,

they matter and we need to be able to satisfy them and allay their

fears. We have got a toehold in 2007 and we built upon it with a

majority in 2011 but we are not there yet. We have got to win the

biggest vote of all in 2014. That is why... I have marched for CND, I

have protested against Trident, I have demonstrated against the Iraq

war. I am tired Marcham. I want a seat for our government in these

situations of power. -- I am tired marching. I want our First Minister

to enshrine the constitution of an independent Scotland with a

declaration that we will be nuclear free. I want to make sure that we

will send representatives to United Nations that will say a war is not

in our name. I want to make sure that we are there. I want to make

sure that we win in 2014. Kennea, thank you for pointing out

that these fears of attack to Scotland are irrational. You do not

deal with irrationality by pandering to it, you a decayed it.

-- you educate. We are not a party of protest, we are a party of

government with power. With that power, use it to educate the people.

Conference, if you go to Google and put in the words NATO civilian

casualties, in 51 seconds you will come up with just under 4 million

hits. The most recent, just a few hours old, is another apology for

civilian casualties in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Our party's long-

standing opposition to NATO is a foundation principle of the SNP.

In my considered, regret full professional view, our professional

-- our present policy makes us look odd. Hopelessly naive and

idealistic at best, not ready for the big league. Alan Smith said it

was hopelessly naive. I am sorry. If my political participation had

been based on things that other people thought were politically

naive, then I would not have started supporting Scottish

independence over 40 years ago. It is simply hypocritical, on the one

hand to say that you are against weapons of must destruction, and

joined a club that uses them or threatens to use them -- weapons of

mass destruction. If we do not have an agreement on the withdrawal of

Trident, we will not be in NATO. It is very simple. I'm very

honoured to be a campaign director for the Scottish National Party in

the two Scottish National Parliament victories that we have

won. But do not kid yourselves. Our best-ever result has been 44 % of

the vote, not 50 % plus one at that is what we require in the

referendum in 2014 to secure our This debate, this vote, is about

much, much more than carrying a conference hall. This is about

carrying the country and we need Do not disregard the evidence. When

asked, 75 % of respondents said they would wish an independent

Scotland... You can book, you can be but do not disregard the

evidence. We have the largest attendance of the diplomatic

immunity from our neighbouring nations. They are here for a reason.

They want to know what we are going to do when Scotland becomes

independent and I tell you what I want to do. I want an independent

Scotland to get rid of Trident. I want an independent Scotland to be

a good neighbour and ally and walking away from our neighbours

and allies will not help us win the referendum in 2014 and that means

we cannot be a good neighbour and The show of hands was not

conclusive and there was real tension in the hall as the votes

were counted. Those in favour of the resolution, 426. Those against,

332. The resolution as amended his past.

So, the leadership got their way on NATO but there was no doubting the

conviction of some of the opponents for whom this was ultimately a

matter of morality, prove that the toughest debates in politics

involved a mixture of principle, pragmatism and passion. A moral

issue also came to the fore at a fringe making away from the

Conference Centre. The plans for same-sex marriage were strongly

condemned by former party leader Gordon Wilson at an event organised

by opponents. The issue of same-sex marriage is

one which is deeply divisive. I think that the SNP government, for

reasons I cannot understand, have stumbled into a difficulty that

they should have avoided. As a nationalist, I find it very odd

that in the run-up to an independence referendum, the SNP

government adopted same-sex marriage, knowing that it would

alienate vet -- many voters. A brilliant tactician I think at work.

What is the real social crisis facing Scotland? An ageing

population. And yet here we have the government going full-out in

favour of associations which are sterile and do not produce children.

The nation needs children. Only a man and woman can actually have

children and family marriage is -- as I redefine it is the best way of

bringing up children. That is the law of nature. Personally, I think

as people who oppose this proposal, I don't like to see us opposing it

even partly on the ground that people are against it, I think we

should oppose it very strongly on the grounds that it is simply wrong

and wrong is wrong if nobody's as it -- says it. I grew up in fear.

The fear UN mentioning earlier because I am a gay man. The fear

that I would lose my job, but I would be sacked. The fear that I

would not be promoted. Now all we are looking for in a society that

has progressed over centuries, where in this country we have

freedoms others are bleeding for, minimal freedoms, what we are

looking for is to progress that on the simple basis that an individual

has the right to love a person and settle with them in a contract

recognised by the state. I respect the church. Let him have his say.

respect the church's views but equally, over centuries, the church

itself has been associated with the persecuted -- the persecution that

Back in the main hall, John Swinney Public sector workers have seen at

their pay frozen, but this allowed us to deliver a no redundancy

policy. The NHS budget has been fully protected. The creation of a

single police force with 1,000 extra policeman on the beat. A

higher share of spending for local authorities. These and other hard

choices we made allowed us, not just to deliver a balanced budget,

but to deliver the social contract that we value and the services that

Scotland needs. The energy policy is crucial and controversial.

Whilst a protest against wind farms was happening outside the main hall,

at a meeting near by, the Energy Minister was explaining how

important the energy situation is. If we do get a yes, it means we

have successfully communicated what is happening with oil and gas in

Scotland. It is my impression that the facts about what is happening,

in Aberdeen in particular, are not widely known. It is not widely

known that there are around 196,000 people working in the industry. It

is not widely known that there are 2,000 companies in Scotland working

in the sector. It is not widely known that there are 20 or perhaps

slightly more than 20 billion barrels of oil undeveloped. It is

not widely known that the value of the oil and gas that has not yet

been extracted his work 1.5 trillion pounds. Now, the boss said

that anything over a million is a big number, so how do we get across

what 1.5 trillion means? One of the communication challenges is to put

this into the number of schools and hospitals. This kind of money could

dual be main motorway nine times over. The organisation can Maint --

Yes Scotland wants to get their message across, anyway they can.

was speaking to students recently and one thing I asked them was to

imagine what this campaign would be like if Scotland had remained

independent and the blade to we were having it in two years time

was over whether we should join the union. What I asked them to do was

imagine the kind of proposal that the pro-union campaign might be

putting forward in the circumstances. In my view, it would

be an impossible campaign to run. Let us just think about it. Your

main parliament would move hundreds of miles away and your MPs would be

in a tiny minority. You would get a government you did not vote for.

All of your work and gas revenues would be handed over to the

Treasury in London. The biggest nuclear weapons facility in western

Europe would be built on the River Clyde, 50 miles from your larger

You will be joining a country whose health and education services are

rapidly been privatised. Now and again, you would get dragged into

an illegal foreign wall. -- foreign war. An austerity budget will

threaten vital public services. The financial regulation system will be

so weak and so lax that your whole economy will be brought to the

brink of collapse. And then finally, the most weak and vulnerable in

your society, instead of getting the protection and support they

deserve, will instead be interrogated and humiliated in an

effort to get them off the meagre levels of support to which they are

entitled. Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon had a challenge for

the Chancellor George Osborne. Delegates, we are doing everything

we can, but our economy needs more. I have a private message for the

Chancellor. A message on behalf of every construction firm clinging on

by their fingertips. On behalf of every unemployed person desperate

for some light at the end of the tunnel. Our economy needs a capital

stimulus and it needs it now. If the Chancellor cares about getting

growth back into aware economy, if he cares about getting people into

work and giving young people hope of a brighter future then he must

listen, not to us, but to the growing band of economists who say

it is time to take a different course. Use the autumn Budget

statement to increase capital spending and except once and for

all that we will not cut a way out of this recession. We must build

Our Way Out of recession. Delegates, I do not meet many people whooping

the economic policies of successive UK governments have been good for

Scotland, but I do meet people who ask, how do we know that

independence will be better? Friends, there is no country in the

world, big or small, that is guaranteed success, but he appears.

The combination of A1 natural resources and the skills and

intelligence of our people make us just as capable as any other nation

in the world of being a successful, prosperous independent country.

first minister's keynote speech looked ahead to be a referendum.

know that there are many of our fellow citizens that are willing to

be convinced about the merits of independence. But we also know

there is a majority for change in this country. We know that at heart,

people trust their own parliament far more than they will ever trust

Westminster. They know they can ask about individual policies. We know

people want economic policy to be decided by the Scottish parliament.

So let us put these popular aspirations together. A parliament

which decides on social welfare, Trident, the economy and represent

Scotland on the world stage and you have an independent parliament.

Independence is not a single event, it is a process. But it is a

process that involves more than just the transfer of power was. It

is a process where we except the responsibility of changing our

country for the better. In 1997, in Scotland's last referendum, we made

a case for a fairer and more democratic Scotland. Three-quarters

of the people voted for that proposition. People from a cross

for - that people from across Scotland to wanted affair the save.

-- people from across Scotland who wanted a fairer say. We want to say

yes to progress once again. As for the other campaign, their objective

is different. It seems they are against independence for one simple

reason. An independent Scotland will be bound by the people of

Scotland for the people of Scotland. Instead of telling us what we can

do, they tell us what we can't do. The irony is that they've followed

a government that can't even run a railway let alone a government. How

can Labour and the Conservatives tell us we are incapable of running

away or country?! - Matt Browning Away is very different. We expect

public services to be run properly. We judge on imports -- on output.

Also, we know that free personal care for senior citizens is not

some giveaway bonus. It maintains dignity and health and to remain in

their homes and communities. We believe that the parliament's

policies on personal care, transport and education promote

solidarity and protect the vulnerable from been discriminated

against. They give everyone a stake in the country because they reflect

the common Weal of Scotland. Have no doubt what was gained by it

devolution can be guaranteed with independence. Let us be enough to

our political editor of Brian Taylor. The NATO debate - why

should anyone policy matters so much ahead of the referendum?

the context. It is one of reassurance. The SNP yearn for

independence, but individually and collectively and they do not want

obstacles placed in the way of that. They want to reassure the people of

Scotland. They see withdrawing from NATO as an obstacle to independence.

After such an impassioned debate on NATO, it does their nanny to be a

healing process? There were harsh words on both sides. Accusations of

hypocrisy and accusations of naivety from Alan Smith and one or

two others, but the healing process has already begun. What is that? It

is called independence. It is the biggest prize, the big prize for

which they absolutely crave and they will subsume other obstacles

and problems and divisions in search of that. It is a long time

since we have seen any debates like this at any party conference.

is true. The last similar debates was a while ago. It was about

joining the campaign for devolution. Some in the party felt it was a

cul-de-sac. It was a lively debate. The conclusion was to go with the