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Scotland Unveils ‘Landmark Document’ on Independence From Britain Scotland Unveils ‘Landmark Document’ on Independence from Britain
(about 1 hour later)
LONDON — The Scottish government unveiled what it called a “landmark document” on Tuesday on its plan to seek independence from Britain in a referendum next year that has stirred bitter opposition from many politicians in London. LONDON — Raising the stakes in its struggle for independence in advance of a referendum next year, the Scottish government on Tuesday unveiled a voluminous prospectus for a new state with its own embassies and identity, but retaining significant bonds to Britain including a common currency — the pound — and allegiance to Queen Elizabeth II as head of state.
Alex Salmond, Scotland’s first minister, said independence would lead to “constructive working together” with Britain, including a common currency — the British pound sterling — and recognition of Queen Elizabeth II. But Scotland would take a larger share of North Sea oil and would order the removal of British nuclear submarines from their current Scottish bases. The new nation would strike out on its own in defense and its relationship with Europe, expelling British nuclear submarines from their current Scottish bases and seeking separate membership inNATO and the 28-nation European Union.
The 670-page document was published two days after the Scottish authorities said that a “yes” vote in next September’s ballot would lead to independence on March 24, 2016 — a date commemorating key steps in the fusion of England and Scotland centuries ago. “Following a vote for independence we would make early agreement on the speediest safe removal of nuclear weapons a priority,” the 670-page document said.
Its publication, 10 months before a referendum on Sept. 18, seemed designed to encourage greater support among Scotland’s five million people, many of whom, according to opinion surveys, are undecided or opposed to independence — a step that would end more than 300 years of union reshape the political landscape north and south of the border with the rest of Britain.
The latest survey in The Sunday Times of London said 47 percent of Scottish voters were opposed to leaving the United Kingdom, 38 percent were in favor and 15 percent were undecided.
“If we vote no, Scotland stands still,” the document said. “A once-in-a-generation opportunity to follow a different path, and choose a new and better direction for our nation, is lost. Decisions about Scotland would remain in the hands of others.”“If we vote no, Scotland stands still,” the document said. “A once-in-a-generation opportunity to follow a different path, and choose a new and better direction for our nation, is lost. Decisions about Scotland would remain in the hands of others.”
But approval would mean that “the most important decisions about our economy and society will be taken by the people who care most about Scotland, that is by the people of Scotland.”But approval would mean that “the most important decisions about our economy and society will be taken by the people who care most about Scotland, that is by the people of Scotland.”
“The door will open to a new era for our nation. Scotland’s future will be in Scotland’s hands,” it said. “The door will open to a new era for our nation. Scotland’s future will be in Scotland’s hands,” it said. Scottish leaders have already said they want independence to come on March 24, 2016 — a historic date commemorating key steps in the fusion of England and Scotland centuries ago.
Danny Alexander, a senior figure at the British Treasury, has also said Scots would pay higher taxes in an independent Scotland to maintain public services. But Scottish authorities have responded by accusing the British government of squandering income from offshore oil reserves that could have brought greater prosperity. The drive for independence has been led by Alex Salmond, the head of the Scottish National Party that dominates the Scottish authority which has its own government and Parliament under longstanding constitutional measures to grant limited powers to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Scottish politicians have also spoken in favor of maintaining membership in the European Union, while Prime Minister David Cameron, a staunch opponent of Scottish independence, has promised a separate referendum on British’s membership of the 28-nation bloc if he wins the next election in 2015. Mr. Salmond called the proposal “a mission statement and a prospectus for the kind of country we should be and which this government believes we can be.”
The document published on Tuesday was called “Scotland’s future: Your guide to an independent Scotland.” “Our vision is of an independent Scotland regaining its place as an equal member of the family of nations. However, we do not seek independence as an end in itself, but rather as a means to changing Scotland for the better,” he told a ceremony in Glasgow to unveil the document.
Independence would end a union dating to 1707. The document said an independent Scotland — a proposal opposed by the major political parties in England — would retain the British pound in a “sterling zone” with other components of the United Kingdom. “The pound is Scotland’s currency just as much as it is the rest of the U.K.'s,” the document said.
That notion was immediately challenged by British politicians who said Scottish leaders could not simply assume that the government in London would agree.
By seeking to maintain the pound as a common currency, the Scottish authorities seemed to share an antipathy toward the euro, which Britain has long rejected. But while many Scots are seen as favoring membership in the European Union, Britain’s Conservatives, led by Prime Minister David Cameron, display a deep vein of euroskepticism.
Indeed, Mr. Cameron has promised a referendum on continued membership in the European Union if he wins the next election in 2015.
A key point of dispute between London and Edinburgh lies in the financial relationship between Scotland and Britain, with British officials arguing that Scots receive a proportionately greater share of tax revenues, while some Scotsaccuse British authorities of squandering North Sea oil revenues.
Both sides are seeking to convince Scots that their prosperity will depend on the way they vote in the referendum. Danny Alexander, a Scottish member of the British Parliament and a senior figure at the British Treasury, has said that Scots would pay higher taxes in an independent Scotland to maintain public services.
But the document on Tuesday — entitled “Scotland’s future: Your guide to an independent Scotland” — declared that “Scotland is a wealthy country and can more than afford to be independent.”
“Our public finances have consistently been healthier than those elsewhere in the U.K., giving us a strong platform upon which to build economic success,” it said.
The document went into some detail to answer 650 questions about the nature of an independent state.
“On independence in 2016 Her Majesty the Queen will be head of state,” it said. A new Scottish Broadcasting Service would replace the British Broadcasting Corporation, but some programs with a strong following, including the East Enders soap opera and the Strictly Come Dancing contest, would continue to be broadcast.