In previous years …
….we have invited speakers to our AGM, had raffles, brought cakes and coffee and enjoyed each others company. But in the current Covid circumstances, all that is impossible. So we decided to make our AGM a short business meeting online. Our Treasurer presented the Annual Accounts for 2019 and 2020. We had reports from some of our local groups and we re-elected our National Committee. The minutes will be issued in due course but here is some of what we have been doing over 2020:
- Our Glasgow and Edinburgh groups have been holding successful online meetings with invited guests. Using online platforms mean that some people for whom it’s hard to get to an actual meeting, have had ready access from their sitting-rooms!
- The talks and Q&As sessions from these meetings now make up a set of podcasts available to listen to from our website.
- These podcasts have also been broadcast by IndyLive Radio and are available on their on-demand platform Scottish Independence Podcasts on Soundcloud. Over the past year our podcasts have had over 4000 listeners.
- The Glasgow group help a very enjoyable Burns Supper – online, so it was a case of bring your own haggis, needs, potatoes and whisky!
- Some of the Glasgow group members joined a study group with Andy Anderson looking at topics relevant to setting up and running our own currency and economy. You can order Andy’s books here. And listen to him speak to our Glasgow group here.
Alan Logue, Co-Convenor of our National Committee writes
The approaching Holyrood elections will have a dramatic effect on the future of Scotland. I believe we in Pensioners for Independence need to be more pro-active in what we are doing (always allowing for the current situation of course). Here are some of the topics I think we should be dealing with :-
- Reaching out to other groups / Facebook pages of Over 60 for Independence and Scottish Pensioners for Independence to increase our information dissemination
- Publicity material content ensuring we are sending the correct messages to our peers
- More information regarding the Holyrood voting system to allow our peers to make an informed choice in May
- Postal voting, as some restrictions maybe still in place on polling day we should be encouraging those who feel uneasy about going to the polls to use postal voting, better that they use this system that not voting at all
- Social media and how we make better use of it. Get involved with the young generation’s world and encourage them to convince their elders (if not already convinced)
It is our intention to have further virtual talks on these subjects.
If you have any ideas suggestions that help move these issues forward please email me, Alan Logue, at info@pensionersforindependence.scot
