SNPmusttellusthefull consequencesofindy
In 2014, Alex Salmond and the SNP held up banners stating that it was a simple yes or no to a “once in a generation” referendum for an independent Scotland.
Yet here we are six years later, in the middle of a rampaging and uncontrolled pandemic, and our Scottish Government is taking its eye off the ball from this ever-growing threat and proposing a new task force to form a strategy for a second once in a generation referendum.
Instead of only sending letters to the Scottish people at this point thanking them for adhering to lockdown rules, would it not be more advantageous to the Scottish people whilst in lockdown and regardless of their political leanings, also to be fully informed by ScotGov of the potential financial implications of independence before the elections in May and yet another referendum vote?
Much play is made by the SNP of Scotland being dragged out of the EU against the will of the Scottish people as a consequence of Brexit.
If the UK had been fully informed of the financial and economic implications of Brexit, then perhaps Brexit would not have been voted for.
Let us therefore not be in the same position as for Brexit. Let the Scottish people decide on a second referendum but only when they have been given the full facts of the economic and financial implications of freeing itself from the UK.
Aspirational proclamations by the first minister are not in themselves sufficient justification for another referendum, especially in the absence of clear guidance and a well- informed public.
The Scottish public is entitled to clear, factual and complete answers to the following questions:
If ScotGov decides to keep Sterling as a currency, albeit for only a short while, will Scotland still have access to Bank of England financing during that period?
Would ScotGov, as a new borrower, be asked to pay higher interest rates until it could demonstrate its ability to repay loans?
Where and how would ScotGov replace the £11 billion a year fiscal transfers from the UK it presently enjoys?
Currently 60 per cent of Scottish exports are sold to the other UK countries and only 19 per cent to EU members.
With a hard border and its associated higher export costs, will Scotland’s 60 per cent export sales to the UK be sustainable?
It is clear that fiscal and economic conditions in Scotland have worsened since 2014 and the full story will not be fully known until COVID-19 and its multiplying variants are reined in and the pandemic brought under control.
ScotGov has already received £8.6bn in support from the UK Government to address the pandemic. Where will financial support come from if Scotland leaves the UK and the next COVID-19 variant comes down the line?
Currently, the Scottish Government is partly funded by the UK Government block grant, and partly self-funded through raising revenue from devolved taxes and borrowing.
Though this is grossly oversimplified, it is clear that without the block grant from the UK, ScotGov would have to rely on (a) increasing revenue from taxes (e.g. business or personal income taxes and other taxes) and borrowing and/or (b) reducing its expenses (e.g. by reducing government services) to meet its fiscal obligations.
In any case, the Scottish taxpayer will bear the brunt of these changes.
Taxes undoubtedly would have to be increased in the event of independence, at least for the shortterm until the SNP’s bold assertions of improved fiscal performance and economic gains arising from its continued leadership are realised.
This is in spite of the SNP’s shortcomings and poor fiscal record over the course of its tenure to date as the dominant party in government and the growing Scottish national debt.
We are in a very different and uncertain world compared to 2014.
We cannot afford to be swept along primarily by nationalistic fervour, without careful consideration of what independence really means in terms of both costs and benefits.
We need to take stock and respond accordingly to the reality of the current environment we face on all fronts. Heather Tuck
The Cornerstone
Druids Park
Murthly that has been asked many, many times, but never answered:If Scotland is such a drain on the precious union, why are the Tories, of all people, so desperate to hang on to us shower of troublesome girning subsidy junkies?
Altruism? Aye, right!
Jim Clark
Via email
The simplistic SNP answer to such Tory-inspired chaos is always so-called independence.
Why any responsible Scottish Government would pile more economic pain on top of Brexit by splitting from another successful economic union inside the UK is hard to comprehend.
Constitutional wrangling is a total distraction from any recovery plan with no clear aim apart from creating further division.
As a pro-European I believe it is critical we first resolve the poor outcomes of a bad Brexit deal.
Progressive politicians recognise the need for change, not just in Scotland but across the UK.
They understand areas of England and Wales have differing economic and social priorities to resolve.
To achieve an amicable, rather than a confrontational, settlement we must now embrace plans for a federal UK along the lines of successful democracies like Germany and Switzerland.
If not I suspect the next four years will be a “walk in the park” compared to the next 40.
Galen Milne
Address supplied