First Minister invokes Arbroath Declaration

First Minister Alex Salmond. Picture: PA

ALEX Salmond and his Cabinet will invoke the 1320 Declaration of Arbroath tomorrow when they head to the east coast town to make their own “Declaration of Opportunity”.

The visit, which marks exactly one month to go until the referendum, will see the First Minister make a speech outlining what he sees as the “key opportunities” offered by independence.

Salmond will say: “A Yes vote on 18 September is the opportunity of a lifetime to build a more prosperous and fairer Scotland. Those of us lucky enough to cast our votes on that day are truly a privileged generation: perhaps the most privileged in this nation’s history.

“The opportunity we have isn’t unique, but it is very precious. We have the chance to take power out of the hands of the Westminster elite and into the hands of the people of Scotland.”

Salmond will talk about a declaration “based on the vast potential of the talented people of this country that independence can release”.

It set out three opportunities from independence: the opportunity to protect the National Health Service from Westminster, the opportunity to create a fairer Scotland, “ending the assault on the most vulnerable members of our society” and the opportunity to “end the unfairness which has seen a huge rise in the use of food banks in a land of plenty”.