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Chairman of YesCymru Sion Jobbins spoke to Express.co.uk to discuss the SNP’s win in the Scottish Parliament election and how it has affected Welsh independence. Mr Jobbins revealed his group saw an increase in memberships following the result and predicted a successful Scottish independence referendum would have a “domino effect” on Wales. When asked if he would work with Nicola Sturgeon, Mr Jobbins extended an olive branch to the Scottish political leader stating he would be happy to hear from her.
Speaking to Express.co.uk, Mr Jobbins explained the “lessons learned” from the SNP’s independence campaign and how the Welsh independence movement could adopt them.
He explained a key point was to remain “positive” and to not be overly accusing of opponents or critics which could turn people off the movement.
He added the arguments should mainly focus on one aspect of independence with the Welsh movement focused more on governance rather than identity.
Mr Jobbins feared Ms Sturgeon was attempting to please everyone and was struggling to keep everyone happy.
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When asked if he would consider working with the SNP leader, Mr Jobbins said: “We do have connections with people in Scotland but not specifically with Nicola Sturgeon or even with the SNP [but with groups] who are similar to us.
“But we’re not a political party so maybe [Sturgeon] would be more likely to discuss with the full-time politicians but it would be interesting to discuss and to learn from different people.”
The YesCymru chairman then explained his 30,000 member group was not affiliated with any party and welcomed anyone fron any political persuasion.
He continued: “We don’t have a monopoly on the truth or monopoly on the answers on how to get independence.
“We think Nicola Sturgeon, she’s a politician in another country – I wouldn’t want to get into that – but she seems to be doing a great job and is a competent politician.
“If she was to speak to us, we’d be very glad to hear from and learn from her but also we would come to our own conclusions.
“I think it’s important for us to realise that Wales isn’t England but it isn’t Scotland either and the pace and nature of the debate in Wales is slightly different to the one Scotland.
“We would be glad to speak to anyone who was interested and to learn from them.”
Mr Jobbins added there would likely be a “domino effect” following Scottish independence as the unity of the UK would be called into question.
He believes it would be Wales rather than Ireland which could be next to leave if that happened but stressed it would only happen a few years from now.
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While Ms Sturgeon has rarely commented on Welsh affairs it appears she is happy to work with leaders for political ends.
Mr Jobbins agreed Ms Sturgeon may choose to engage with politicians rather than YesCymru despite the group seeing a surge in memberships.
YesCymru however admits independence is still “a long way off” as polls suggest only a third of Welsh respondents would support an independent Wales.
Mr Jobbins believes that number will increase dramatically in the coming years as he noticed there is growing independence support among the younger Welsh population.
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