An independent Scotland?

[Pearls18]

I was just wondering what people's views are on this? If you're Scottish or not. I would love to hear the pros and cons and ramifications for both Scottish and British people as I'm quite ignorant to it all!

 

[emyandpotato]

I'm not Scottish but a lot of what I've seen suggests to me that Scottish people themselves want independence, so why not? I really don't know much about it though to be honest, and as my knowledge of it stands at the moment I don't care either way.

 

[Tiff]

Not Scottish either, but I feel if they want to be independent and have the means to do so then they should be.

I'm very ignorant to all of it though, so would love to hear people who actually live there and what they think/feel.

 

[Missnurse]

Apparently (heard through the grapevine anyway) that David Cameron does not want us to get independence through fear of losing our tax contributions, £129 every 2 MINUTES goes into the national pot from whiskey alone. I'm Scottish but I'm not voting as I don't really know enough about the whole thing to be honest but my opinion is if we have the means then go for it

 

[x Michelle x]

I'm scottish and voting No.
I like things as they are, and TBH i don't really like Alex Salmond much. I think that although Scots provide a lot of cash to Westminster etc (as do everyone else), but we get things in return.
I am a proud scot, but i am also British. I like that

 

[Fergie]

I'm a very proud Scottish lass and i'll be skipping my way down to that polling station, with the proclaimers song "Cap in Hand" playing , to vote a huge yes.

I should have absolutely no say in how England, Wales & NI are run so they should have no say in how ours is run. I don't care about those countries and what their money is spent on or isn't spent on, what laws have been pushed through etc, I only care about mine. There has been so much misinformation been put out by both camps, a lot of people are struggling with making the decision but I'll know that I at least gave my country the chance to go it alone. If we screw up then we screw up, but at least we'll have no one to blame but ourselves.

 

[x Michelle x]

There has been so much misinformation been put out by both camps, a lot of people are struggling with making the decision

This exactly!

 

[Abigailly]

I'm Scottish and I will be voting no.

My family are HUGE SNP campaigners so I know an awful lot about it. However I feel like they're all living in cuckoo cuckoo land.

I can only give you info based on my family as it's what I've done the most research into.

Salmond says we 'could be like Ireland', and independent state that had a thriving economy - for the whole of 5 minutes. And now that country is down the shitter.

We will end up paying (as said in Salmond's twat book) 15% more tax MINIMUM. However he can't let you know exactly how much, as most of his answers are.

We will struggle to keep any sort of NHS (which is a UK organisation, if we leave the UK we will have a lot of starting over with it)

We will have to make up a lot of short falls with how much money we will lose from the UK government each year. Our oil and Whisky (2 main industries) will only cover half of what they give us each year.

Not to mention if we use population as a guide for debt inheritance we will inherit 92billion in debt. Which we deserve, Westminster didn't create the whole debt themselves. We gave them a helping hand.

Then we have the currency debate. Salmond's twat book says us keeping the pound is "vital". If we don't have it many companies will pull out of Scotland. It won't be economically viable for them to stay. However, it won't be in the UK's best interest for us to have a currency union. The Euro has shown how hard they are to sustain and regulate. Not to mention, if we kept the pound, all things money (interest rate etc) will still be controlled by the bank of England. I thought Salmond wanted independence? Obviously there is nothing the UK government can do to stop Scotland using the pound. They can however make our lives very difficult.

To me, he's like a 5 year old child wanting to run away from home. He wants to be a big boy but he still needs to hold mummy's hand to cross the road.

He has no answers for anything. Today on the currency debate Sturgeon had no answers, whatsoever, for what we will do if we actually go independent. The whole White paper is written on 'ifs and buts'.


I do think we'll go independent though. All they need to do it put 'Braveheart' on STV the night before and even I will be running to the polling station screaming 'FREEEEDOM'.

 

[Abigailly]

There has been so much misinformation been put out by both camps, a lot of people are struggling with making the decision but

This is the biggest issue. None of us will ever know the full truth. No matter how much we read. Even Salmond won't. Not until we get to the point of having to create our own policies.

 

[Abigailly]

Apparently (heard through the grapevine anyway) that David Cameron does not want us to get independence through fear of losing our tax contributions, £129 every 2 MINUTES goes into the national pot from whiskey alone. I'm Scottish but I'm not voting as I don't really know enough about the whole thing to be honest but my opinion is if we have the means then go for it

This makes me really sad. You're not going to vote on the biggest decision of yours, your children's, granchildren's future? You have the power to influence this decision. Just read about it a bit. Read both sides. Form an opinion. It's incredibly important.

 

[emyandpotato]

I'm Scottish and I will be voting no.

My family are HUGE SNP campaigners so I know an awful lot about it. However I feel like they're all living in cuckoo cuckoo land.

I can only give you info based on my family as it's what I've done the most research into.

Salmond says we 'could be like Ireland', and independent state that had a thriving economy - for the whole of 5 minutes. And now that country is down the shitter.

We will end up paying (as said in Salmond's twat book) 15% more tax MINIMUM. However he can't let you know exactly how much, as most of his answers are.

We will struggle to keep any sort of NHS (which is a UK organisation, if we leave the UK we will have a lot of starting over with it)

We will have to make up a lot of short falls with how much money we will lose from the UK government each year. Our oil and Whisky (2 main industries) will only cover half of what they give us each year.

Not to mention if we use population as a guide for debt inheritance we will inherit 92billion in debt. Which we deserve, Westminster didn't create the whole debt themselves. We gave them a helping hand.

Then we have the currency debate. Salmond's twat book says us keeping the pound is "vital". If we don't have it many companies will pull out of Scotland. It won't be economically viable for them to stay. However, it won't be in the UK's best interest for us to have a currency union. The Euro has shown how hard they are to sustain and regulate. Not to mention, if we kept the pound, all things money (interest rate etc) will still be controlled by the bank of England. I thought Salmond wanted independence? Obviously there is nothing the UK government can do to stop Scotland using the pound. They can however make our lives very difficult.

To me, he's like a 5 year old child wanting to run away from home. He wants to be a big boy but he still needs to hold mummy's hand to cross the road.

He has no answers for anything. Today on the currency debate Sturgeon had no answers, whatsoever, for what we will do if we actually go independent. The whole White paper is written on 'ifs and buts'.


I do think we'll go independent though. All they need to do it put 'Braveheart' on STV the night before and even I will be running to the polling station screaming 'FREEEEDOM'.

This is really interesting!

 

[NerdyMama]

I do think we'll go independent though. All they need to do it put 'Braveheart' on STV the night before and even I will be running to the polling station screaming 'FREEEEDOM'.

That about made me fall over laughing!!!! :ROFL:

 

[Pearls18]

Scotland has contributed a lot to the purse there is no denying that, but Scottish people also get a lot more back individually than anyone else in the UK, you only have to look at prescriptions, elderly care and universities to see that, I'm surprised anyone would want to jeopardise that.

I have some questions:

With the oil, will the Uk get any revenue from the oil, because although it's in Scotland I thought government had put a lot of investment in it? I'm guessing it wouldn't just all be signed over??

The military, my husband's regiment has a squadron based up there we could be posted to, will all british military have to move down south?? Will they have their own military?

With the whole euro/pound thing it sounds a bit of wanting their cake and to eat it (most stupid saying ever). Surely you either want to be independent or you don't, you can't have it both ways?

 

[Pearls18]

I do think we'll go independent though. All they need to do it put 'Braveheart' on STV the night before and even I will be running to the polling station screaming 'FREEEEDOM'.

That about made me fall over laughing!!!! :ROFL:

Me too haha.

 

[catty]

Im scottish and would say im quite patriotic but I am just sooo unsure.

one of the points is that all children as of 2024 from the age of 1 are entitled to 1024 hours of state funded childcare. I personally dontunderstand how on earth they will manage that one as both my neice and nephew cant even get the 15 hours of nursery there entitled to as the nurseries are choc o block round here. Unless they plan on building an absolute heap of new nurserys!

Thats the main point iv been lookig into, other points are things like having stricter rules for immigrants which I am for but It also doesnt tell you how they will put that in place.

I feel there just sayig what they think we want to hear, it also says tax WONT go up, but how they will manage that is anyones guess

 

[Abigailly]

Scotland has contributed a lot to the purse there is no denying that, but Scottish people also get a lot more back individually than anyone else in the UK, you only have to look at prescriptions, elderly care and universities to see that, I'm surprised anyone would want to jeopardise that.

I have some questions:

With the oil, will the Uk get any revenue from the oil, because although it's in Scotland I thought government had put a lot of investment in it? I'm guessing it wouldn't just all be signed over??

The military, my husband's regiment has a squadron based up there we could be posted to, will all british military have to move down south?? Will they have their own military?

With the whole euro/pound thing it sounds a bit of wanting their cake and to eat it (most stupid saying ever). Surely you either want to be independent or you don't, you can't have it both ways?

No one really has answers on the oil front. (Salmod obviously says we'll get it all, no questions asked). As a lot of it is in Scottish waters but not extracted by us.

'Experts' reckon it will work a bit like a divorce. That it will be split. Or that the income will be. Not just between us 2. But between all those inovolved. Places like Norway, who have an agreement with the UK.

As for military, I'm unclear on that too. We would obviously have to start from scratch with them. However I don't understand what will happen to Scots currently serving in the British military.

Salmond has said that we will just take over our current regiments and turn them into platoons. But that doesn't work as it's not a case of every Scottish person is in a Scottish regiment and vice versa with England.

There is so much uncertainty ahead of us. I'm genuinely worried for our country. We are at huge risk of going down the pan. Salmond and Sturgeon working as the dream team is going so badly. They are making a laughing stock of what could genuinely be a shot for Scotland. They just don't have enough answers. They don't have any kind of plan. They have ZERO plans for pensions. Surely that should be a priority but they've not given us word on how they will be funded or regulated.
They don't have answers on what it will mean for immigration apart from buzz phrases like 'closing the gates' and 'giving Scots a chance'.

 

[AP]

Theres so much conflicting info. I'm personally, no

 

[Lina]

It would be as disastrous as UKIP winning the next election. Salmond like Mr Farage has little else than silly nationalist dreams.

 

[lindseymw]

Unforunately, I don't think there is enough information for anyone to make a proper informed choice.

If they go independent, they will not be automatically accepted into the EU. Will there be border control? Would we need a passport to get into Scotland? Would England need to change the English Pound notes into Scottish Pound notes to spend in Scotland?

What would happen to the English people who work off shore on the rigs? Where would their taxes go? Scotland or England?

I'm not entirely sure how a Country can be independent but their currency based on the Bank of England...seems a bit off to me. Either you are independent or not?

As others have mentioned, the military..there is a lot of Scots in the British Army, would they be discharged and re-employed into the Scottish Army? Who owns the military vehicles, Guns etc as it stands now? Will they be handed over to Scotland or will Scotland need to buy their own?

 

[Debi]

I will be voting yes. I think we should (and are more than capable of!) governing ourselves. Remember a vote for independence is NOT a vote for the snp. There would be an election shortly afterwards where we could vote for whoever else. At the moment we are governed by a party with 1?!! seat in Scotland. It just doesn't make sense democratically. We are different nations, with different political ideologies.
Scotland has plenty of industry to stay afloat. Although I think an additional £1600 (?!)/ head is spent in Scotland, tax revenues we give back are about £500/ head more than that.
We have a chance at creating a fairer more equal society, we should grab it with both hands. In Britain at the moment the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. Food banks in an oil rich, wealthy nation?! Surely we can do better than that.
Salmond is striving towards a country similar to Norway I believe. The happiest place to live in the world apparently (regardless of the price of a pint!), I say why not? Rather that than more of the same.
I saw Nicola Sturgeon on the daily politics. I thought she did well. Yeah she dodged the question of a plan b for a currency as we are apparently not going to be "allowed" to use the pound (which of course we can, any country can, similar to how Cuba uses USD). She was no worse than David Cameron who dodges questions every week at pmq's. Anyway although all the westminster parties have all said we won't have a currency union if we go independent, it would be in both countries interest if we did due to the division of debt and other factors . This is scaremongering from Westminster.
Personally I think we should ditch the pound altogether if it means giving any sort of power back. I think there definitely is a "plan b" but snp are keeping quiet for now.
I would LOVE to see a leaders debate Salmond v Cameron. It's not goin to happen though. DC is too smart for that, he knows Salmond would wipe the floor with him.
It actually does sadden me, the thought of us breaking up as a country. But I just think the union has had it's day and it's time to go it alone.