Should Scotland be Independent?

Yes

Anyone with some knowledge of historical English-Scottish ties, or even just a love of Braveheart, understands the fractious relations that have always existed between the northern and southern points of this island. Despite the close geographical proximity, relatively similar cultural history and numerous UK nation-building exercises, Scotland remains socially and culturally distinct from the United Kingdom. Now the Scots want the opportunity to govern themselves. Let them have it.

You might think that ‘British’ is a national identity that includes all people of the entire British isle – English, Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish. If you think that, you are probably English. In 2005 the Commission for Racial Equality found that most English people tend to think of themselves as indistinguishably English or British, while both Scottish and Welsh people tend to self-identify as Scottish or Welsh. The report showed that England was most strongly linked with Britain, with many participants unconsciously substituting ‘Britishness’ and ‘Englishness’ in their answers.

These separate national identities cause issues in the political arena. A ‘nation-state’ derives its political legitimacy from the meeting of the political entity, the state and the cultural/ethnic entity known as the nation. After the 2010 General Election, Labour retained 41 seats in Scotland, while the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives retained 11 and one respectively. Because they do not culturally associate themselves as British, many Scots are left wondering what right the current Liberal Democrat-Conservative government has to govern Scotland.

Although devolution was intended to improve this situation, in reality it has just made things worse. I have heard many English complain that ‘English’ taxes are spent on giving better care to the Scottish elderly than the English receive, and granting Scottish students free university tuition whilst English students face fee increases of up to £9,000 per year. It is entirely in the Scottish Parliament’s remit to spend its budget in the way it considers maximally optimal. It might, however, have a better understanding of the costs and benefits of certain policies to society if it had complete financial autonomy from Westminster.

The Scots desire to rule themselves independently for the first time in 300 years. The SNP pleads for a “partnership of equals” in a social union rather than the current political union. It is a principle of international law that all peoples have a right to self-determination. The current political union cannot continue in its current form.

There are some economists who claim that an independent Scotland could not sustain itself financially. The SNP disagrees, and foresees a wealthy future from Scotland’s natural resources and development of green energy technologies.

Scottish independence is not an issue to be decided by criteria like ‘pragmatism’. Economists can only predict the future, and have been wrong before. It is condescending in the extreme to assume that the Scots lack the ability for self-governance. This is an issue that strikes at the heart of political legitimacy.

No

The UK’s constituent nations enjoy distinct cultural identities and their diversity is part of what makes Britain great. Nobody can question that the Scottish people should proudly celebrate their heritage, but they must also remember that their country has thrived as part of a wider union.
Proponents of an independent Scotland draw mainly on emotional arguments, claiming that the brutal and oppressive English coerced their country into the union hundreds of years ago. Such lines of reasoning bear little relevance to the everyday lives of ordinary Scots. The rhetoric of power-hungry SNP politicians is out of touch with those whose first and foremost concern is for a stable economy and a job market which will offer security for their families.

Nationalists often point to the successes of other small European states. They fail to address that it was smaller countries, such as Iceland and Ireland, which bore the brunt of the global financial crisis. It is easy to complain about the current state of the UK economy but had Scotland secured independence several years ago things would be far worse. Chief Secretary of State to the Treasury Danny Alexander and Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls have both agreed that the collapse of the banking sector would have had catastrophic consequences for Scotland had it not been part of the United Kingdom.

The cost alone of recapitalising the Edinburgh headquartered banks HBOS and RBS “dwarfed the entire Scottish budget”. An independent Scotland would have to reapply for membership of the EU as a new sovereign state. They would almost certainly be forced to join the Euro and forego the benefits of the UK’s low interest rates, at a time when the single currency is in crisis. Nearly two-thirds of Scotland’s exports are sent to the UK, so joining the Euro would also make trading more difficult.
The Institute for Economic Affairs has calculated that an independent Scotland would inherit around £110 billion of the national debt. As part of the UK, Scotland receives a higher percentage of public spending per capita than England; those defending Scottish independence claim high public spending could be sustained by profits from North Sea oil, but production is at its lowest levels for years and oil revenues are forecast to fall dramatically over coming years.

A decision for independence would bring about huge problems not only for Scotland but for the reminder of the UK. The UK’s fragile economy would not withstand the uncertainty that complex negotiations over separation would inevitably lead to. Lengthy legal battles over assets such as oil would likely plague the two separating nations, undermining confidence in both economies. Both Scotland and the rest of the UK would lose influence on the world stage. At a time of instability in the Middle East, both countries’ defence programmes would be thrown into chaos.

In a likely referendum on independence, I hope that the people of Scotland base their decision not on historic tensions, but on the economic realities of their country’s future.