I can't believe it? Independence?????

[Bibio]

why would Scotland want to raise taxation levels. it would be economic suicide. we dont need to raise taxation if anything we can drop them.

Scotland already look after their own affairs and come on or just under budget every year from the handout they receive via Westminster. Ron said it was around £30b when its more in the region of £50b. for this £50b we have to fund everything apart from unemployment, pensions etc.etc. its a known fact that Scotland is giving around £10b more than it receives but these figures do not include Duty this goes directly to HM Customs.

if Scotalnd get to keep all the Duty we will be much much better off, this is why the devolved parliament asked to be fully monitory independent but were refused, so Scotland decided that the only way we are going to be able to keep the funds in Scotland is to go independent.

someone raised the question about the national debt and Scotland still having to contribute towards it even if we do get independence. well all i can say to that is borlox right off as Scotland has a devolved parliament and has seen no monies come over the border of the debt that has been gathered. the Scottish public have already paid their share with NI, PAYE, Vat and Duty not to mention the shortfall every year.

peoples votes are a personal thing, but voting No just because YOUR going to be worse off is not an excuse for the future of a nation, that to me is like not getting a round in the pub when it's your turn. your voting for a chance to have a better future for the rest of the generations to come.

You're asking people to vote to be poorer? That dont compute.
If they consider themselves to be 'well off' then perhaps they are not seduced by the claims of others. And the Status Quo is working for them. Not everyone is a nationalist. Or wants an economy like Iceland.

the debt issue hasnt been resolved yet. But...if Scotland simply reject debt then I doubt they will get credit. The debt issue is one of many economic issues that should have been bolted down by now. Unless there is absolute economic clarity then the whole vote is just a gamble.

My view is simple. This whole independence debate is pure 100% nationalist with a thin vaneer of economic credibility. It should be the other way around. Then Scottish Independence would actually work.

[Bibio]

no i'm asking people to vote for the independence of a nation and the future of the generations to come.

why are people taking Iceland as an example, there are plenty nations who are making a very good go of being independent and one of those is in fact a former colony of the British empire the USA. Germany, France, Russia, Japan etc.etc have always been independent. so why are people always going on about the recently bad publicised country's. scare mongering that why.

[Bibio]

chucca, who told you that you are going to be loosing your job?

Alex Salmond mentioned Iceland as an example.
And Ireland.
Arc of Prosperity. I can send you a link if you wish.
Not scaremongering at all.
Stone cold fact. True, even.
So, we are now going to compare the economy of the US of A with Scotland as examples of independent successful countries? Oh my god. I cant even begin to tell you where that wrong.

An oil economy is good when the price of oil is high. But if it falls then not so good.
I love this the most....The Scottish Greens support independence. So they are supporting an oil economy then? Gotta love it.

By the by I am trying to find out how much debt Scotland will have to take for using the £. If anyone can give me either a % or a rough figure that would be super. Then we can see what shape the Scottish Economy will be in. Oh I love economics.

[carelesschucca]

Firstly I look at the facts of what my job is. I'm employed to pay pensions to the UK services. If we get independence will that office need the same amount of staff to pay a quarter of the payroll? I highly doubt it, and why would the government in a separate country allow their forces to be paid from another independent state. They wouldn't.

If you can prove my job will be as safe in an independent Scotland go for it.

Sorry but I happen to like my job I happen to like my house and my life why would I vote for something that could ferk that up. You basically want me to play Russian Roulette with my job. Before you say they could move my job anytime yes they could but the office I work in has been where it is for 30 years, and theres less chance of it being moved if I live in the UK!

YES I love being Scottish there's nothing better but I also like being Brittish. Yeah I don't like the fact that the rich and powerful control everything. But for one minute do you actually believe that the rich and the powerful won't control Scotland. Because if you do then your mad or stupid. The people who really hold power will always hold power.

I see Scotland on an international scale being less strong than the UK together. We certainly wont be going to any G8 summits and we have to also be realistic about the debts. God our Royal Bank was one of the main culprits. Can you imagine how we'd have coped as a nation if we'd had to bail them out by our selves... Sprechen Sie Deutsch.

[Bibio]

is there a fact that Scotland wont stay and support the UK forces?

Scotland is a strategic point for the UK forces. do you think that Whitehall would give that up... then you are as mad as me.

Basket,
stop repeating what Alex Salmond is suposed to have said or has said, i have already told you why he is saying what he is saying.
do you even know what the 'green party' is actually about? i have a rough idea as my Economics teacher at school was in fact Robin Harper, they are not all about saddle wearing, jumper knitting and muesli munching politics.

dont matter what we vote as the vote will be a NO.

if i thought for one minute that Scotland was going to be worse off i would be voting NO as i have a fair amount to loose regarding being looked after by the state. i dont care about the politics i'll leave that for the politicians to sort out. believe it or not i also think of myself as Brittish and i'm not one of those loyalist types.

Alex Salmond said it. No supposed about it.
And it is important because he did.
Because he said it a lot.
And believed it. And, oddly, now he doesnt.

So...if Scotland enters into an currency union with England then what do you think the terms will be. I am surprised a new Scottish currency is not on the agenda. Since joining the Euro would be not exactly smart.

And what happens if England refuse?

[Bibio]

Alex Salmond is a puppet

know one knows.... till it happens, but England has nothing to do with it, it's the BOE that will make the decision. if they say no to Scotland keeping the £ then they are going to be handing out a lot of gold to RBS, BOS and Clydesdale Bank as they will no longer be 'holding currency' that belongs to those banks who issue Scottish notes. if the three note producing banks of Scotland decide that they still want to print 'Scottish Pound notes' then there is nothing anyone can do about it after all as the English keep saying Scottish currency is not legal tender. if Scotland do become independent then guess what it will become legal tender if the BOE refuse to let Scotland join the BOE pound. the BOE dont hold a patent on the symbol £ or the word Pound. any country in the world can call their currency what they like, in the case of the Scottish banks and BOE it will just be that the BOE will no longer hold currency for the right of Scottish banks to tender. it will be up to the Scottish government which bank they use to hold the purse strings or create a new one just like the BOE for Westminster.

[SIII]

We are debating unknowns here.

We do not know what is going to happen, if the unlikely scenario of independence does happen. (Brian Taylor BBC Scotland political editor and a very clever chap - even he agree's we do not know) It's a huge leap into the unknown, we could fail but is that what our history as an inventive nation shows ? We failed once by getting involved in the Darien Scheme and have now had centuries of foreeign control. We have shown we are able to manage our own wee country, time to get contol back.

I would be quite happy to stay in the UK - if we got control over our own finances, oil money or not! I am happy to be british and am happy to share our wonderful country with whoever wants to come and live here. I am just not happy with being financially controlled by a neighbour who happens to be bigger than us. Had DevoMax was on offer - i might be seriusly tempted to vote for that.

As for the £, be the best result to get a Scottish £, get all of our gold back from the BOE (every scottish note issued must have gold in the reserve to back it up, unlike the English pound - cos that's all been sold !!!) and set up our own currency. The only reason to keep it is that the idea of losing it scares the majority and this is used as a big stick to scare the general populace.