Claim of Right 1989

Politics of Scotland
This article is part of a series within the Politics of the United Kingdom on the

The Crown The Monarch Charles III Heir apparent William, Duke of Rothesay Prerogative Royal family Succession Privy Council Union of the Crowns Balmoral Castle Holyrood Palace Scottish republicanism
Executive Scottish Government Swinney government First Minister The Rt Hon John Swinney MSP Keeper of the Great Seal The Rt Hon John Swinney MSP Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes MSP Cabinet Secretaries Junior Ministers Scottish budget Taxation Directorates Executive agencies Public bodies State-owned enterprises Bute House St Andrew's House International relations
Legislature Scottish Parliament Sixth session Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone MSP Primary legislation Statutory instrument Committees First Minister's Questions Standards Commission for Scotland Scotland Act 1998 2012 Act 2016 Act Scottish Adjacent Waters Boundaries Order 1999 EU Continuity Act 2020
Law and justice Cabinet Secretary for Justice Angela Constance MSP Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain KC Lord President The Rt Hon Lord Pentland KC PC Scots law Udal law Courts Judiciary Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service Police Scotland Scottish Prison Service Advocate General Solicitor General
Elections and referendums Scottish Parliament elections 1999 2003 2007 2011 2016 2021 Next United Kingdom Parliament elections 1801 co-option 1802 1806 1807 1812 1818 1820 1826 1830 1831 1832 1835 1837 1841 1847 1852 1857 1859 1865 1868 1874 1880 1885 1886 1892 1895 1900 1906 1910 (Jan) 1910 (Dec) 1918 1922 1923 1924 1929 1931 1935 1945 1950 1951 1955 1959 1964 1966 1970 1974 (Feb) 1974 (Oct) 1979 1983 1987 1992 1997 2001 2005 2010 2015 2017 2019 European Parliament elections 1979 1984 1989 1994 1999 2004 2009 2014 2019 Local elections 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1977 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1995 1999 2003 2007 2012 2017 2022 Referendums 1975 1979 1994 1997 2005 2011 2014 2016 Scottish Parliament constituencies Scottish Parliament electoral regions Scottish Westminster constituencies Proposed second independence referendum Electoral system Political parties
Scotland and the United Kingdom United Kingdom Government Starmer ministry Prime Minister The Rt Hon Keir Starmer MP Secretary of State for Scotland The Rt Hon Ian Murray MP Scottish devolution Treaty of Union House of Commons House of Lords Scotland Office Scottish Affairs Committee Scottish Grand Committee Interministerial Standing Committee Barnett formula Reserved matters Sewel motion
Administration Council areas History Sheriffdoms Community councils Lieutenancy areas Convention of Scottish Local Authorities
Category Scotland portal Other countries

A Claim of Right for Scotland was a document crafted by the Campaign for a Scottish Assembly in 1988, declaring the sovereignty of the Scottish people. It was signed by all then-serving Labour and Liberal Democrat MPs, with the exception of Tam Dalyell (Labour), a strident opponent of devolution. It was also boycotted by the Conservative Party and Scottish National Party both of whom believed the document to be illegitimate. The list of signatories included several MPs who would later attain high office, including future prime minister Gordon Brown, future chancellor Alistair Darling, and future leaders of the Liberal Democrats Charles Kennedy and Menzies Campbell.

The Claim of Right was signed at the General Assembly Hall, on the Mound in Edinburgh on 30 March 1989 by 58 of Scotland's 72 Members of Parliament, 7 of Scotland's 8 MEPs, 59 out of 65 Scottish regional, district and island councils, and numerous political parties, churches and other civic organisations, e.g., trade unions.

Its title was a reference to the Claim of Right Act 1689.

In October 2011, the Scottish Government, led by the SNP which opposed the Claim of Right when it was originally produced, announced that the Claim of Right would be brought before the Scottish Parliament to allow MSPs to re-endorse the claims of the sovereignty of the Scottish people. The Claim of Right was debated in the Scottish Parliament on 26 January 2012.