The Jock vote

[Farjo]

"three separate referenda in Shetland, Orkney, and the Western Isles" Well that's just poor English, no wonder they closed it.

Will an independent Scotland be allowed to keep the English language? Will they be seeking a representative on the Oxford English Dictionary committee?


But back to Locksmith's original question, how will an IndScot affect him...
There's dire predictions that independent Scotland would go into a depression, which would mean much economic migration from Scotland to SE England - more overcrowding, higher prices, etc. Of course that's only if you believe the predictions.

If Scots vote Yes and are no longer part of the EU (you have to believe that one too) then Dave could kick the Scots out of England and meet his "Net migration back to the tens of thousands" promise. I wonder how many Scots there are in London, compared with eastern Europeans?

There's also been comment that after a Yes result the UK's place in the world will be diminished (can't see why losing 5 million people would do that mind). So if there's a Yes vote and Dave wins in May then his renegotiation of our relationship with the EU would be from a weaker position and he would be able to get fewer and weaker changes. The people that Dave will be negotiating with will no doubt have seen how he has caved in under pressure during this campaign and will likely give up less during any EU renegotiations. Therefore he would be less likely to persuade the voters to remain in the EU come 2017.

There was some comment that a successful No campaign would see Alistair Darling appointed as Shadow Chancellor, replacing Ed Balls. Well he's probably cocked that one up already but a Yes vote will definitely see Balls staying. Given that Labour seem likely to win in May a Yes vote means Ed Balls for Chancellor of the Exchequer for us.

And a Yes vote would mean protracted negotiations between Scotland and the rest of the UK. This would naturally take a lot of politicians' time so they would be less involved day-to-day affairs. Whether you think this is a good or bad thing is of course your own opinion.