25 July 2012. PenzaNews. International observers continue to discuss the political situation in Scotland, where the debate on the country’s separation from the United Kingdom is picking up again. The idea of sovereignty has become a widely promoted after the Scottish National Party won the parliamentary elections in 2007 (for the first time in 50 years). Now there are two public campaigns launched in Edinburgh: Yes Scotland initiated by the pro-independence nationalists, and Better Together which is supported by the Lib Dems, Labour and the Conservatives and aimed to keep Scotland within the UK.

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According to the supporters of the territorial integrity, sovereignty of Scotland will bring more problems than prospects for the development of the country, however, their opponents believe that the country should be governed by the people who are interested in its prosperity, the Scots.

Thus, according to Mike Small, Spokesperson of Scottish Independence Convention, the people who live in a country should decide its laws and frame its institutions.

“We currently see the resources of oil based in Scottish waters flood to London to prop up a government we did not elect,” he said in an interview with news agency “PenzaNews.”

Kenneth Gibson, a Scottish National Party politician and Member of the Scottish Parliament shares this opinion.

“The people of Scotland have the greatest stake in making our nation a success. Today we have a Tory Government in Westminster that Scotland did not vote for and yet that Government is able to take decisions that cause real harm in Scotland,” the politician said.

According to him, independent Scotland is a positive way forward.

“We can work to make our economy more competitive and attract more business to Scotland. A reduction of just 3% in corporation tax will create as many as 27 thousand new jobs. We have the people, resources and ingenuity to prosper. We should be asking, why Scotland is not doing better, given all the natural and human wealth we enjoy,” the MSP said.

However, former UK chancellor, Labour MP Alistair Darling who launched the Better Together Campaign positively assesses the partnership of Scotland and the UK.

“We have a Scottish Parliament with real decision making powers and a key role in a strong and secure United Kingdom,” he said and added that it would be artificial to create separate states within the small island.

According to the politician, independence is an inadequate response to the difficulties that the country has to face.

“All the problems of a currency union are laid bare in Europe. We need more growth, more jobs and a more prosperous Scotland. These are the issues that Scotland should be focusing on. The last things we need are the new areas of uncertainty, instability and division that separation will involve,” Alistair Darling stated.

He also reminded that the UK became the world’s most successful single market and stressed that Scotland traded more with England than with all other countries in the world combined. Furthermore, the United Kingdom is a country with unique influence – in the EU, in the Commonwealth and in the G20 group of the world’s most powerful economies.

“As part of the UK, we have real clout in the UN Security Council, NATO, the IMF and the EU. Scotland’s future, our future and our families’ future will be economically, politically, and socially stronger as a partner in the United Kingdom,” Alistair Darling said.

International experts differ in opinion on possible consequences of Scottish independence as well.

Lewis James Brown, Digital Communications Manager at the Centre for Policy Studies believes that independence for Scotland would provide very few benefits at a very large cost.

“While some passionately believe in the cause of an independent Scotland and see it as the most important consideration, there is no doubt that economically Scotland would face harsh choices once it gained independence. Scotland has a huge gap between spending and taxes raised, and under the SNP government’s own figures would have faced a 14 billion pounds Sterling finance hole in 2010 without UK-wide taxpayer subsidy,” the expert emphasized.

Moreover, from the analyst’s point of view, Scotland’s impact on the world stage as a member of the United Kingdom is considerable, but as a tiny independent nation, this would undoubtedly be reduced, he said.

“Alex Salmond’s administration has also indicated that an independent Scotland would remain part of the EU and could retain the pound as its currency. Both of these stances question the legitimacy of an “independent Scotland,” Lewis James Brown noted.

In his opinion, Scotland could be forced to join the Eurozone, if it is unable to remain in Sterling. And with on-going measures to integrate Eurozone economies, this, according to him, would again raise questions about Scotland’s political and financial independence.

“Contributing to the spending problems would be the need to provide defence and security measures as these are not provided by the Scottish Government at present,” the expert said.

Meanwhile, Rodney Barker, Emeritus Professor of Government at London School of Economics and Political Science believes that the success of independent Scotland will depend on the policies followed by the Scottish government.

“Disentanglement from the nuclear weapons policy of the London government, development of gas, oil and water resources for greater Scottish benefit, could benefit the people of Scotland; and it could also benefit England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, by providing examples of different policies on education, economy, transport, or health,” the analyst said and added that a more insular, nationalistic, and less plural culture, however, could diminish the quality of life.

In the meantime, Research Fellow of the European Council on Foreign Relations Nicu Popescu noted that even in Scotland there is no clear understanding of what benefits the independence could provide to the country.

“The majority of Scots will decide the question of independence not guided by ideological principles but by economic calculations, which are still not clear as it is not evident that the decision is favorable from a financial point of view,” the analyst said.

According to him, the opinion of Scots will largely depend on the situation in Europe and on how the EU will deal with the crisis.

“Until recently, the activists standing for the independence of Scotland wanted to enter the Eurozone. But now the situation with the euro is so unstable that this prospect is not very attractive,” explained Nicu Popescu.

However, even in case of separation, the independence, he said, would not be complete but only partial and would not lead to a “breach, tangible to the population.”

“There will be free movement of people between Scotland and the rest of the UK, probably, there will even be no border control. Maybe Scotland will remain in the British Commonwealth, and, hence, the Queen will remain the head of the state,” the expert said.

In turn, Dr Madsen Pirie, President of the Adam Smith Institute, believes that Scottish independence would bring some benefit to the country.

“The Scots could choose to make it business-friendly by lowering corporation tax and capita gains tax. They could seek to attract investment by offering tax holidays to newly investing companies,” he stated.

However, Dr Madsen Pirie outlined a number of negative consequences, including the loss of the annual subsidy from taxpayers in England and Wales. Thus, the Scottish government would have to cut its expenses to take account of this, he said.

“Moreover, Scotland might not be immediately admitted to the EU as an independent country, but might have to renegotiate entry,” said the President of the Adam Smith Institute and added that Scotland would have no control over its currency if it chose to retain Sterling.

The analyst also suggested that in a vote within the next couple of years, Scots would vote not for total independence, but for much greater power to be repatriated to Scotland. This, according to him, will give them control over most policy within Scotland, while keeping them within the UK for foreign policy and defence.

“A few years further on from this, there will be calls for full independence, and the Scots will by then be used to running their own affairs and might well say yes,” Dr Madsen Pirie concluded.

Scotland became part of the United Kingdom in 1707. To date, it has the greatest degree of autonomy of the countries included in the UK: it has its own Parliament, Scots Law and the Church of Scotland.

The Scottish Government intends to hold a referendum on the issue of independence from the United Kingdom in the autumn of 2014.