Scotland’s Sovereignty Is Asserted, Not Requested
A Position Paper on Constitutional Legitimacy and the Role of the People’s Assembly
Key Message
Scotland is not applying for decolonisation. It is asserting its sovereignty as a nation whose constitutional tradition has always placed ultimate authority in the hands of its people. This is not a petition for liberation—it is a declaration of continuity, verified through democratic consent.
1. Sovereignty Is a Status, Not a Request
Scotland’s legal and constitutional architecture has never been extinguished. Its courts remain independent. Its legal system remains distinct. And its foundational principle—that sovereignty resides with the people—remains intact, affirmed in the Claim of Right Act 1689 and acknowledged by the UK Parliament as recently as 2018.
What is needed is not foreign validation, but internal confirmation through lawful, collective expression. That is the true seat of constitutional authority.
2. The People’s Assembly: A Constitutional Mechanism of Consent
Rather than appealing to external bodies like the UN for decolonisation status, the People’s Assembly model offers a constitutionally grounded, democratic process that:
Verifies consent through a population-wide digital ledger
Convenes a National Convention to draft and ratify a modern constitution
Notifies international bodies as a sovereign equal—not a dependent entity
Upholds constitutional continuity, not rupture
This isn’t activism. It's the administration of a legal tradition.
3. Why the UN Petition Is Misaligned
The 2025 UN submission by unauthorised actors bypasses Scotland’s people. It presumes a mandate never granted. It trades constitutional strength for diplomatic theatre. Most importantly, it confuses Scotland’s distinct constitutional status with the dependency frameworks the UN decolonisation process was designed to address.
Scotland is not a colony. It is a co-sovereign partner in a union that has broken its terms. That distinction matters.
4. The Path Forward
What legitimises Scotland’s independence is not historical grievance, nor electoral popularity, nor international sympathy. It is the verified will of the people, lawfully expressed.
To reclaim that, we must:
Declare, not appeal
Ratify, not replicate
Assert, not ask
The People’s Assembly is the vehicle. The constitution is the map. The sovereign people are the engine.
⚖️ The True Constitutional Character of Scotland Under Scots Law
A Legal Tradition Rooted in Popular Sovereignty, Contract, and Consent
🏛️ 1. Scotland’s Distinct Legal Identity Was Never Extinguished
Scotland’s legal system has remained independent through both the Union of the Crowns (1603) and the Treaty of Union (1707). Unlike colonies, which are subsumed into an external legal order, Scots law remains its own legal jurisdiction.
Treaty of Union, Article 19 protects this separation: > “...no Causes in Scotland be cognoscible by the Courts of Chancery, Queen's Bench, Common Pleas, or any other Court in Westminster Hall...”
This legal independence includes:
Scotland’s own courts
A distinct legal framework
Protection of national institutions
📜 Source: Treaty of Union, 1707
📜 2. The Claim of Right (1689): Sovereignty Belongs to the People
One of the most significant constitutional statutes in Scots legal history, the Claim of Right Act 1689, affirms that:
> “...the king or queen is obliged to obey the laws and liberties of the kingdom and if they fail... they forfeit the crown.”
This act establishes:
Government by popular consent
The monarch's conditional legitimacy
The principle that power can be withdrawn if abused
📜 Source: Claim of Right Act 1689
🤝 3. Scotland’s Constitution Is Based on a Compact, Not Sovereign Command
Scots law operates through a model of constitutional compact. That means:
Sovereignty is conditional, not absolute
Authority flows up from the people, not down from Parliament
Governance requires ongoing consent, not one-time inheritance
This tradition spans the Treaty of Union, the Claim of Right, and modern civic legal theory. As legal scholar Neil MacCormick wrote:
> “The Union was a treaty between equals, not an absorption.”
📚 Source: MacCormick, Questioning Sovereignty (1999)
⚖️ 4. Case Law Confirms the Distinction: McCormick v Lord Advocate (1953)
This landmark case challenged the use of “Elizabeth II” in Scotland. Crucially, the Lord President ruled:
> “The principle of the unlimited sovereignty of Parliament is a distinctively English principle which has no counterpart in Scottish constitutional law.”
That’s a direct challenge to Dicey’s doctrine. It affirms:
Parliamentary sovereignty is not supreme under Scots law
Scotland retains its constitutional inheritance
The legal tradition of popular sovereignty endures
📜 Source: McCormick v Lord Advocate (1953 SC 396)
🧱 5. Sovereignty Must Be Expressed—Not Assumed
Here’s the critical distinction:
Yes, the people of Scotland are sovereign in principle
But that sovereignty must be expressed in law through collective action
Legal status must be ratified, verifiable, and constitutional
As Lord Advocate James Wolffe KC noted in 2019:
> “Popular sovereignty remains a principle of Scottish constitutional law, but the question of whether and how it is exercised remains a political one.”
Sovereignty isn’t a mood. It’s a mechanism.
❌ What It’s Not: A Colony or Legal Fiction
Some claim that Scotland is a colony, or that the UK is a fiction. But:
Scotland entered a treaty, not an annexation
Its legal system, courts, and institutions remain intact
UN decolonisation law does not list Scotland as a non-self-governing territory
To call Scotland a colony is not just wrong—it ignores the legal tools that truly empower its people.
🧭 Conclusion: Reclaim the Legacy, Use the Law
Scotland’s constitutional character is not inherited mythology—it is a living, functioning legal heritage. It demands:
A democratic mandate
A National Convention, backed by consent
A path that honours the contract, not rewrites it
This is how Scotland moves forward—not through slogans, but through sovereignty backed by structure, law, and collective will.
What the World Must Know: Scotland Is Not a Region in Rebellion—It Is a Sovereign Nation Under Foreign Rule
1. The Historical Truth
Scotland is not a separatist region. It is not a rebellious province. It is a sovereign nation under foreign domination. The constitutional framework remains intact. Sovereignty belongs to the people. The decolonisation process is now being claimed through the United Nations, using mechanisms created for peoples subjected to colonial rule.
This is not about ideology. It is not about monarchy versus republicanism. No political allegiance alters the constitutional facts.
The Claim of Right Act 1689, passed by the Parliament of Scotland, affirms that no monarch may lawfully govern without the clear, ongoing consent of the Scottish people. That principle has never been repealed. The UK Parliament reaffirmed it in 2018. English constitutional theory claims parliamentary supremacy. Scottish constitutional tradition recognises only the sovereignty of the people. This divergence is not academic—it defines the foundation of legitimate authority.
Charles Windsor, styled as King Charles III, was proclaimed King of Scots without any act of democratic consent. No referendum. No public mandate. Under Scotland’s own constitutional law, this proclamation lacks validity. Rule without consent is a constitutional violation.
The 1707 Union was not a voluntary merger. It followed a period of deliberate economic sabotage. England undermined Scotland’s trade with Europe, restricted maritime rights, and applied diplomatic pressure to isolate Scottish commerce. Once weakened, Scotland faced not negotiation, but surrender. The population overwhelmingly rejected union. Petitions flooded Parliament. Protests erupted. The resistance was silenced.
The treaty was secured not by popular vote, but by elite bribery. Votes were bought. Debts cancelled. Titles and pensions promised. The Scottish Parliament became an auction house for national sovereignty. As Adam Smith later confirmed: the Union was born in corruption, not consensus.
Since then, Scotland has been ruled from outside. Decisions on law, war, trade, currency, borders, and migration are made in London. Representation is structurally inadequate. Scotland’s voice is routinely overruled. Revenues from oil, gas, renewables, and fisheries flow south. Land ownership is increasingly external. Infrastructure serves the centre, not the nation.
Scotland’s legal system remains distinct. Political power does not.
Disclaimer: Some may argue that Scotland’s situation amounts to colonial status. While the moral parallels—external control, exploitation of resources, and democratic denial—may resonate with postcolonial narratives, legally Scotland is not classified as a colony. The 1707 Treaty of Union, though flawed in its formation, remains a binding international treaty between two sovereign nations. Therefore, Scotland’s modern claim to sovereignty does not depend on colonial frameworks or comparisons but on the enduring constitutional principle of popular sovereignty.
Withdrawing consent under this principle is not a separatist act—it is a lawful and democratic expression of national will. In asserting the right to self-determination, Scotland stands not as a colony demanding liberation, but as a sovereign people reclaiming legitimate authority through peaceful, constitutional means.
2. The Constitutional Character of Scotland Under Scots Law
⚖️ A Legal Tradition Rooted in Popular Sovereignty, Contract, and Consent
🏛️ Scotland’s Legal Identity Was Never Extinguished
Scotland’s legal system has remained independent through both the Union of the Crowns (1603) and the Treaty of Union (1707). Unlike colonies, which are absorbed into an external legal order, Scots law remains its own jurisdiction. Treaty of Union, Article 19 protects this separation: > “...no Causes in Scotland be cognisable by the Courts of Chancery, Queen's Bench, Common Pleas, or any other Court in Westminster Hall...”
This includes:
Scotland’s own courts
A distinct legal framework
Protection of national institutions
📜 The Claim of Right (1689): Sovereignty Belongs to the People
This foundational statute affirms: > “...the king or queen is obliged to obey the laws and liberties of the kingdom and if they fail... they forfeit the crown.”
It establishes:
Government by popular consent
Conditional legitimacy of the monarch
The right to withdraw power if abused
🤝 A Constitution Based on Compact, Not Command
Scots law operates through constitutional compact:
Sovereignty is conditional, not absolute
Authority flows from the people, not down from Parliament
Governance requires ongoing consent
As Neil MacCormick wrote: > “The Union was a treaty between equals, not an absorption.”
⚖️ Case Law Confirms the Distinction
In McCormick v Lord Advocate (1953), the Lord President ruled: > “The principle of the unlimited sovereignty of Parliament is a distinctively English principle which has no counterpart in Scottish constitutional law.”
This affirms:
Parliamentary sovereignty is not supreme in Scotland
The legal tradition of popular sovereignty endures
🧱 Sovereignty Must Be Expressed—Not Assumed
Yes, the people of Scotland are sovereign in principle. But that sovereignty must be:
Expressed in law
Verified through collective action
Ratified through constitutional process
As Lord Advocate James Wolffe KC noted in 2019: > “Popular sovereignty remains a principle of Scottish constitutional law, but the question of whether and how it is exercised remains a political one.”
❌ Why Scotland Is Not a Colony—and Why That Matters
Some claim Scotland is a colony. But:
It entered a treaty, not an annexation
Its legal system and institutions remain intact
The UN does not list Scotland as a Non-Self-Governing Territory
To call Scotland a colony is not just inaccurate—it obscures the legal tools that truly empower its people.
🧭 The Path Forward: Reclaim the Legacy, Use the Law
Scotland’s future lies not in slogans or sentiment, but in sovereignty backed by structure, law, and collective will. That means:
A National Convention to draft and ratify a modern constitution
A digital ledger of consent to verify popular support
International notification, not petitioning
A lawful, democratic mandate rooted in the Claim of Right and constitutional continuity
This is not rebellion. It is restoration. Not separation—but self-determination.
Methodology for Asserting Scottish Sovereignty: A Constitutional and Democratic Framework
Scotland’s constitutional tradition is rooted not in conquest or colonial subjugation, but in a legal framework that affirms the sovereignty of its people. This methodology outlines how that sovereignty can be lawfully and credibly asserted—not through external petitioning, but through internal democratic expression.
1. Legal Foundations of Scottish Sovereignty
Scotland’s legal system has remained distinct and intact since before the 1707 Treaty of Union. The three primary sources of Scots law are:
Statute law: Acts passed by the Scottish and UK Parliaments
Common law: Judicial precedent and case law
Institutional writings: Authoritative legal texts by jurists such as Stair, Erskine, and Hume
The Claim of Right Act 1689 is a cornerstone of this tradition. It affirms that the monarch governs only with the consent of the people, and that power may be withdrawn if abused. This principle was reaffirmed by the UK Parliament in 2018.
> “The principle of the unlimited sovereignty of Parliament is a distinctively English principle which has no counterpart in Scottish constitutional law.” > — Lord President Cooper, McCormick v Lord Advocate (1953)
2. The Compact Model: Consent, Not Command
Unlike the English doctrine of parliamentary supremacy, Scots constitutional law is based on contractual sovereignty—a compact between the people and their institutions. This means:
Authority flows from the people upward
Governance requires ongoing consent
Sovereignty is conditional, not absolute
Legal scholar Neil MacCormick described the Union as “a treaty between equals, not an absorption,” reinforcing the idea that Scotland retains the right to withdraw from the compact if consent is no longer present.
3. Methodology for Asserting Sovereignty
The process for asserting sovereignty must be lawful, transparent, and verifiable. The methodology includes:
A. Convening a National Convention
A representative body of citizens and civic institutions tasked with drafting and ratifying a modern constitution. This mirrors the Scottish Government’s own proposals for a written constitution in the Building a New Scotland series.
B. Verifying Consent Through a Digital Ledger
Using open-source technology, declarations of support for constitutional change can be recorded securely and transparently. This creates an auditable mandate, distinct from polling or party manifestos.
C. Notification, Not Petitioning
Once a population majority is verified, Scotland would notify international bodies of its constitutional status—not seek permission. This aligns with the principle of internal self-determination under international law.
4. Why This Is Not Decolonisation
Scotland is not listed as a Non-Self-Governing Territory by the UN. It retains its own legal system, courts, and institutions. The decolonisation framework under UN Resolutions 1514 and 1541 applies to territories under external administration without internal self-government—criteria Scotland does not meet
Sources and References
Shelter Scotland: Sources of Scots Law Outlines the three foundational sources of Scots law: statute, common law, and institutional writings.
Scottish Government: Building a New Scotland – Creating a Modern Constitution Proposes a written constitution based on popular sovereignty, contrasting it with Westminster’s doctrine of parliamentary supremacy.
Oxford Handbook of Scottish Politics – The Scottish Constitution by Alan Page A scholarly overview of Scotland’s constitutional framework, including the legal status of the Claim of Right and the Treaty of Union.
Claim of Right Act 1689 (Parliament of Scotland) Establishes the principle that the monarch governs only with the consent of the people and may forfeit the crown if that consent is withdrawn.
McCormick v Lord Advocate (1953 SC 396) Landmark case affirming that the English doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty has no counterpart in Scots law.
Constitution for Scotland: Model Constitution (2020) A civic-led draft constitution asserting the sovereignty of the people and outlining democratic governance structures.
The Interactive Consultation – Constitution for Scotland A participatory platform for public engagement with constitutional drafting, reflecting the principle of constituent power.
UK Parliament Hansard, 4 July 2018: Debate on the Claim of Right Records the UK Parliament’s formal recognition of the Claim of Right and the principle of Scottish popular sovereignty.
Conclusion: Sovereignty Expressed, Not Assumed
Scotland’s path to independence does not require the language of grievance or the framework of decolonisation. It requires something far more powerful: a lawful assertion of sovereignty grounded in constitutional continuity and democratic consent.
The methodology is clear: assert, don’t appeal. The people of Scotland are not petitioners—they are the source of all legitimate authority. And that authority must be expressed through a transparent, verifiable, and inclusive process.
This is where the People’s Assembly model stands apart. It is not a campaign. It is not a party. It is a constitutional platform that ticks every box:
✅ Grounded in Law: It draws from the Claim of Right (1689), the Treaty of Union (1707), and case law like McCormick v Lord Advocate (1953), affirming that sovereignty lies with the people—not Parliament or Crown.
✅ Democratically Legitimate: It builds from the ground up, convening a National Convention to draft and ratify a modern constitution.
✅ Verifiably Mandated: It uses open-source digital tools to record declarations of consent, creating an auditable, tamper-proof ledger of support.
✅ Internationally Credible: It notifies international bodies of constitutional developments—not as a supplicant, but as a sovereign equal.
✅ Civic, Not Partisan: It transcends party politics, uniting citizens around the principle of lawful self-determination.
This is not a symbolic gesture. It is a constitutional act. It does not rely on polling, party manifestos, or external validation. It relies on the only thing that has ever mattered in Scottish constitutional law: the will of the people, lawfully expressed.
The People’s Assembly is not asking for independence. It builds it—one declaration, one convention, one constitutional step at a time.
The Claim of Right is not a magic key to independence. It is the legal foundation for demanding that sovereignty be exercised through clear public consent. Any credible constitutional model—from withdrawal to reform—must honour that principle by empowering the people as authors of their own statehood.