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Should Scotland Become Independent?

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Scottish Referendum

Should Scotland become independent?

The fight for Scottish independence grows ever more intense as the referendum looms over us all, with less than a week to go it seems neck and neck which makes this unravelling drama ever more exciting, but the question still remains, will Scotland get its long awaited independence? The possibility of a YES and a NO vote are level and this essay will look at the arguments for and against Scottish independence.
Say Scotland do get there independence, what does that mean for them and for the rest of the UK. Firstly for Scotland it would mean taking full responsibility by moving all governing powers to Scottish soil. This is a huge benefit for the Scottish people because their votes for their general election will be valued more due to the fact that the new government will be more focused on the needs and requirements of the Scottish people, not the divided needs of the UK public. Another benefit for Scotland if the YES vote was to go ahead is that they will no longer have to build nuclear power stations and instead could spend that money elsewhere, for example education, this optimises their opportunity cost as well. Sticking to the topic of energy, Scotland will keep 90% of the oil from the oil reserves in the North Sea which could financially boost Scotland’s economy and trade with other nations. These points just prove that Scotland has the resources and finances to carry themselves forward as an independent nation. The Scottish people have however had to believe in their first minister, Alex Salmond, in the promises he has made. Voting YES means believing in the creation of more jobs, believing in the benefits for Scotland and yourself as an individual, believing in equal wages, believing the Scotland and England have opposite political and social views and understanding and believing that a NO vote will lead to changes for the worst.
However, Mr.Salmonds arch rival, Alistair Darling has some very strong arguments against Scottish independence. If Scotland were to leave the UK it would leave a lot more responsibilities for the government at Westminster. If Scotland do leave the UK they will disarm all nuclear weapons and will spend the money elsewhere, such as helping people in need through benefits, this means that Scotland will be defenceless to any attack from any well-equipped country. The Scottish oil reserves benefits us all in the UK, so if Scotland were to leave with the most of the oil resources it would look like that they are under a greedy ruler of Alex Salmond. What Scotland’s biggest worry is, is what currency they are going to use, the pound is a huge doubt and the euro is very unstable and isn’t looked very well upon by the Scots due to its instability. Scotland will also not be supported by the EU, this is because the UK may pull out of the EU due to the fact the UK don’t make back what they initially invested in the EU, therefore the EU won’t be looking to support Scotland when in crisis. 50% of the people believe that Scotland and the UK are better off together rather than going their separate ways.
Overall I believe that there will be a NO vote due to the many economic uncertainties, for example, Alex Salmond said that the oil reserves are worth £24bn, however almost every economist has claimed that this is a wrong value and in fact it is off by 30% meaning it is actually worth £18bn, now £6bn may not seem a lot for a country whose economic wealth is huge, but for Scotland it can be a huge amount, plus this wrong figure can lead to people thinking that Alex is simply making up figures to try and lure in the Scottish public to vote YES, for which he has now (apparently) has been warned for. To summaries I believe it’ll be a NO vote due to all the uncertainties that dangle above the Scottish people’s heads. “The Scottish independence has been a success for British democracy”
How far do you agree with this statement?
There will be some success for British democracy if Scotland do become independent, one of the main benefits that the British will have is that a person’s vote will be valued more due to the fact there will be less people voting because Scotland is no longer apart of the UK. Power to the people is a key theme that will play a large role in both Britain and Scotland; their democracy will gain strength because the people will have more power over the politics that affects them, this is made possible because Scotland will have their own government so they will independently focus only on the requirements of their people. This overall would be better because Westminster will now have slightly less pressure on their shoulders when having to manage Scotland because Scotland will have their own government.
However the downside for British democracy if Scotland become independence is that the current Prime Minister, David Cameron, may have to step down or resign due to his party’s political beliefs. If the Prime Minister does step down it will lead to a re-election. Secondly the economic impact can be hugely negative as we can already see, companies are pulling out of Scotland due to the uncertainty of whether Scotland will in fact become independent or not, and if it does they will all move south to England.

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