On July 12 this year Annandale North councillor Peter Diggle, of Lochmaben, submitted a motion for Dumfries and Galloway to hold its own referendum on whether or not the region should remain as part of the UK or leave in the event of another Scottish independence referendum.
Mr Diggle, part of the Independent Conservative group, this week revealed that the motion has been through the legal channels and declared ‘competent’ to move to the next stage and go before all councillors.
Explaining more, he said: “Let me be clear, this motion is not designed to take Dumfries and Galloway out of Scotland.
“Nor is it designed to make Dumfries and Galloway an independent state.
“It is, however, designed to give the people of Dumfries and Galloway the democratic right to decide whether or not Dumfries and Galloway should remain part of the United Kingdom or leave the United Kingdom should another Scottish independence referendum be held.”
In the September 2014 Scottish referendum, 28 out of 32 Scottish councils voted ‘no’ to the question ‘should Scotland be an independent country?’, a total of 87.5 per cent wanted to remain within the UK.
Cllr Diggle added: “In the event that the SNP argue successfully that in the interests of democracy there should be another Scottish independence referendum because Scotland faces being removed from the European Union against its will, it follows that Dumfries and Galloway must be offered the same democratic right for a referendum if it is facing the prospect of being removed from the United Kingdom against its will.
“As an overwhelming majority of Dumfries and Galloway voters voted to stay within the United Kingdom we owe it to our constituents to fight for their democratic right.”
And he’s urging residents to back his plan by attending Tuesday’s meeting in the English Street council offices, Dumfries at 10.30 am.
