Scottish Independence

[Coldicote]

I read on the news (26.05.11) that Scotland is to have a referendum on independence. An economic adviser to Alex Salmond has warned that Scotland would 'gain little' and, although 'economically viable', increased financial power within the union was more likely. I am not for or against - just trying to understand. In what way is that a warning and what would it mean in practice?

[R1Geezer]

i'd vote for it!

[bazwillrun]

So would I
Of course we'd lose a lot of our cabinet ministers....shame .....small price to pay

[Gromit]

http://scotlandonsund...reaking-up.6776064.jp

He is warning that there isn't muched to be gained by full independence.

[Gromit]

// Of course we'd lose a lot of our cabinet ministers. //

None precisely. You would have more chance of seeing the Loch Ness monster than seeing a Scottish Conservative MP.

[Coldicote]

I am wondering what the economic adviser had in mind when he 'warned' that increased financial power within the union was more likely. Why was that a warning and what would be the danger?

[Gromit]

He didn't warn that, he said that was a better option.

Full independence would gain little, and a better option would be to stay in the Union but have more powers devolved to it.

[Coldicote]

Thanks Gromit. I hadn't read it in that way but you could be right.

[mightyWBA]

I support a United Kingdom but one advantage for the Scots and Welsh getting rid of us is that democracy would return tio England..Here's a map from 2010.
Sorry if the link doesn't work!
[IMG]http://i55.tinypic.com/2ic9jwi.jpg[/IMG]

[mightyWBA]

Nope..Don't know how to do it....Where's Chuck? :)

[Quizmonster]

Re Scottish cabinet ministers, Gromit, I know that Liam Fox was born in East Kilbride and Michael Gove in Edinburgh. Of course, they are not MPs for Scottish constituencies; voters there have more sense! Can't be bothered to check any of the rest of them.

[anotheoldgit]

Scottish Independence?

Bring it on I say, If they were to gain it, I wonder how long it would be before they started charging for prescriptions, Uni. fees, old persons care, and all the other perks the Scots now enjoy at the English tax payers expense?

[modeller]

timaria //they pay their taxes and receive their budgets how they choose to spend it it up to THEIR Government. // Their taxes do not cover their expenses, we do .
I don't know how it works now but for years for every pound spent by the local government it was matched by the central government, Also the government based the grants on the previous year , so the more you spent the more you got. If you saved money you were penalised the following year. This is the system which is applied to the whole public services.
In addition Scotland receives extra funds from us . I think it's 12% more than the English regions.

[ludwig]

Can we have a referendum on English independence?

[mike11111]

In the 1959 general election 50% of those MPs returned to parliament from Scotland represented the Conservative Party. What has happened since (and don't say Maggie)?

[Ric.ror]

What would England gain/lose by Scottish independence ?

[mike11111]

What would we lose? Alex Salmond slagging us off all the time.
What would we gain? No bagpipes!

[Quizmonster]

Mike, why can't we say, 'Maggie'? I imagine that many Scots...lots of English, too...still see her as the bugbear she indubitably was. In addition, there has of course, in Scotland's case, also been the risorgimento of the ScotNats. The main point is that Tories there are a truly endangered species and, for that, "May the Lord be thankit!"

[mike11111]

I am right in my observation that in 1959 roughly half of Scotland voted Tory. They were losing ground long before Thatcher, for reasons which I have not yet researched. I distinctly remember, however, in 1963, when Harold MacMillan resigned as PM and was replace by Lord Home, there was a by-election pending in the "safe" Tory seat of Kinross and Perthshire. The chosen candidate, George Younger, was persuaded to stand down in favour of Home, so that he could have a seat in the Commons. Home was duly elected and wickedly satirised on the TV show TW3, which portrayed the electors of the said constituency as sheep. Younger was suitably rewarded with the "safe" seat of Ayr, and became Scottish Secretary. On Home's retirement the electors of the aforesaid constituency chose an absolute buffoon, Nicholas Fairbairn, who probably did far more to damage Anglo-Scottish relations than William Wallace.

[boxtops]

wba, hope this works (you don't need the IMG on each end) http://i55.tinypic.com/2ic9jwi.jpg