UK General Election 2019 - Debate Thread

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Nicola Sturgeon's Debate Responses

Opening statement:

The people of Scotland face big decision this election. Should Scotland stay in a union which doesn't listen to Scotland, or should Scotland become an independent, forward looking country that is in the EU? In this debate, you will hear Mr. Nuttall and Mr. Farage attack immigrants for political gain and Mr. Cameron call for more cuts to public services which are essential to Scotland's most vulnerable. No doubt you'll also hear Mr. Darling hedge his bets on Brexit. These people haven't and won't listen to Scotland, they represent a wealthy elite in the South East of England. A vote for the SNP is a vote for an independent Scotland in the EU standing against austerity and inequality.


What is your position on Brexit? If you support Brexit, how will you enact the actual policy of Britain leaving the European Union? If you oppose Brexit, what is your plan to reverse Article 50 being invoked by then-Prime Minister Andrea Leadsom?

The SNP believes the surest way for Scotland to remain in the EU is for us to have an independent Scotland. But, as long as we stay part of the UK, SNP MPs in Westminster will strongly advocate for a second referendum on Brexit, and will campaign to stop Brexit. We support revoking Article 50 as a way of stopping Brexit, especially if we get too close to the deadline and risk crashing out. SNP MPs will also be a voice for Scotland in Parliament to make sure that Scotland gets a seat at the negotiating table. This is absolutely necessary, a leaked government memo revealed that the Tories don't see the Scottish fishing and oil industries as a high priority in the Brexit negotiations. 80,000 Scottish jobs depend on Scotland's membership of the EU, only a strong Scottish voice can fight to protect Scotland's jobs.


More than 300,000 people are homeless in this country and scores more are living in temporary housing. If elected Prime Minister, what will you do to address this crisis?

As First Minister, I have fought endlessly to put more money in the hands of the poorest in our society. We have invested £50 million towards ending homelessness, building 82,000 affordable homes since 2007. We have set up programs to help alleviate costs associated with housing including helping 316,000 low income households with buying essentials and Social Security Scotland, to help provide support to the most vulnerable Scots. We have done all this with our hands tied. Savage Tory austerity has led to huge cuts to our vital social programs and the results have been an explosion in extreme poverty. SNP MPs will oppose cuts to public services and the welfare system vigorously, and will be a voice for ending homelessness.


Reform of the House of Lords has become a hot-button political issue in this campaign. How would you like to see the Lords reformed, if at all.

I am very proud that the SNP is by far the largest party to have no representation in the House of Lords. It is a corrupt, aristocratic, undemocratic and outdated institution that has to be abolished.


Britain has suffered several major terror attacks over the last few years, including the Manchester Arena bombing and the Westminster Bridge attack; Jo Cox was shot to death in 2016, and, just last week, Arder Carson was brutally stabbed to death in his constituency. How will a Government led by you ensure Britons remain safe in their own neighborhoods?

As First Minister, I've increased law enforcement spending by £100 million. While England and Wales have lost 20,000 officers due to Tory cuts, officer numbers in Scotland have actually increased since the SNP came to power. In addition, we have invested £17 million in violence prevention and £13.5 million in anti-sectarian education. As a result, crime is down 42% since the SNP took office, the lowest level ever in Scotland. Violent crime is down 46%. The re-conviction rate is also the lowest its been in 19 years.


Ms. Sturgeon, will Scotland leave the United Kingdom before the next election? If so, how? If not, why not?

I am optimistic that we will get independence. Unfortunately, the Tory government have refused to allow a referendum. The only way to get one is to have an SNP victory this election to send a strong message that Scotland wants a referendum on independence.


Closing statement:

You've seen the contrast on the debate stage today. Parties like the Tories and UKIP who look to the past and campaign based on fear. Labour has forgotten its working class roots. The SNP offers hope and vision for an independent progressive Scotland which protects workers, looks after the vulnerable and moves the country forward. Vote SNP.

Image source: www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk

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Nicola Sturgeon's Debate Responses

Opening statement:

The SNP has a positive vision, of an independent Scotland which invests in its people and protects its most vulnerable. Westminster continues to scoff at Scotland. They have been imposing austerity and a hard Brexit on Scotland, the Prime Minister hasn't even visited Scotland since he called this election. They are refusing to offer us a people's vote on Brexit, or independence. Mr. Darling continues to say different things about Brexit to different crowds, Mr. Nuttal continues to use lies to justify a disastrous no deal while Mr. Cameron continues to launch a full scale assault on workers' rights and our public services. Whichever of the Westminster parties comes out of this debate on top, you lose. But there is an alternative. We are the alternative which offers hope for an Independent Scotland, inside the EU. We listen to the Scottish people. We don't want Brexit, austerity or inequality. Scotland can do better than this.


Do you believe that Britain can, or should, become carbon neutral in its energy production?

Yes, we can and should as soon as possible. The climate emergency is an existential crisis which threatens the entire world. More action is urgently needed. The Scottish Government is working very hard on this. In 2018, 75% of Scottish electricity consumption was renewable green energy, up from 54% in 2016. Scotland is the fourth largest green energy consumer in the EU and by 2020, we aim for 100% of electricity needs to be met by renewable sources. Climate change deniers like Mr. Nuttall, who also opposes the existence of the NHS for the record, will talk about climate change being used as a form of fear-mongering. We don't view it that way, not only are we saving the planet from climate change, we are also investing tens of millions in renewable industries, providing new jobs and opportunities, a bright future. There has been a lot of talk about a Green New Deal including much further investment in Green technology, the SNP is fully supportive of this and SNP MPs will consistently vote to protect our environment.


Based on all polls and projections, no single party will come close to commanding an absolute majority in Westminister. What is your position on coalition building in the Commons? Do you believe coalitions are an advantage or a disadvantage to the proportional, party-list system?

Coalitions are a massive advantage to proportional representation. It allows more people to have a say on how the county is run. In Tony Blair's landslides he still only won just over 40% of the vote. In 2005, he won only 35% of the vote, yet won a significant majority in parliament. A system where 35% support is enough to form a stable government is completely unjust. Now, the Tories and Labour will have to consider what other people think before they can form a government. SNP MPs won't back a government which doesn't end austerity and finally allow the people of Scotland a chance to vote on the important question of independence.


If Britain cannot negotiate a withdrawal agreement with the EU by October 31, how would your government proceed? Would you attempt another extension, would you go forward without a deal, or would you end the Brexit process entirely?

First and foremost, we will strongly oppose no deal in all possible scenarios. Any government taking office after this election should immediately ask for a long extension or revoke Article 50 to get no deal completely off the table. Once no deal is off the table and Brexit is delayed, we will have time for a vote on Scottish independence and a people's vote on any negotiated deal, in which the SNP will campaign to remain. We believe the safest way to stop Brexit is for us to have an independent Scotland and any government we back will have to agree to allow us a referendum on this.


There are reports that the American Major League Baseball Association is in talks with local business owners about operating a MLB franchise in the United Kingdom. Having seen the success of the MLB's London series earlier this summer, what is your position on an MLB club calling the British Isles their home?

So long as there are safeguards in place to support environmental standards and workers rights, we are happy to see MLB come to the UK.


Do you support or oppose such projects as the new runway at Heathrow, HS2, and Crossrail?

We have no problem with building better infrastructure, so long as private companies aren't taking millions from the tax payers in profit and the environment is considered as part of development. The Scottish Government has been significantly improving Scotland's infrastructure, following these principles. It is quite telling that the major infrastructure projects being considered are all in the South East of England. SNP MPs will be working to get more support for infrastructure in Scotland. SNP MPs were able to secure some key commitments for Scotland over Heathrow expansion, including 16,000 new jobs and a £200 million investment in Scottish infrastructure. We are concerned about the environmental damage caused by HS2 and will push the next government to take this into consideration. We will also push to speed up plans to connect Scotland to this high speed rail network to bring new jobs and investment into Scotland.


Ms. Sturgeon, how do you respond to comments by some, Ms. Soubry included, that the SNP has an obsession with independence and that the party would be better served by becoming a more general left-wing party?

We have no more of an obsession with independence than other parties have with preserving the Union. In this debate and on the campaign trail, we have spoken not only about independence, but a wider domestic vision of more investment in our public services, infrastructure, opposing austerity and supporting the most vulnerable in our society. We make no secret of the fact that we support independence, we believe it is the right thing for Scotland and argue for it strongly - it would be dishonest for us not to. But, the idea that we can't talk both about our strong domestic agenda and our support for independence is simply absurd.


Rebuttals:

As I have said before, I fail to see how we can be out of touch when many of the other leaders on this stage seem perfectly content to simply ignore the will of 17 million Britons. At least the Conservatives seem to actually understand our charge to be representatives of the people and not vessels for whatever whims the party leadership decides to take.

You say you don't want to ignore the will of millions of Britons, but what about the millions of Scots who want a say on independence? Your party has consistently ignored them.


Closing statement:

The message I've been trying to send today is that Scotland can do better than this. The disregard Westminster shows for Scotland makes the argument for independence better than we could. Brexit threatens
80,000 Scottish jobs. The Tories view Scottish industries as low priority in the Brexit negotiations. They've cut our public services, put our most vulnerable onto the streets. The SNP has significantly cut crime, homelessness, built up Scotland's infrastructure. Labour has continually let Scotland down, it was Mr. Darling's time as Chancellor where these savage cuts stemmed from. What does he offer us? The best he has is that he was born in Scotland. Its not good enough. Vote SNP for positivity and change.