We are more used to seeing him as the promoter for The Stand in Edinburgh, but given his union past it is perhaps not unexpected that Tommy Sheppard is to talk this evening about the political topic of the moment: independence.
Tommy Sheppard – the co-founder of the popular Stand chain and former Assistant General Secretary of Scottish Labour while Jack McConnell served as the General Secretary – will tell an audience at Glasgow University tonight about why Labour supporters are backing a Yes vote in September.An advocate for a Yes vote in 1997 and 2014, Tommy is expected to say that Labour voters will determine the outcome of the referendum.
Mr Sheppard will say: ‘All my life I’ve been a social democrat. By which I mean that credo developed in western and northern Europe in the decades after WW2 which called for government action to temper capitalism so that it could better provide for a majority of the population. A mixed economy we use to call it. Together with a belief in strong public services, the pursuit of equality of opportunity and a foreign policy founded on peace and co-operation these were the pillars of a political philosophy which at one point in our recent history was looking like becoming the norm.
‘These used to be the policies of the Labour Party. When I was a teenager they were the policies of a Labour government. It is because I believe now what I believed then that I will be voting yes in September.’
The audience will also hear about Tommy’s personal political journey and the reasons why Labour voters will reject the call of the party leadership to vote No.
Mr Sheppard will add: ‘I am not a nationalist. For me this is not about identity. This is not about flags and anthems. It’s about getting the powers of government in Scotland so that we can make it a better place to live.’
Tommy will give his passionate talk on the referendum at the university’s Charles Wilson Building.
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
