Bishops stay neutral on independence vote

Scotland’s archbishops have urged Catholics to vote in the country’s forthcoming independence referendum while stressing their own neutral position on the vote, writes Brian Morton and Christopher Lamb.

In a message sent to parishes last weekend, the Archbishop of Glasgow and president of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland, Philip Tartaglia, urged Catholics to vote with “complete freedom of choice”. The Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, Leo Cushley, said he had been approached several times to ask where he and Scottish Catholics stand on the matter but simply urged Catholics to consider the issues in the light of the Church’s social teaching. But while the hierarchy is maintaining neutrality, the director of the Catholic Media Office, Peter Kearney, is campaigning for a “yes” vote.

Mr Kearney, who once stood for the deputy leadership of the Scottish National Party (SNP), is supporting the “10.01” campaign, a group calling for independence. He is also listed as the “referendum agent” for the campaign. 

Mr Kearney denied there was any conflict with his media role for the bishops and says he was involved in the 10.01 campaign in a “completely private capacity”.

“Everyone is being encouraged to get involved, everyone is being encouraged to participate. I don’t think there is in any way a conflict if they do get involved and do participate, that’s exactly what they should do, perform their civic duty,” he said. Jim Murphy, a Scottish MP and Catholic who is campaigning for a “no” vote, said that while it wasn’t a surprise that Mr Kearney was voting for independence, “many Catholics I speak to know that independence is an enormous risk, especially when we have no idea what currency we would use or how we would pay for pensions”.