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The Scottish Christian Party believes the country needs a
distinctly Christian Voice in the Scottish Parliament and, by
God’s grace, it is possible to do so.
How is it Possible? Click here.
Membership Form Side 1 (pdf)
Membership Form Side 2 (pdf) (includes Statement of Faith)
Donations Form (pdf)
Download a Poster to use (pdf)
View a sample Highlands and Islands Region
ballot paper
to see where to put your cross.
The Lord Jesus Christ said to His disciples:
"You are my friends, if you do whatsoever I command
you.
Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knows not
what his lord does:
but I have called you friends;
for I have made known to you all things that I have heard from
my Father.
"You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and
ordained you,
that you should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit
should remain:
that whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my name, he may
give it to you.
These things I command you, that you love one
another."
John 15:14-17
 |
As I travel around Scotland carrying the news of the Scottish Christian Party, I have been greeted with joy and enthusiasm as Christians across all denominations and traditions have cried out: “At last we have a political party that will stand up for the Lord.” The Rev. George Hargreaves, Leader of the Scottish Christian Party Who says: “Religion and Politics shouldn’t be mixed!”? (click here) |
The Rev. George Hargreaves is an ordained minister of 15 years standing. He first entered politics as a candidate for the Referendum Party in 1997, when he stood as a Parliamentary candidate in Walthamstow, London.
Listen to the Rev. George Hargreaves, Leader of the
Scottish Christian Party, being interviewed
by Colin Wilson, Editor, Christians Together. Recorded:
14/11/2006.
http://christianstogether.net/Media/AllMedia.as
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Length: 43 minutes (you may listen to as much or as little
of it as you chose)
Listen to George's interview with the BBC's Maggie Shiels in
which he
responds to a series of probing questions on a range of
topical and controversial
subjects including
abortion, gay adoption and working
mothers.
ELECTION RESULTS 3/5/2007
The Scottish Christian Party obtained a very credible result with 6332 votes in the Highlands and Islands Region. We are thankful to the Lord for all those people who could see the vision, which we had so little time to explain.
The Inverness branch began less than four months before the Election and it co-ordinated the Highlands and Islands campaign from Shetland in the north to Argyll and Bute in the south.
The result is that in the tightest Holyrood election imaginable, the smaller Parties have been squeezed radically, but the Scottish Christian Party has emerged as the largest of the smaller Parties in the Highlands and Islands Region. We have come sixth, behind the four major Parties which all won seats, and the Green Party which lost its only seat, with a loss of 5333 votes (down 3.6%).
In the Western Isles Constituency of Highland Region, the Scottish Christian Party came third with 12.5% of the vote, behind the SNP and Labour, and ahead of the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democratics.
Comparison with other Parties:
The SCP beat the Scottish Senior Citizens Unity Party (3841 votes) which had been given media space alongside the major parties during the election campaign, while the SCP was denied this. The SCP in the Highlands and Islands beat ten other minor parties, all of which have been in existence longer. The next time round, the SCP expects to be given the platform along with the SSCUP.
The media in the Scottish central belt gave the Christian Peoples Alliance (CPA) more political credibility than the SCP. However, the SCP has beaten them soundly in every one of the eight Regions of Scotland. Our sister party in Wales, the Welsh Christian Party, also beat the CPA in all five Regions of Wales. Every other Party beat the CPA in four of the five Welsh Regions, and the CPA was second bottom in the fifth Region. The media's assessment of the CPA has been shown to be far off the mark.
When Tommy Sheridan lost his Glasgow Regional seat, and his Solidarity party failed to win a single seat in Holyrood, he greeted his Election result with some positive but justifiable spin. "Eight months ago Solidarity did not exist and now it's the largest socialist force in Scotland," he said. "From nothing eight months ago to the biggest socialist party in Scotland is no mean feat." Yet in the Highlands and Islands the Scottish Christian Party has done better than this. Solidarity got 8544 votes in Glasgow Region in eight months, while the SCP got 6332 votes in Highland Region in four months. Solidarity had a former MSP at its helm, we were political novices in Highland. Solidarity had some political infra-structure on which it could draw; the SCP had none. Solidarity had media exposure; the SCP was unable to get it in Highland. The SCP has come from nowhere in less than four months, beating Solidarity and every other minor party in the Region. The media, with its usual ability to ignore a story which it does not like, his overlooked this point.
Who voted for us? These 6332 votes were delivered by Christian activists and not by the organised Church in the Highlands and Islands. Understandably, ecclesiastical structures have inhibited organisational identification with the SCP, but we hope that this uncertainty will be dispelled with time, and that the ice will thaw as relationships warm and develop.
We do not know where all these activists are. You can email us to let us know how to contact you.
What now? This is a good springboard for the next Election, which is bound to come sooner rather than later, because of the fragile nature of the administration formed in Holyrood. We will analyse these results, the campaign and many other factors, to determine the way forward. We welcome feedback. We are now better organised than ever we were.
All the Scottish Christian Party results throughout Scotland can be found here.
ELECTION ANALYSIS
Election analysis goes beyond looking at the numbers, the results, the campaign and the policies. There are many lessons for the Party to learn for the next time round.
Meanwhile Highland Christians who are not actively involved with the Party may wish to contemplate these points.
The last Region to declare its results was the Highlands and Islands, and the SNP victory in Holyrood went right down to the wire. The Highland Regional count was delayed because of fog preventing the helicopter collecting ballot boxes. By the time the count took place, we knew that Labour had 43 seats in Holyrood, and the SNP had 41 seats. They were neck and neck awaiting the Highlands and Islands result. What would happen in the Highlands and Islands?
The Constituency seats declared first and Dr Alasdair Allan, SNP, unseated Alasdair Morrison, Labour, in the Western Isles, and Jim Mather, SNP, unseated George Lyon, Lib Dem, in Argyll and Bute. So the SNP won four Constituency seats and Labour none; and the SNP pulled ahead with 45 seats to Labour's 43 seats.
So the whole outcome of the Holyrood election would depend upon the Regional vote in the Highlands and Islands! A mix-up in the calculation of the proportional voting system initially gave four Regional seats to Labour and one to the SNP (and two to the Conservatives), giving a total of 47 seats to Labour and 46 seats to the SNP. This would have allowed Jack McConnell to continue as First Minister in Holyrood. The mistake was noticed by the SNP, and when it was recalculated, the SNP managed to replace Labour in winning the last available seat in the Region.
This reversed the outcome of the Holyrood election. Instead of Labour winning 47 seats to the SNP's 46 seats, the SNP had won by 47 to Labour's 46 seats.
This difference in outcome was in the counting of the last, 7th, Regional seat in the Highlands and Islands, the very seat the Scottish Christian Party was fighting to win.
In other words, if the Christians in Highlands and Islands had given us another 4,322 votes, we would have secured this last seat, and the Holyrood result would have been a dead-heat at 46 votes each to Labour and the SNP.
This result would have questioned the legitimacy for Alex Salmond to become First Minister, and the Scottish Christian Party would have been in a negotiating position from the very beginning, which would have continued throughout the lifetime of this Parliament.
Highland Christians who did not vote for the Scottish Christian Party can contemplate what their Lord thinks of this scenario. There is little doubt that we could have had a distinctly Christian voice in Holyrood.
The numbers are interesting. The Lord gave us 6,332 votes. Exactly 4,332 more would have beaten the SNP 7th Regional vote by 0.83 of a vote to give us our first seat in Holyrood. What is the Lord saying? Surely there were another 4,332 votes available?
Next time round, will you add your vote to these numbers so that we can have a distinctly Christian voice in Holyrood? Consider the influence we would have had if we had secured that one seat, that last seat, in Holyrood.
The Lord has rewarded hard work, and we must be thankful to Him for this result. He is showing us that one more similar push will give us that break-through which our country needs. The Greens are on the way out, as their policies are being adopted by the major parties. The Scottish Socialists have shown us what can happen when there is in-fighting; they are now a spent political force for some time to come, without a voice in Holyrood. It is also a warning to use one's opportunities, which they have squandered. Let us not squander our opportunities.
If you think that the Scottish Christian Party is too imbalanced, it is because not enough Christians have engaged with it. The SCP does not exclude any biblical Christian. Its simple statement of faith is on page 2 of the Membership form available here. (pdf)
Please remember all these endeavours in prayer.
• Christian Constitution of
Scotland: The Scottish Christian Party
highlights the irresponsible failure of the SNP to say what
will happen to the Christian Constitution of Scotland if the
Treaty of Union 1707 is broken.
The Scottish public deserved
to know this before the May 2007 Election, and the SNP Administration has not addressed the question publicly far less provided any answers since the Election.
• Education: To give real choice we
will campaign for an Educational Voucher Scheme, sex education
on a parental opt-in basis, a daily act of Christian worship
with Bible reading, and no obligation to promote other
faiths.
Creationism and Intelligent Design will be
considered alongside Evolution in science classes.
• Economic Development: Less
reliance on fossil fuels, with increased emphasis on
self-sustainability. Investment in new nuclear
plants must be matched by investment in research and
development for nuclear waste solutions.
Explore the
potential of water export, and effective extraction of North
Sea oil with infrastructure designed to be adapted afterwards
for marine renewable projects.
• Housing: Affordable housing earmarked as Local Family Housing.
• Gambling: Opposition to super casinos.
• Elected Police & Fire chiefs: The role of the Police and Fire Service does not involve marching in uniform, or handing out leaflets, at Gay parades. We believe they should be maintaining law and order impartially, and fighting fires. Electing chiefs will ensure accountability.
• Freedom of conscience, of speech and of public preaching: We will address the imbalance in law concerning giving and taking offence, and the oppressive emphasis in diversity training.
• Drugs: Zero tolerance on illegal drugs.