I’m still trying to understand this. A currency union means fiscal and monetary policy will be set in Westminster, as it is now. There is no reason for the Westminster government to allow a Scottish government to have any say over fiscal and monetary policy in rUK - or do you think there is, Gary? If Scotland leaves the UK, we will be left with the Tories deciding fiscal and monetary policy for us and, if you’re in a currency union with us, Scotland will be left with the Tories deciding fiscal and monetary policy for you too. Sounds like a bad thing for everyone to me, but I’d like to hear your view.
Please tell me if you see some other future ahead - your own currency, the Westminster government giving you a say on these things, Scotland joining the Euro?
As I said the monetary union will be transitional. We will have control over everything else which, in the short term will be a good thing as we can avoid the worst excesses of the Westminster government. At the moment we have control over 30% of our resources and income with a block grant given depending on the Westminster spending priorities. A lot of people moan about the free personal care, education and prescriptions but that is all paid out of the block grant. It is a matter of priorities, we have decided ours lie on a different path. The monetary union would be a gradual parting of the ways thereby minimising the effect on the economies of both Scotland and rUK. The main point is we would have control of 100% of our resources
which will allow us to spend according to our beliefs and needs. At the moment we are dancing to Westminsters tune. As an example our MPs voted against the bedroom tax but it made no difference. So, the Scottish govt made provision to cover the cost for those affected up here but the money had to come from somewhere else. It is like two neighbours putting different things in their shopping bag, having the same spending money. As for the Scottish govt having no say over fiscal policy I would be surprised if that was the case. We have more resources and would be a more wealthy country than rUK. The fact is that rUK would be diminished without Scottish wealth and it is in everyone’s interest to make the transition as smooth as possible.
Can’t see much changing on the jobs front. We will still need all the government offices and so will the rest of rUK. There are government services delivered from Scotland to the rest of the country and the same in reverse. It shouldn’t be rocket science to sort it out. We will still need the same amount of people to sort it out with the same information coming in, just with different addresses. As for Faslane that is at least a decade long job. Can’t move all that crap with a snap of the fingers. God knows where they will put it. Guarantee it won’t be near anything they hold dear.
Well Gary on the subject of Faslane and WMD I read that originally it was going to be put in Plymouth but if anything happened 11,000 lives would be lost. So they decided to put it 40 miles away from one of the biggest cities in the UK, Glasgow. Definitely more than 11,000 lives lost then but hey, ho. Only the scots!
I’d love to be able to have any chance of voting that ends up with me having voted for a party that ends up in power - and so would many millions of people in England!! I’ve lived in Maidenhead for the last 30 years and we’ve never had anything other than a Tory MP - at the moment Teresa May. I have never voted Tory in 40 years of having the vote - I just have the misfortune to live among lots of misguided people. By the Scottish ‘yes’ voters argument I should be given a referendum to allow me and my house and garden to break away from all I don’t like! I totally understand why they’re disgruntled with things but if they win I will NEVER forgive them for letting down all the voiceless people in England and Wales who want exactly the same sorts of things they do and who rely on them for the hope that we will not have to suffer perpetual Tory governments until we die. That’s what’ll happen to us if they vote yes - and we thought they were our friends!! They’d be pulling up the drawbridge on our dreams of a better future - thanks mates!!
The Scottish referendum debate is absolutely fascinating. Having said that I don’t envy them, ie. the vote given the huge ramifications.
Last night I watched the televised debate which was the best I’ve seen so far. The young people in the audience were fantastic, Scotland should be proud of them. I was under impression that the yes camp had more supporters than the better together.
As a bystander, not Scottish and not English I noticed that there is a lot of egalitarian spirit among Scotts, something that kind of died down in England. People there talk about fairer distribution of wealth, tackling poverty, good welfare provision and health care.
In fact, if you listen to it this sounds very much like any scandinavian country. I spent a bit of time in Sweden and can tell you that whilst there is overall equality, the price of it are much, much higher taxes! I’m not sure that people in Scotland would be prepared to be taxed at 47% to achieve the fairer distribution of wealth. Scandinavians have a lot of trust in their politicians and accept that the goverment knows best. There is very little criticism and people go along with what the government believe they should do. I don’t see the same would be happening in Scotland. Even with the egalitarian agenda in scandinavia, there has been a trend in the last few years, the rich get richer and the poor poorer, sounds familiar?
Whatever the referendum’s outcome, the country will be very divided. Still, the referendum has given people opportunity to discuss their beliefs and ideals which is a good thing. I hope all goes well for Scotland.
To go back to my question (about monetary union - Alex Salmond’s plan post-independance), I now understand that this will be a transitional thing. Alex never mentions this, but that is fine. It wasn’t completely clear from your post what you think you will be transitioning TO. I can only think of two options, namely a currency that is Scotland’s alone or the Euro. Which do you fancy? If it’s the first, do you have any worries about the size of Scotland’s economy, the currency reserves you would need to hold, the tax rates everyone would have to pay?
Although it would be bad news for England If I were Scottish I would definitely vote for independence. Even though that would reduce us to a permanent Tory Government for them a Tory free administration is enticing.
There must be some but I have never met a bad Scot so I wish them all the best in whatever they decide.
What I can’t understand is why does Labour ask that failure Brown to give a last minute timetable of offers; he has as much pulling power as a Duck Billed platypus in my estimation.
I am completely puzzled by this. It is true that Scottish independence would mean that we have a permanent Tory government but Alex Salmond’s stated plan of monetary union with the remaining UK means that the Scots will have to suffer Tory fiscal and monetary policy permanently too. Why would you vote for that, unless you approve of Tory fiscal and monetary policy?
I can’t give you an argument, because from an outsiders point of view it really doesn’t make sense, unless you think there might be something in this article.
Thanks Whammel for the link to the Guardian article, very interesting comments from readers. At least one newspaper covers elections in another European country. I have digressed a bit from the original post about Scotland.
Hiya, the, who do you believe most, side will win, everyone asks and/or states the same things, we pay more tax, we receive more benefits, it will be all right, the north sea will pay for it, we are told by the snp we shall all be equal, benefits will increase, the NHS will be saved, royal mail will become public owned again, food banks will be defunct, HOW, how much will it cost, we are not told by the snp, forget what currency, nothing is said about who will say what the minimum wage is to be, will we need embassies abroad, will we need a civil service for Scotland, who will run the concentrates, we are told that corporation tax is to be 3% less, will companies come here if they have to pay higher wages, how much will be spent every year on our new armed forces, new upgraded arms, salmond is quick to tell us about Norway’s ship building for all, we can’t get the ships to build now, how will we beat the Norwegian shipyards in independence, salmond and the snp are asking to live a dream, a utopia, can we truly reply yes, vote yes and all will be well, only the snp tell the truth, aye right, salmond stated we spend more than France, per population, on something I can’t remember, if we spent 5:5 million and France spent 50 million, it is true, we do spend more per head, France has a much bigger population, the snp pick the arguments carefully to fit their own agenda, unfortunately some blind folk are taking it in, Brian