To wonder how you're voting in the Scottish Referendum and why?

[deeedeee]

a month away from the vote thought it would be interesting to ask

( no bunfighting , derision or soundbites please. just yes or no and why. feel free to post more than once with different reasons. No links unless independent fact or opinion, nothing from the official campaigns)

I'm a YES

because Westminster's failed to protect the vunerable and the UK's me first politics have taken us down a particularly nasty path. An independent Scotland leans towards to left and can potentially choose a better route. And if a change happens in scotland then I think that that could inspire a change in the direction of politics in the rest of the UK.

Phaedra I'm not a Nationalist, and I don't see myself as whining for wanting what I think will be a better future for the country, fair enough if you think the opposite. I'm sorry that some "Nats" have bullied you but it's not a reason to tar all Yes voters with the same brush.
I don't feel national pride purely because I'm not fiercely proud of the country simply because I was born here - I just want the best for where I live. And I do realise that that clashes with what others think is best, and that's okay. The vote will decide it for us, in the end.

How exactly would damaging their financial credibility in such a way help an independent Scotland?

iScotland has been widely predicted to be richer than rUK (14th richest country, as opposed to rUK being 18th). Our predicted credit rating is AAA. Scotland isn't a poor country, and oil revenue is not the staple of the economy, just a bonus.

Snapespotions I don't see the problem with Scotland keeping the Pound, but if rUK wanted a vote on a CU, fair enough. I know I might be jumped on for this, but there are benefits for both iScotland and rUK in a CU.

I have no issue at all with iScotland keeping the pound, if that's what they wish to do, but forcing rUK into a currency union is a different matter. It may indeed have benefits for both countries, but the pros and cons would need to be discussed and decided by the people of rUK as well as Scotland. At the moment, it does rather come across as though the SNP wants to force us into it by threatening not to take a fair share of the debt.

As others have said, I doubt they would actually carry out that threat though, as the damage to Scotland's credit rating probably wouldn't be worth it.

NCforAye - as a naturalised British citizen, I didn't realise I could be stripped of my citizenship! Must check out the implications.

chocoluvva - one of the reasons why the SNP left it 3 years is that they had always said during the election campaign that if elected they would hold a referendum in the second half of the parliament. although there again, perhaps we aren't used to politicians following through on election promises

Snape- England exports a lot to Scotland. RUK not agreeing to a currency union would be cutting off their nose to spite their face. Refusing a union would risk hundreds of thousands of rUK jobs.

Maybe, but I would rather do the research and have an opportunity to decide on this for myself, than be dictated to be Alex Salmond. I respect the democratic rights of Scottish people to determine their own future, but equally, I expect them to respect my democratic rights too.

There are quite significant issues with a currency union for rUK, given that the relative size mean they could bail out Scotland, whereas Scotland wouldn't be able to bail them out due to the size difference. It has advantages undoubtedly, but it also has pretty considerable downsides.

All that may or may not be so, Numanoid - but I think you'll find that the financiers will make their own minds up, and their decisions (and Scotland's future credit rating) might not be so favourable if they don't like the decisions reached. Such people care nothing for nationalist sentiment; they care only about the bottom line, and will act very quickly if they consider it threatened

Apparently Alex Salmond has spoken about ringfencing money from oil revenues to create a Norwegian-style sovereign fund as security for the future, which sounds great in itself. Trouble is, there will be very many calls on that money, and whether his grandiose plans can actually be made to work is something we don't yet know

prettybird www.yesscotland.net/answers/who-will-be-eligible-scottish-citizenship-independence-and-future

Puzzledandpissedoff I will try to track it down, but I saw some analysis which had been done costing out the white paper pledges (only some of them) and the general conclusion was that even once things like contribution to Trident were taken out of the equation they would amount to a significant increase in public spending i.e. there's no way they could ringfence the oil revenues unless they significantly increased taxes too

Snape - here is some information on the currency union and rUK jobs. It is from business for Scotland not Alex Salmond.

Puzzled- Scotland's economic standing is currently damaged by the reckless policies of Westminster governments who have been too cosy with the city of London.

Thanks weatherall, I'll read it. My point is, I think the people of rUK should have as much input into the decisions over a currency union as the people of Scotland. It affects all of us.

Numanoid - I know I'm eligible for Scottish citizenship if Scotland votes Yes, I'm just a bit concerned that I could be stripped of my British citizenship. Having just checked it out though, as a law-abiding citizen, I should be safe :)

Have just realised that Business for Scotland is a pro-independence political organisation, so perhaps not the best source of neutral information about what would be in the best interests of rUK. But thanks anyway.

Ah I get you, that's good though. :)

I am a 'no' vote - a decision taken by both my head and my heart.

Heart: I have never 'got' nationalism, I wish we had less countries, not more, then maybe we wouldn't keep fighting each other.

I don't think being Scots makes me any better or different just because I was born on one side of an arbitrary, man made, line on a map. I have more in common with any working mother in England than a Scots laird, so why lump me with them on the spurious basis of 'nationality'.

We are one wee island, I don't see why we should want to split ourselves up and I actually find the idea of being a different nationality to my English relatives very upsetting - how dare politicians divide my family like that?!

Head - it does not make economic sense, jobs will go and I have to prioritise the current younger generations future over some promised 'jam tomorrow'.

SNP have been a destructive force in parliament, they have significantly damaged the college sector and taken away the life chances of some of those furthest from the job market. On that basis, I don't see Holyrood as any better or more caring than Westminster.

It would be a colossal waste money to build up a whole new infrastructure for a new country that would just mean more jobs for the boys.

So that is my view - head and heart I think that we are better together.

Fanny
I see Nobel prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz, has similar opinions to mine re the No camp.

Of course he is. He's paid by Alex Salmond.
There are many other experts, with no financial interest in the campaign, who think very differently and wonder where iScot will get the money needed to meet all their promises.

I'd be interested to see that, StatisticallyChallenged, since for me that's the whole point - there can only ever be so much money to go round, and in the absence of real facts from the wretched politicians, we're left wih an awful lot of wishful thinking, claim and counter-claim

Weatherall - if that's truly the case then no doubt Scotland really could prosper on its own. Trouble is, blaming Westminster would be less of an option after a split (though no doubt many would try it) and the realities of it all became obvious

Of course that's also an issue with CU, since some believe that Scotland only want to keep it in the hope of future bail-outs if things go wrong. I'm doing my best not to become one of them, but given Alex Salmond's attitudes, it's sometimes very difficult not to agree

in the absence of real facts from the wretched politicians, we're left wih an awful lot of wishful thinking, claim and counter-claim

That's certainly how it comes across to me, puzzled. I'm glad I don't have a vote, as I think it would be hard to wade through all the propaganda on both sides tbh!

prettybird

Sorry, I didn't phrase that well at all! What I was trying to say was that there was no legal situation in which a born British citizen could be stripped of their citizenship, but that there has recently been legislation to make it possible for the Home Office to strip a naturalised citizen of their citizenship if they are deemed a "threat" to Britain. However, I do not think even Mrs May would get away with defining living in Scotland as being a threat to Britain!

(It's one of those pieces of legislation they've justified with nods to terrorists and criminals etc, but I worry about the vagueness of the definition...)

As a naturalised citizen your only concern might be your original citizenship allowing 3 nationalities of you wanted to become Scottish. Sorry again for my badly-phrased comment!

Oh absolutely, Snapespotions. There's so much mince talked on both sides and too many people are all to eager to leap on whatever biased piece of "information" suits their needs - from policitians to my friends and family.

I've ended up trusting nobody but going with what my head tells me. This leap of faith/utopian dream/it'll all be fine stuff that keeps getting trotted out makes me shrivel up inside a little more each time I hear it.....and when I look for facts, they either don't exist or the original source of them is suspect.

I never been so genuinely afraid of an "election" result in my 40+ years in this country , or of the aftermath.

whattheseithakasmean

You won't be a different nationality from your family - you'll keep British citizenship and have the choice whether or not to take Scottish. I know that wasn't your main reason for saying "No" and I'm not trying to change your mind, but that's one thing not to worry about in the case of a Yes vote.

Part of my journey towards a "Yes" vote has had to do with the Westminster take on family immigration, which really does involve politicians actually, physically splitting loving families up.

Same here Tilliebob. It scares me too - not because I'm a fearful selfish wimp but because there is potential for very significant problems!

YYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I Have never been so genuinely afraid of an "election" result in my 40+ years in this country , or of the aftermath.

Me too and I am a Labour voter who is old enough to have voted Labour in all the elections Thatcher won. Nothing about her scared me the way Salmond does.