BELIEVE in Scotland (BiS) has kicked off a new campaign on energy and independence with a national day of action.
The pro-independence organisation has launched the i-Switch campaign to highlight how energy bills could be much lower in an independent Scotland.
BiS founder Gordon MacIntyre-Kemp told The National: "Scotland pays too much for its own energy. Scottish household energy bills are among the highest in the world and commercial energy bills are the world's most expensive, damaging our economic growth and impoverishing families.
"This is despite the fact that Scotland generates abundant low-cost renewable power that could be sold with high profit, at half the price we pay for energy. But unfair pricing aimed at subsidising England's economy by adding extra charges to Scottish bills means most Scottish-based customers pay even more than people in the rest of the UK.
"We are going to make sure that the people of Scotland know they are being ripped off, and that independence costs less."
As part of the i-Switch campaign, BiS has created a leaflet which looks, at first glance, like a brochure offering people to switch energy suppliers to get guaranteed lower energy bills.
However, the leaflet actually explains how "switching to independence" is the way to cut electricity costs and charges.
BiS said it aims to distribute up to 100,000 leaflets before the end of the year, making it the biggest campaign from the group to date. Alongside leaflets, the campaign also includes billboards, stunts, explainer articles, online adverts and social media posts.
The roll-out of the campaign is timed with a "national day of action" organised by BiS.
More than 40 pro-independence groups across Scotland hosted street stalls and organised leaflet drops, with around 50 other BiS members organising groups to distribute leaflets where there are not active independence groups.
MacIntyre-Kemp said: “Last year was not just a bad year for the political arm of the independence movement. A feeling of frustration and people not seeing a clear path to independence left many scunnered and local groups struggling for volunteers.
"We are seeing that change now, people are more and more willing to get back to the hard work of campaigning for independence and not just talking about it between ourselves on social media.
"The grassroots independence movement is reawakening, witness two new Yes hubs opening up recently in Carnoustie and Prestwick and our day of action having 90 i-Switch leaflet drops going on – that's nearly double the size of the campaign day we organised earlier in the year.
"It's the hard work that will set us free because no policy or initiative is going to get us independence unless the Scottish people want it and the i-Switch campaign is the fulcrum upon which the nation can pivot towards Yes.”
MacIntyre-Kemp continued: "This is an issue that will make a difference, because it demonstrates the unfair costs to Scottish people from being part of a failing union, and proves that they will be better off in an independent Scotland.
"BiS and our 143 local groups have felt like we've been fighting a rear-guard action for years to keep independence relevant and on the agenda – this campaign puts our whole movement back on the front foot."
He added: "We will get independence when the people demand it, and they will demand it if we do the work to convince them that Scotland’s prosperity and their own wellbeing is dependent on Scottish independence – and quickly."
