Majority of Catholics voted for independence

MORE THAN half of Scotland’s Catholics voted in favour of independence in last week’s referendum, according to research published this week, writes Brian Morton.

Analysis of a poll conducted by Lord Ashcroft suggests that 57 per cent of those identifying as Catholic in a sample of more than 2,000 Scots voted “yes” in answer to the question: Should Scotland be an independent country?

British Religion in Numbers, which analysed the Ashcroft data, said it was clear that Catholics were in favour of independence and that, conversely, non-Catholic Christians were in favour of remaining part of the United Kingdom – almost 70 per cent of the latter voted “no” in the referendum. After the vote, the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland appealed for unity in the country.

The Archbishop of Glasgow, Philip Tartaglia, said he felt “an unease for my city and my fellow citizens, a clear majority of whose voters had a markedly different view of the future from much of the rest of Scotland”.

Glasgow was one of only four of the 32 local authority counting areas to register a clear “Yes” majority on the independence question. “Sadly, too many of our fellow citizens of this great city of Glasgow appear to feel disenfranchised by the political process, and feel threatened and disheartened by poor life chances and by indecent levels of poverty and deprivation,” said Archbishop Tartaglia.

There had been disturbances following the vote on Friday night in George Square, Glasgow, but the archbishop stressed that this was not “the real face” of the city.

In a statement after the election result, the Scottish bishops said they respected the result and hoped “we can all now cooperate for the benefit of our nation in future”. The Scottish hierarchy maintained neutrality throughout the independence debate.

Alex Salmond, who resigned as First Minister of Scotland and leader of the Scottish National Party after the vote, had courted the Catholic vote in recent years.

In 2006, Cardinal Keith O’Brien, the former Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, expressed sympathy with the SNP campaign.