Scottish Referendum debate: Alistair Darling and Alex Salmond, Wednesday September 10th, 1.45-2.45pm

[JustineMumsnet]

Hi all,

We're delighted to announce that Alex Salmond and Alistair Darling will both be joining us on Mumsnet this Wednesday at 1.45pm, to take part in a live debate in the lead-up to the Scottish Referendum on September 18th.

The decision with which Scottish voters are faced this month constitutes a significant moment in the history - and future - of Scotland and the UK. And with polls currently predicting a result that's too close to call, this final showdown between the two leaders could potentially prove decisive.

The debate will be conducted along typical Mumsnet webchat lines, but with each guest free to question and respond to the answers of the other. We know the referendum has been a topic of serious discussion on the site (we're currently on IndyRef thread number seven - and counting ...) so in order to ensure that the leaders answer your questions, we're restricting the ability to post to Mumsnetters who'd been members of the site for more than 24 hours before the launch of this thread. Otherwise, the usual guidelines apply.

Please join us on Wednesday at 1.45pm - and if you can't make it then, as ever, do post up any comments or questions in advance.

And one more question Mr Salmond - I have just seen another NO sign vandalised - when are you going to call off your Rent a Mob Mr Salmond and accept that we live in a Democracy? And if you do happen to secure a Yes vote, are you going to allow free speech? After all if the polls are anything to go by, you won't have the support of half the country? My heart bleeds for my country as you seem to have managed to drag it down in this last year of campaigning. You should be ashamed.

That's ridiculous, there was a yes shop in Edinburgh covered in swastikas this morning, people hardly expect Alistair Darling to accept responsibility.

Does the visit of Cameron, Clegg and Miliband to Scotland demonstrate a huge lack of self-awareness on Westminster's part?

According to independent Institute of Fiscal studies, Scotland is likely to face bigger cuts after independence if it's to balance the books. Mr Salmond, you've been running on "save public services" ticket that implies higher public spending. But you're not going to be able to raise public spending are you?

According to polls, the result looks close to 50:50. I'd like to ask both of you if this huge division in Scottish public opinion demonstrates without a doubt that the idea of "Scotland always getting the government it votes for under independence" is meaningless nonsense?

Almost half of Scotland won't even be living in the country it wants to after the referendum. 'Scotland' is not a homogeneous group with a single opinion. Unless Alex is proposing Scotland should become a one-party state, an independent Scotland, individual areas of Scotland and individuals will have governments they don't vote for - just as democracy works everywhere else.

Politics is generally about ideas, not geography. The ordinary worker in Glasgow has more in common with the ordinary worker in Liverpool or Cardiff than bankers in Edinburgh or highly paid oil industry managers in Aberdeen. Why not work with others who share our values across the UK to see the changes we need?

(There's so much else I'd like to say, mainly about how I'm disappointed that the proposals for indScotland are more about winning the vote out of those who are reluctant to vote yes, rather than making sure that if the vote does go 'yes' that we end up with the best proposals for the new country (on everything from the oft discussed currency, to the neglected issue of an elected second chamber at Holyrood) but one poster, one question...).

I'm not sure what bad tempered, discriminatory, divisive campaigns anyone else is involved in, but it's not what I'm seeing when I am out volunteering for Yes. Everyone bar a few token butters has been polite and well mannered, even when they're disagreeing with me. In the hundreds of people I've spoken to in person, not one has said they think the referendum is divisive. That's a comment I've only seen on socia media.

Hi Clarinshobbs - we can only allow one question per poster, as previously stated.

Mr Darling - who approved "The Woman Who Made Up Her Mind"? Were they draped in a Saltire and giggling at the time?

My question is for Alec Salmond. I'm a Scot married to an Englishman who currently serves in the Army. I live in Scotland with our children (we have three aged 8 and under and another on the way) while my husband commutes every other weekend from his current posting in Wiltshire.

In the event of a Yes vote (which I fervently hope is the outcome) we will inevitably have to move to England unless my husband can choose to transfer to the Scottish forces. Will he be eligible to do so, given that he is not Scottish and that he does not serve in a Scottish unit? He is in a specialist unit and feels that should Scotland vote yes, our family's future would be better served in Scotland but that would be impossible if he could not transfer.

Mr Darling- How can you guarantee more powers for Scotland when the unelected House of Lords can remove powers from the Scottish Parliament just as they did with amendment 54 of the Energy Bill last year, which allowed fracking in Scotland without the consent of the Scottish people?

I find it astounding that some posters are saying its Alex Salmond who has divided the country. What about the years of rule by Westminster. That's why SNP are so strong in Scotland because the Scots are sick of it. The poll tax, the bedroom tax, the lies over WMD, it goes on and on. The No campaign has been run on telling us we're too wee, too poor, too stupid. The rest of the UK has been told we cost more than we provide. England fans are on camera telling us to F off and vote Yes because of the lies you've all been told. It's not about not liking the English. I love my English, Welsh and Northern Irish friends. It's about Westminster and how it doesn't work for the Scottish people.

Anyway, I do have a question for our First Minister.

Thanks for all your hardwork for our country. My question is - My children were born outside the UK. They have British passports as do both myself and my DH. We are both Scottish born. Are my children entitled to Scottish passports?

Thats fine but please make sure you are asking a balanced number of questions from both camps.

Mr Salmond: Instead of hurling shouts of "bribery" at the No camp, what else have you got to offer us? Our votes are here to be won. Lots of questions unanswered - can we get manifestos from each of the Yes parties on what they would do in an independent Scotland?

Also, I read that in a cabinet paper from 2013, your own Finance Secretary John Swinney revealed fears at the heart of the Government about the state of the country's finances and the impact on public spending: www.heraldscotland.com/politics/referendum-news/leaked-paper-shows-snp-fears-over-cost-of-benefits.20368617 - without being patronising, dismissive or aggressive, can you reassure us now that these fears won't come to fruition and if you feel you can, what changed following Mr Swinney's report?

Mr Darling: After months of telling us we couldn't get more information on DevoMax, what else do you think the UK Government is holding back that we could be offered within the next week? Anything that can help in any small way to greater social justice across the UK (and beyond if it has that power of influence)?

I think we now all know the fears and risks associated with independence (and if you don't there are many sources) - instead of fears and risks, I'd like to see the messages of hope that staying in the Union can offer (without being defensive, pointy or shouty towards existing SNP lines...and without Mr Salmond butting in here). The current polls show that those who have defected to a yes are not doing so because of the risks, but because of simply being fed up with Westminster Neo Liberalism - what positive things can you say to them to convince them that the Union is the right way?

As someone who has been on the fence for so long, I'd like to see those politicians like yourselves, really show that you mean it when you believe in social justice for all. Show us that whatever we vote that we will not be repeating a Parcel of Rogues in a nation or united kingdom! We need to see someone from both camps spend the time to answer each and every legitimate question in detail - political posturing doesn't wash. I have learned so much more from friends and family on FB.

Mr Salmond: if you win this referendum by 51-49%, will you accept that the legitimacy of Scotland's independence will rest on very shaky foundations?

Oh and how do we deal with the separation anxiety of around 2.5 million people if we get independence? It's hard enough with one wee tot right now ;) But seriously, either way - there is going to need to be some significant diplomatic work to appease Scottish voters - would be great to hear both Mr Salmond and Mr Darling talk about how they think this can be achieved if the vote goes against them?

To both - were Scotland to vote yes, when you think about the Union, on a personal level what will you miss most?

Question to both

How will either an indpendent scotland or the union tackle the poblems of inequality.We are the 4th most unequal country in the world regarding wealth between rich and poor and the 8th most unequal of the EU countries in terms of the gender pay gap?

thank you

Apologies if these have already been asked upthread....

1. Why is it only people resident in Scotland who get a vote in the referendum? The results will affect the whole UK. Should not all UK residents get a vote?!! (I'm Welsh btw!)

2. Surely Alex Salmond's date of 2016 for all the details to be finalised by, in the case of a Yes result, is waaaay too ambitious?

3. What other examples are there from recent history of a smaller nation / region within another larger country getting independence by referendum (as opposed to war) when the the larger country and the smaller nation / region have had opposing views on their preferred outcome and have not just agreed to go their separate ways amicably?

4. Is it fair to say that the Scottish Government have attempted to engineer the result in favour of the Yes campaign by giving the vote to 16 year olds and anyone resident in Scotland, including many non-UK citizens? (My husband was born in Scotland, so was his Dad who lived there until his early 20s. Niether will have a vote as they now live in England, yet could still represent Scotland at sport. I find that odd??)

Gentlemen, thank you both for taking the time to speak to us today. My question is for Mr Darling. I am English, living in England with family living in Scotland. I understand why every party at Westminster is trying to save the Union but have the politicians forgotten that there are over 40million voters in England alone many of whom are not going to be happy paying out yet more of their taxes in a 'bribe' to get the Scots to vote No? Do all of you think that by offering a deal that changes what Scotland gets if they say part of the Union the rest of the UK is just going to say "oh great, it is worth every penny of my hard earned money just to have the Scots as part of a united country". Because if you do you are seriously misreading the mood south of the border.

I hope the Scots stay with us. Part of my family is Scottish. But I don't think more concessions should be offered by people I have elected and who don't have a remit from me to offer it. And there are rumblings that more people feel the same. If the vote is no, it is no and the status quo is maintained as far as we are concerned. There are poor kids in England, Wales and Northern Ireland (to take one of Mr Salmond's election pledges) and they need help to. Perhaps it is time to remember, and to remind the politicians across the parties, that those 40,000,000 voters in England alone are due to vote in a general election very, very soon Mr Darling and pledging extras to just one part of the country is really not a good idea, however well intentioned it may be.

So my question, hidden in my argument, is have the politicians currently pledging changes for a Scotland which remains in the UK actually thought about what the rest of the UK is prepared to put up with? Because if you renege on the promises you make to Scotland in the next week they will never forgive you and, if you carry on pledging more to Scotland alone, the voters south of the border won't forgive you...and there are many marginal seats all over the country. And an MP who loses their seat can't make any policy changes.

Question to both:
What happens to the financial services industry in Scotland when their products will not be regulated or be able to be used in England?

Question for AS :
Why has the ballot question been couched incorrectly?
Scotland is already a country! It is disingenuous to suggest otherwise. The correct question is 'should Scotland leave the union? ', and do you honestly think you'd have anything approaching 50% if you'd asked that?

Hi all, MNHQ here - just testing

Question for Alex Salmond... The power of the people, the grassroots campaign, social media and pounding the pavements along with yourself, Nicola and the team is what has won the YES votes, my question is after the 18th and a win for Yes, are there any plans to change the system of government and parties that are in place today or are there considerations for developing a completely new system that involves the people of Scotland on a broader scale than currently exists? Nigh on every household owns at least one computer... can that not be integrated into the governing of Scotland and develop a truly democratic, for the people, by the people style of government?

Following on from Esmum07's point. I'm Scottish (with lots of people I love in England) and have chosen to vote no, despite fully understanding why many are moving to a yes. My reasoning is because I want to fight for social justice for 40+ million and not just the 5 million. It is right that Scotland should ask for more, just as it is right for every corner of the country to ask for more - a better, fairer and just administration. With support being more fairly distributed to those who need it most and not be overshadowed by the lobbyists with money. How will AD make sure this happens? I know many who are planning to vote yes in the independence referendum who would reconsider if they thought it would achieve greater social justice across the UK rather than Scotland alone.

The vote for a yes is not necessarily a vote for independence - it is a vote to say "we've had enough". People are unhappy that Scotland has been one of the places across the UK which has been unfairly treated. My plea to the people of England and other parts of the UK that feel the same, is please do not feel resentment towards us, instead feel inspired that if we all shout loud enough - change can be achieved.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world; Indeed it's the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead

Mr Darling & Mr Salmond
What is to be done about Yes campaigners patrolling the streets of Scotland bullying and intimidating No campaigners since it looks as if this activity may actually be frightening people into voting Yes and is highly divisive whatever the outcome?

This happened to an advocate (barrister) friend of mine who was followed by Nationalists in a very intimidating way including swearing. Looks like Mr Salmond has an agenda of 'independence at any cost')

To those on the Yes side saying 'I don't see any intimidation' I rest my case.

Thank you