Do you think the English, if given a vote, would vote for independence from the rest of the UK?

[Kendodd]

Yabu - No they wouldn't
Yanbu - Yes they would

The break up of the UK seems high chance to me, maybe 60/40 to be voted for within the next ten years. They don't ever seem to ask the English what would you personally vote?

It doesn't bother me either way. Doesn't effect me at all in my daily life here in the South West of England. I suppose given my 'previous life' of being married to a royal marine, knowing how important Scotland is to the defence structure of the UK, I'd be verging towards keeping the union.

'Important' as in being far enough away from the well-populated and 'desirable' bits of England to 'safely' park nuclear weapons?

"in this way"

Cant you still have the sewing bee based on geographically still being in the British isles? Like we are presumably still in the Eurovision Song Contest?

How do you suppose Wales could afford it as an independent country?

This is worth a read:

www.yes.cymru/booklet-5

Far smaller and less economically powerful countries have declared their independence from the UK. None have asked to go back.

These haters are happy to receive free prescriptions which we wouldn't have if we were independent from England

The reason we have free prescriptions is because health is a devolved issue. Wales made that decision all by itself.

I'd vote for London's independence. We'd take our $650bn GDP (double Scotland and Wales together) and rejoin the EU.

I'm mostly joking btw.

@Stripesnomore

Cant you still have the sewing bee based on geographically still being in the British isles? Like we are presumably still in the Eurovision Song Contest?

I'm now actually pro independence for any part of the UK if as a result we don't have to enter it any more!

Boom bang a bang being an expression of English imperialism etc

No I but I think it's extremely unfair that the other nations get a separate parliament but we still have to abide by Westminster for everything.

Reading some of the anti Scottish, Welsh and NI comments on this thread I really wish they would!

@Timpeall

I do find it ironic though that those that want independence for Scotland, would rather be governed by the EU....

I see this comment a lot.

A majority of Scottish voters want to be part of the EU.

I'd certainly take adhering to EU law any day of the week over being ruled by an increasingly right wing England.

And that’s your choice and I respect that. I do believe that Westminster give Scotland more money to do as they wish, then they receive from Scottish taxes and the like.

soar Alba 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 😃

Yes!

Its coming :)

I meant to put though at the end of that sentence

@ThinkAboutItTomorrow

I appreciate the jest but be careful was you inadvertently "wish" for as perhaps even us Londoners see big internal differences not just east and west and north or south but also core central and greater outer London.

If Westminster is financially positively disproportionately supporting the provinces why the disagreements and dare I suggest - some antagonism for legal divisions rather than united diversity and one more mutually powerful United Kingdom? The devolved regional administrations have the power to spend the UK (mostly London created I assume if data is correct) wealth distribution as they see fit.

It's an interesting question, Northern English here, married to a Scot. If a referendum were held tomorrow on England breaking away from the Union I'd probably vote no because it would do nothing for the North and frankly I think any independent England would be insular, right wing and still Westminster dominated.

What I'd really like to see is the Union stay together but with a proper federal system which allows strong government in each nation but also strong government in the English regions with a much smaller Westminster Government to oversee truly national stuff such as defence, foreign affairs etc.

The North East rejected a regional assembly a few years ago because what was on offer was a white elephant talking shop. If the offer was revisited (maybe with a slightly bigger geographic spread) with genuine power and regional Government, I'd vote for it.

@TheSandman I meant that they have a unit up there and from a logistical perspective I don't know how the military would work, would Scotland have their own armed forces etc. We have Plymouth which could easily house the nuclear weapons. It was just a musing really as I try not to get too involved in the armed forces side of things these days since I don't have to any more (3 years divorced from my ex and his job 😂)

@ResIpsaLoquiturInterAlia

Well yes I'm keen on devolution for my patch of London and our per capita gdp the size of Monaco...but I take the point we can't always fragment until there's the nation state of Knightsbridge



I wouldn't vote for it, but England would be better off economically without Scotland or Northern Ireland. Fact.

@ThinkAboutItTomorrow I'm sure if London went independent the rest of us could think of ways to relieve you of a lot of your GDP for small stuff like power, water and, oh yes, food

@ThinkAboutItTomorrow

Indeed I'm more thinking along the lines of Mayfair, Belgravia, Battersea, Chelsea, Knightsbridge, Holland Park, Marylebone, Regents Park, Primrose Hill, Hampstead Health, West End, City, Canary Wharf and Richmond. This is the London where it is at! And yes I can be located high above within this super zone. I always thought post Brexit we (London) could be a Switzerland, Monaco, Luxembourg or Panama etc. We in the City are good at numbers and facilitating many sophisticated financial instruments and legal structures. Just need some pass-porting rights and then we can beat New York as a global hub as we play along on both USA and PRC sides as well as Gulf sovereign wealth funds, Russian and African financial servicing etc. Our spin off financial tech, bio tech and engineering is top notch too. All together we have the skills and expertise local to London to support the provinces to create a distribution of wealth with the northern power house etc and new green technology and advance energy projects.

I wouldn't, but given the amount of people who have replied "white English" when I've asked their ethnicity recently, I can imagine plenty would

What is meant by this comment??
Are English people not allowed to say they're English? Like the Scots, Welsh, Irish do?
And what's colour got to do with anything?!

No. Unless you're a Tory, we don't want independence. #Toryscum

Legsit? LostIt.

All together we have the skills and expertise local to London to support the provinces to create a distribution of wealth

Nine out of ten of the poorest areas in Northern Europe are in the UK, with West Wales being the poorest. The UK has the biggest gap between rich and poor of any country in the EU. It's lovely that London has skills and expertise, jolly well done, London. But when should we expect the distribution of wealth to those of us in "the provinces"?

I think it's now time for England to get rid of Scotland, and Wales too if the Welsh keep moaning like the Scots.

Let them get on with it- and no more money from England.

I think there is more of a separatist attitude amongst all of the constituent nations of the UK lately, yes.