Scottish Independence Referendum - 18 September 2014

[ChrisDR68]

Not having a currency union wouldn't stop an independent Scotland using the pound unilaterally.  Montenegro isn't in the Eurozone but uses the Euro.

The Eurozone crisis has changed a lot of conceptions of what joining the Euro would entail. Basically you lose the ability to set an interest rate that suits your own country (something most of the southern Med countries have found out to their cost) and any way to devaluate your currency which can kick start an economy in the doldrums.

Once you're inside the Euro these issues are permanent so it's a huge decision to enter into it. I suspect a lot of the political class in those southern Med countries I mentioned regret not realising what they were getting their countries into in January 2002 when the Euro went live as an everyday currency for the general public.

[ChrisDR68]

My Scottish Independence referendum prediction:

Stay within the UK....................... 60%
Vote for Scottish independence... 40%

If this happens the Scots will likely get more devolved powers whether the Tories or Labour are in power or whether there's another coalition government after the 2015 election.

On the tangent discussion about the EU... I personally would be happy for the UK to stay in the EU as long as we obtain an opt out from any future European federal superstate (similar to the opt out of the Euro that John Major negotiated in 1991).

Not sure the European political class would find that acceptable though (especially the French) as the federal superstate idea is the eventual stated endgame of the EU according to the Treaty Of Rome.

[ChrisDR68]

I'm of the view if it ain't broke don't fix it. The United Kingdom as it stands works pretty well overall for all the different countries of the union.

Having said that if the Scots vote for independence the Westminster government really should insist that Scotland will have to have it's own currency.

Using the UK's currency makes no sense for Scotland. Independence should mean true financial independence as well as political sovereignty.

[ChrisDR68]

If the Scots opt for freedom, will they still be allowed to vote for a last time in the parliamentary election next year and above all in the EU referendum?

Freedom?

Do me a favour

70% of Scottish exports goes to England.

That's real freedom isn't it? haha

[ChrisDR68]

I woke up at 4am to go to work and watched the results for 25 minutes.

A number of declarations came through while I was watching. The total aggregate vote started at around 49.7 to 50.3 and ended at 45.4 to 55.6 by the time I'd switched off so the direction of travel was clear there and then.

An exciting 25 minute's viewing overall

[ChrisDR68]

The elephant in the room with this whole Scottish independence debate is a pretty strident anti-Englishness within a large cross section of Scottish society.

Would anyone (particularly anyone from Scotland) care to comment on this?

[ChrisDR68]

Had the Scots voted for independence would the BBC still have collected the licence fee from Scottish households and broadcast to the whole of the British Isles except for Eire?

I presume the alternative would have been similar to how they operate with regard to Eire and studiously avoid that country when doing the weather forecast as if it was a leper colony