Scottish Independence... What are your thoughts?

[burgyeb]

When's the vote? What's the outcome?

[tonyreddevil]

The Vote Is September 18th and will be determined then.

[MADMAX666]

doh

[astral276]

doh

World geography not her strongest subject then? Why don't these 'celebrities' have the sense to say "I don't know enough about the subject to comment" rather than saying the first thing that comes into their empty heads?

[PetBazaar]

World geography not her strongest subject then? Why don't these 'celebrities' have the sense to say "I don't know enough about the subject to comment" rather than saying the first thing that comes into their empty heads?

I think someone might be pulling your leg with the Miley Cyrus quote.

Unfortunately, it appears that these ones are completely serious. And not really a convincing argument for voting "No".

“If and when the Scots ‘bottle it’ on 18 September and vote no, they will see a stronger English voice because the people of England have had enough of Scottish self-indulgence.”
Eddie Bone, Campaign for an English Parliament
Quoted in The Scotsman, 22 August 2014

By a large margin of 56 per cent to 12 per cent, the English said Scottish public spending should be cut to the UK average following a No vote.”
The Telegraph, 20th August 2014

“English voters want the government to take a hard line against Scotland even if its residents vote “no” to independence. Funding should be cut and Scottish MPs should no longer have a say over English matters, according to a survey.
The findings will unsettle parties in the pro-Union campaign, who have promised a good deal for Scotland if it remains in the UK.”
The Times, 20th August 2014

“Voters south of the Border want a cut to Scottish annual public spending of almost £1,400 per person if there is a No vote.”
The Herald, 20th August 2014

“An English backlash against Scotland’s demands for greater political power is looming, whatever the outcome of the independence referendum.

Even after a No vote, people south of the Border say public spending in Scotland should be reduced to bring it into line with the UK average, which could see £4 billion removed from the Scottish budget – a development that would lead to savage cuts in public services north of the Border.’”
The Scotsman, 20th August 2014

[squern]

World geography not her strongest subject then? Why don't these 'celebrities' have the sense to say "I don't know enough about the subject to comment" rather than saying the first thing that comes into their empty heads?

Aren't you persuaded then?

I had weighed up all the arguments, researched the economics, and read everything from both sides, and I was going to vote "Yes".

But after this powerful message from such a serious political commentator, well-known for her acute grasp of current affairs and the nuances of realpolitik, I've changed my mind.

I was almost persuaded by Basil Brush, but this is the clincher.

BOOM, BOOM!!

[westlondoncarparts]

I do not know what world these newspaper people live in. I have not come across anybody in England who has said these things about national financial transfers to Scotland after a No vote.

According to the Office for National Statistics, ‘the rebased estimated populations of the four constituent countries of the UK in mid-2010 were 52.6 million people in England, 5.3 million in Scotland, 3.0 million in Wales and 1.8 million in Northern Ireland.’ Basically this means that there already is an English Parliament because the English population is so much larger than the population of the other countries in the UK. Hence one of the reasons for the Scottish Referendum – Scots do not get much say in Westminster.

What is now the USA declared independence from rule from London on the basis of no taxation without representation. What is happening with the Scottish Referendum is a variation on that theme – heavy taxation of Scottish oil production but without meaningful Scottish influence in London.

Maybe these newspaper people who talk about the level of public expenditure per head in Scotland in comparison with the rest of the UK might also one day give a balanced assessment and include oil tax revenue contributed per head of population by the Scots in comparison with the rest of the UK. The story would be different then.

As they say, in any war the first casualty is always truth.

Basil Brush is too honest to be the right kind of character to wade in to the debate and to try to influence the outcome. He does not have the media manipulation skills to argue convincingly that night is day and vice versa.

[tonyreddevil]

very good reply

[tonyreddevil]

26 days to go before Referendum

[PetBazaar]

26 days to go before Referendum

Second leaders debate on the BBC tomorrow night.

Expected topics, well I'm expecting these topics...

Currency Plan B, again.
The NHS and privatisation.
Is oil going to run out by next Tuesday.
Possibly a bit on pensions.