Peter Jones: Independence or the pound - which?. The Scotsman by Peter Jones

WHEN POLITICIANS accuse each other of desperation and panic, I tend not to listen, reckoning that it is the usual campaign hyperbole that tries to turn a minor slip of the tongue into a monumental credibility-destroying gaffe.

But I begin to think that it is an accusation that can be fairly levelled at Alex Salmond over the currency issue in this referendum.

There are certain tools that can be used to make the political equivalent of a clinical diagnosis of desperation. One is whether the arguments being used to shore up a position that has come under attack are robust or fatuous. And Mr Salmond is now making claims which, under any serious inspection, are complete nonsense.

In an article in a Sunday newspaper, he wrote that Labour leader Ed Miliband’s “hasty gambit to include a block on Scotland’s continued use of the pound in Labour’s next Westminster manifesto” would be “saying to Scots ‘I will defy the sovereign wish of the people in a referendum’”.

On umpteen grounds, this is gibberish. Actually, the only sovereign wish that will be expressed in the referendum will be the answer to the question: “Should Scotland be an independent country?” If it is Yes, the sovereign will of the people will be that Scotland becomes independent.

If Mr Miliband said he would prevent Scotland from becoming independent, then that would certainly defy Scotland’s sovereign will. But he isn’t saying that at all. He is saying that Scotland can be an independent country if that’s what people want, but they won’t get a sterling currency union.

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Further Reading:

Beyond the Scottish Independence Question, Looking at a Greater Devolution in The United Kingdom, A Perspective,

Promise of £348m shipyard contract for No vote

Independence issues: Financial, economy & currency

Discipleship is the Key, Thought for the Day

"Key to the mission of the Church is not “evangelism” but discipleship. We are not to evangelize and colonize the world, but to influence our neighbors, co-workers, and relatives in such a way that they pattern their life and lifestyle after Jesus. Our goal as the presence of Jesus in the world is to influence people to follow Him as Messiah, Rescuer, and Restorer. Of course, in this process we will proclaim, explain, and bear witness to the amazing, (un)offensive news that is found in Jesus and His teachings. The mission of the ekklesia, though, is to step into people’s lives and show them a better way of living and being human through Jesus. We are not simply to talk at them about their sin, Jesus’ death and resurrection, and possible heavenly bliss (or other place) after they die." Jeremy Bouma

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Number of Scottish people who described themselves as British on the increase as campaign for independence turns off voters. Daily Mail

  Survey finds number of people saying they are British has increased to 23%

  The Scottish Social Attitudes study revealed that the figure was 15% in 2011

  Those who describe themselves as Scottish has dropped from 75 to 65% 

  Figures come five weeks before Scottish independence vote in September 

More people in Scotland are describing themselves as British - and fewer as Scottish - as the campaign for independence turns off voters.

The Scottish Social Attitudes survey found that the number of people who say they are British has increased from 15 per cent in 2011 to 23 per cent, while those who say they are Scottish has dropped from 75 to 65 per cent.

The rekindling of a sense of British identity is the latest blow to Alex Salmond’s independence bid, just five weeks before the referendum on September 18.

It appears to be most pronounced in women, just 27 per cent of whom back separation, compared to 39 per cent of men. This 12 point gap between the sexes is double that of 2013.

The First Minister was routed in a TV debate against former chancellor Alistair Darling last Tuesday and has been struggling to turn around opinion polls that predict Scots will vote against breaking up the UK.

When respondents to the survey were presented with a range of options from ‘Scottish, not British’ to ‘British, not Scottish’, the most popular choice was ‘equally Scottish and British’ (32 per cent) – its highest level since 1999.

The number of people who said they were ‘British, not Scottish’, fell to 23 per cent, its lowest level in 15 years.

The annual survey of 1,339 people saw a small increase in support for independence in the last year, from 36 per cent to 39 per cent, but revealed growing anxiety about how a Yes vote would affect Scotland..

Some 38 per cent fear its voice in world would be weaker – up from a quarter in 2013 and 22 per cent in 2012.

While 44 per cent believe the economy would be worse – up from 34 per cent in both 2013 and 2012.

Mr Salmond’s blokeish attitude has been widely cited as a reason that women have been put off voting for independence.

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Further Reading

Beyond the Scottish Independence Question, Looking at a Greater Devolution in The United Kingdom, A Perspective,

British security on alert as migrants aim to ‘live like a king’ in the UK, Daily Express

 More than 2,000 people are now crowded in, most of them ­desperate to reach the UK.

Meanwhile, the deputy mayor of the port wants the French border moved to Dover for one month – to make the British understand the sheer scale of the problem faced by his town every day.

There is such alarm at the growing numbers of migrants using ­Calais as a base to make a bolt across the Channel that a Home Office source said “physical security has been increased and beefed up”.

The tent city is home to those from countries including Syria, Sudan, Iran, Afghanistan, Eritrea, and Ethiopia.

Many fight to stow away on lorries bound for Britain each night. French officials say the town is overrun because the UK is a land where the penniless could “live like kings”.

The word about easy-to-obtain benefits and “paradise” conditions for migrant families has spread to the world’s poorest countries. It is estimated there have been 12,000 attempts to cross the UK border via Calais in the past year.

The lure of a new life across the Channel has seen families live in unimaginable squalor at the camp in woods near the port. Numbers are swelling by the day.

“Why is England so attractive for migrants? In their original countries people are saying that if you go to England you will have everything – a house, money, a job; your family will be able to join you. Right or wrong, it is what is said. They might leave with three pounds but, when they arrive in England they can make £50-a-week on the black market, so they are happy – they are kings.

“The bottleneck here is caused because England is too attractive, too easy. They have nothing to lose – except their lives.”

Inside the camp, men, women and malnourished children live on top of each other in tarpaulin tents with no running water.

The clamour for the front of the queue when the nightly scramble begins to sneak on to lorries bound for England means violent clashes often erupt.

Comment:

We need to secure our borders, and if people want to come and live here, they must be willing to work and integrate into society, rather than expecting a life of freebies

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