Section 1.1. We, the people of the free sovereign and inalienable nation of Scotland do hereby express and enact our collective will through this written Constitution.
Please scrutinise all the proposed amendments and replies before commenting or voting. Short comments are most often read and must not exceed 100 words. You can propose an Amendment at the bottom of this page - please read the guidelines .
Note that the original wording appears again first below and sustains the same comment & voting regime as all other amendment proposals.
Section 1.1. Section 1.1. We, the people of the free sovereign and inalienable nation of Scotland do hereby express and enact our collective will through this written Constitution.
Section 1.1. There's no mechanism on this site for comments on an article (or on the draft constitution) as a whole, so I'm going to put my general comments on this article under section 1. It seems to me that the article, which has a long and somewhat rambling title, would be clearer if split into several articles, each dealing with a specific aspect, namely: The nation of Scotland, The national territory, Citizenship, and Voting rights. I'm not convinced that residency and immigration are a matter for the constitution but, if they are, I don't think they belong here.
Section 1.1. I now comment specifically on section 1. This is a fine statement, but it could be simplified. "Hereby" and "through this written Constitution" repeat each other. "Written" is unnecessary, since the constitution is self-evidently written. "Free, sovereign and inalienable" are splendid words, but do not mean much in practice (especially "inalienable"). They could be omitted, or replaced simply by "independent". "Express and enact" is a phrase which smacks of impressive legalese, but do two verbs really add anything? I propose a simplified version below.
Section 1.1. Intro to the constitution is way too long winded. Meaningless in parts and exclusive in others. I would propose: We, the sovereign peoples of Scotland, do hereby enact for all time coming, our fundamental rights as expressed in the Constitution of Scotland.
Section 1.1. PREAMBLE
(1) THE STATE AND THE PEOPLE
The Scottish state and the people’s government shall have the overriding purpose of upholding the rights set out in this Constitution and shall exercise its powers so that all citizens are enabled to realise their right to achieve their full potential and make as full a contribution as they are able to the common weal.
(2) THE PEOPLE AND THE STATE
All citizens shall have obligations to the state and the government, as well as the rights which are set out in this constitution
(3) THE PEOPLE
Every citizen shall also have obligations to all others and shall respect the rights of all their fellow citizens.
(4) SUBSIDIARITY
The people and government of Scotland shall adopt the principle of subsidiarity in the conduct our affairs.
Section 1.1. The subsidiarity principle is that all power and decision making is exercised at the lowest possible level and where the capacity to implement decisions is limited the matter is delegated upwards to the next level where resources and capacity are greater. Its implementation requires the central power to facilitate the provision of the necessary financial and other resources to the lower levels of power.
This piece in The National on 11/12/20 by Andy Wightman sets out some reasons why a principle of subsidiarity in the Preamble is important https://www.thenational.scot/comment/18936528.andy-wightman-devastating-centralisation-power-gives-scotland-one-choice/
Proposed Amendments to Section
Please scrutinise all the proposed amendments and replies before commenting or voting. Short comments are most often read and must not exceed 100 words.
You can propose an Amendment at the bottom of this page - please read the guidelines .
Note that the original wording appears again first below and sustains the same comment & voting regime as all other amendment proposals.
Original Version
Section 1.1. Section 1.1. We, the people of the free sovereign and inalienable nation of Scotland do hereby express and enact our collective will through this written Constitution.
Section 1.1. There's no mechanism on this site for comments on an article (or on the draft constitution) as a whole, so I'm going to put my general comments on this article under section 1. It seems to me that the article, which has a long and somewhat rambling title, would be clearer if split into several articles, each dealing with a specific aspect, namely: The nation of Scotland, The national territory, Citizenship, and Voting rights. I'm not convinced that residency and immigration are a matter for the constitution but, if they are, I don't think they belong here.
Section 1.1. I now comment specifically on section 1. This is a fine statement, but it could be simplified. "Hereby" and "through this written Constitution" repeat each other. "Written" is unnecessary, since the constitution is self-evidently written. "Free, sovereign and inalienable" are splendid words, but do not mean much in practice (especially "inalienable"). They could be omitted, or replaced simply by "independent". "Express and enact" is a phrase which smacks of impressive legalese, but do two verbs really add anything? I propose a simplified version below.
Section 1.1. Intro to the constitution is way too long winded. Meaningless in parts and exclusive in others. I would propose: We, the sovereign peoples of Scotland, do hereby enact for all time coming, our fundamental rights as expressed in the Constitution of Scotland.
Proposed Amendment to Section 1.1.
Simplification
Section 1.1. We, the people of the [independent] nation of Scotland, express our collective will in this Constitution.
Proposed Amendment to Section 1.1.
Preamble (or Article 1.1)
Section 1.1. PREAMBLE
(1) THE STATE AND THE PEOPLE
The Scottish state and the people’s government shall have the overriding purpose of upholding the rights set out in this Constitution and shall exercise its powers so that all citizens are enabled to realise their right to achieve their full potential and make as full a contribution as they are able to the common weal.
(2) THE PEOPLE AND THE STATE
All citizens shall have obligations to the state and the government, as well as the rights which are set out in this constitution
(3) THE PEOPLE
Every citizen shall also have obligations to all others and shall respect the rights of all their fellow citizens.
(4) SUBSIDIARITY
The people and government of Scotland shall adopt the principle of subsidiarity in the conduct our affairs.
Section 1.1. The subsidiarity principle is that all power and decision making is exercised at the lowest possible level and where the capacity to implement decisions is limited the matter is delegated upwards to the next level where resources and capacity are greater. Its implementation requires the central power to facilitate the provision of the necessary financial and other resources to the lower levels of power.
This piece in The National on 11/12/20 by Andy Wightman sets out some reasons why a principle of subsidiarity in the Preamble is important https://www.thenational.scot/comment/18936528.andy-wightman-devastating-centralisation-power-gives-scotland-one-choice/