Jim Sillars facts for kids

James Sillars (born 4 October 1937) is a Scottish politician. He is known for supporting Scottish independence, which means Scotland becoming its own country.

Sillars was a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Labour Party. He represented South Ayrshire from 1970 to 1976. An MP is a person elected to represent a group of people in the national parliament.

In 1976, he started a new group called the Scottish Labour Party (SLP). This group wanted more self-rule for Scotland, known as Scottish Home Rule. He continued as an MP until 1979.

Sillars later joined the Scottish National Party (SNP) in 1980. He became an MP again for Glasgow Govan after winning a special election in 1988. He also served as the Deputy Leader of the Scottish National Party. He was married to Margo MacDonald until she passed away in 2014.

Early Life and First Career Steps

Jim Sillars was born in Ayr, Scotland, on October 4, 1937. His father worked on the railways, and his mother was a carpet weaver. He went to Newton Park School and Ayr Academy.

After school, he first worked as an apprentice plasterer. Then, he followed his father and worked on the railways. From 1956 to 1960, Sillars served in the Royal Navy as a radio operator. After that, he became a firefighter.

Being a firefighter made him more interested in politics. He joined the Labour Party in 1960 through the Fire Brigades Union. He was also a member of the Ayr Town Council from 1962 to 1970.

Political Journey

Joining the Labour Party

Jim Sillars became a MP for South Ayrshire in a special election in 1970. He quickly became known as a smart and outspoken politician.

When he first joined Parliament, he was against Scottish nationalism. He even wrote a pamphlet arguing against Scottish Home Rule, which is about Scotland having more control over its own affairs. He was sometimes called the 'Hammer of the Nats' because he spoke out against the Scottish National Party (SNP).

However, after the SNP gained more support in 1971, Sillars started to change his mind. He began to support the idea of a Scottish Assembly. This assembly would give Scotland more power to make its own decisions.

Starting the Scottish Labour Party

In 1976, Jim Sillars led a group that broke away from the Labour Party. They formed the Scottish Labour Party (SLP). They did this because they felt the Labour government was not doing enough to create a strong Scottish Assembly.

Sillars worked hard to make the SLP a strong political force. However, the party did not do well in the 1979 general election. Only three candidates from the SLP ran, and Sillars was the only one who came close to winning his seat. Because of this, the party decided to close down almost two years later.

Joining the Scottish National Party

In the early 1980s, Sillars joined the Scottish National Party (SNP). Many other former SLP members also joined. He was a left-wing politician and worked with a group within the SNP called the 79 Group.

Sillars helped shape the SNP into a clear, left-of-centre party. They supported policies like not paying the poll tax, which was a new tax introduced by the government. They also supported the idea of Scottish independence while being part of the European Union. Sillars was a strong supporter of this idea.

He also spoke about taking direct action to promote Scottish independence. He said that people should be ready to face consequences if they wanted to win independence.

Winning the Glasgow Govan By-election

After not winning a seat in the 1987 general election, Sillars was chosen to run for the SNP in a special election in Glasgow Govan in 1988. Govan was usually a Labour Party seat. However, Sillars won a big victory. His wife, Margo MacDonald, had also won this seat for the SNP in a special election in 1973.

In 1991, Sillars was elected the SNP's Deputy Leader. He beat another candidate, Alasdair Morgan. However, the 1992 general election was disappointing for Sillars. He lost his Glasgow Govan seat to Ian Davidson of the Labour Party.

After this, Sillars made a famous comment about "ninety-minute patriots." He meant people who only show their Scottish pride during big sports events. This comment marked the start of a disagreement between Sillars and the SNP leadership, including the leader at the time, Alex Salmond.

Views on the Scottish Parliament

Unlike his wife, Sillars did not support voting in the 1997 Scottish devolution referendum. This referendum was about creating a Scottish Parliament. He believed the referendum was not a real step towards full independence. He said that not voting was the best way to show disagreement.

In 2004, Sillars called for the leader of the SNP, John Swinney, to resign. He also said that the party's decision to accept devolution (the idea of a Scottish Parliament with some powers) was a mistake. He believed that devolution made Scottish politics too focused on local issues and less important in the UK Parliament.

In 2019, Sillars said he felt his views on devolution were correct. He claimed that the Scottish Parliament had made politics in Scotland less broad and more focused on smaller issues.

Donation to Labour MSP

In March 2022, it was revealed that Sillars had donated £2,000 to Jackie Baillie, a Labour politician, during the 2021 Scottish Parliament election. He made two donations of £1,000 each. Baillie won her seat, which meant the SNP did not get a majority in the Scottish Parliament.

Sillars explained that he thought Jackie Baillie was a very impressive politician. He wanted a skilled person like her to remain in Parliament. He said that if his donation helped her win and stopped the SNP from getting a majority, then "so be it."

Views on the European Union

In January 2016, Sillars announced he would campaign for Britain to leave the European Union (EU). This was different from the SNP's official position. He believed the EU was not democratic and had treated some countries unfairly.

The week before the 2016 EU referendum, Sillars criticized claims that leaving the EU would put Scotland "at the mercy of the most right-wing Tory government." He said that these claims were trying to scare people into voting to remain in the EU. He also believed that the UK would still be able to trade with EU countries even if it left.

Views on Scottish Independence Referendum

In 2014, Sillars published a book called In Place of Fear II: A Socialist Programme for an Independent Scotland. In this book, he shared his ideas for an independent Scotland that would be more socialist.

During the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, Sillars spoke about oil companies like BP. He said that in an independent Scotland, these companies would need to understand that the oil fields would belong to Scotland.

In March 2022, Sillars said it was "foolish" to talk about another independence referendum while the Russo-Ukrainian War was happening. He wrote that the main goal should be to get a large majority of people to support independence first. He believed a referendum should only happen when it could be won.

In July 2023, Sillars told a meeting that Scottish independence supporters were "in no position to win" a second referendum. He also supported creating a single group, not linked to any political party, to campaign for independence.

Involvement with Alba Party

On March 26, 2021, Sillars supported Alex Salmond's new Alba Party. He said it was good because it gave independence voters another party besides the SNP. He believed the SNP had issues with political problems and was not good at many things.

Sillars remains a member of the SNP but has said he has not voted for them "for a long time." He hopes for a change in the SNP's leadership and wants the party to work with those who left to join Alba.

After the SNP lost in the 2024 United Kingdom general election, Sillars criticized the leadership of John Swinney and Nicola Sturgeon.

Published Works

• (with Alex Eadie) Don't Butcher Scotland's Future: The Case Against the S.N.P. Together With an Argument for Reform at All Levels of Government, Ayr Labour Party, Ayr, 1968
• 'Why I'm not in the SNP', in Easton, Norman (ed.), Crann-Tàra No. 1, Winter 1977, p. 4, ISSN 0142-7814
• Review of The Politics of Nationalism and Devolution by H. M. Drucker & Gordon Brown, in Murray, Glen (ed.), Cencrastus No. 6, Autumn 1981, p. 34
• No Turning Back: The Case for Scottish Independence within the European Community and How we face the Challenge of 1992, Scottish National Party, August 1988
• 'Freedom and Order', in Ross, Raymond J. (ed.), Cencrastus No. 34, Summer '89, pp. 14 – 16, ISSN 0264-0856
• In Place of Fear II, Vagabond Voices, Glasgow, 2014, ISBN: 978-1-908251-30-5