Why not liberate Scotland and then run with a conservative majority?

[Earthstar]

Since Scotland is so mad for independence and is not homogenous with England why not set them free and then the Conservatives will have their majority?

I think you'll find the bank bailout is a fairly tiny part of the deficit that GB has run up. Interest rates hit that height for about a day I think.

And all Labour has done in this recession is put off making the hard choices until after this election. Short term gain - very long term extreme pain.

No way - the 15% interest lasted for over a year. The property market slumped to a halt and loads of people couldn't sell for years if they hadn't lost their property already.

Agree that bank bailout is only part of deficit but all economists seemed to agree that money had to be pumped in to keep the economy going. Agree also that Labour should have started making hard choices sooner - or at least been honest about it. However that probably would have been electoral suicide.

None of the parties have been honest though. I do think Labour would try to protect the weak with their cuts whereas the tories seem to positively relish the prospect of cutting everything they can.

Just to refute the suggestion that Scotland continues to get an inequitable share of the UK's budget as mentioned earlier

[http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2007/nov/03/scotland.devolution]

Apologies if things have moved on but it gets boring this whole 'England subsidies Scotland' line.

Found this Channel 4 fact check on interest rates

About a year in the 80s. A much shorter period in the 90s (but granted it was more than a day).

I agree that none of the parties have been honest. I also agree that hard choices before the election would've been electoral suicide. Sadly that's an indictment of the immaturity of the whole UK electorate.

"The Scots act as if they were the only victims"

Will you PLEASE STOP generalising about the Scots?

gaelicsheep, you're starting to sound like you've moved up here with your better wisdom and you're trying to educate us backwards natives. You are entitled to your opinion of course, but I'm beginning to feel like you think we're a colony.

Of course one wouldn't normally generalise about the people of any nation, but how many times have people said on here that they wouldn't vote Tory "because I'm Scottish"?

I wouldn't dream of trying to impose my views on the Scots in real life. Incidentally where I work there is an eclectic mix of Scots, Irish, English, etc. etc. all getting along very well together. Like many others I moved up here for a good job, for the clean air and open spaces. But yes I'm entitled to my opinion.

I quote from your link 'Things got worse in 1989, with rates reaching 15 per cent in October. They dropped a percentage point in October 1990' That is one year. OK I said early 90s but Oct 89 to Oct 90 is not too far out! I remember I cried the day it was announced they were going down one point - it was financially crippling.

I didn't mean to split hairs. When you referred to the 90s I thought you were talking about the Black Wednesday thing. I don't deny things were bad in the 80s. I do object when Labour takes the credit for stabilising things, when in reality that stabilisation had happened long before they came into power. Shame it didn't last.

i don't think many people on here have said they "wouldn't vote Tory because they're Scottish"..I'm surprised you choose to live amongst us if we are so thick and ignorant, tbh.

earthstar gwa n bile yer heed ya muppet

So will Scotland be supporting England in the world cup then?

Or will it go the usual way of Scotland supporting anyone who plays England...

I'm proper English, born and bred in London not the backwaters, and I hate England's football team, too many dodgy race-o's and nationalists from [insert crap village with no life here]. Chelsea should just buy the World Cup and give it to Scotland, or melt it down.

Coolfonz "I'm propa engliish" Born and bred I woz in London, but I dont hate my own country, as you appear too. We are all racist, this or that to you.Some people are racist whatever colour they are and I bet some of your mates are too,and the world cup should come home, to ENGLAND! and someone close to home should be melted down! and given to the Scots!

Bobbalina you're right the Scots support any football team rather than England.

We get free prescriptions iN Wales

Please miss, I didn't vote PLaid but would prefer independence to either a Tory majority or being forgotten as a nation amongst England / Scotland arguments

Or they could just let us have our bloody referendum on furtehr devolution this Autumn as palnned

Oh no, they can't, they have to delay that becuase Assembly is run by LD - lab coalition and not nice tories from PArliament

So it will delayed as long as poss
cynical? moi?

Well I was after I saw the new Welsh Minister- shhesh! She makes my blood run cold!

Alls cots support any football team otehr than England? PMSL! What about the Welsh? I, of course, am English- but ds4 is Welsh, and Grandad is Welsh

becuase it's all a mixed bag of genes and sterotypes are for 5 year olds

Bobbalina,
plenty of Scottish people will support England. I'll take it on a game by game basis, if I am watching a game then I'll just support whoever I find more interesting, or a team from a country where I have friends. Sometimes it will be England and sometimes it won't. TBH in one way I'd rather England didn't win, because we hear enough droning on about 1966 in the media as it is. Also Maradonna's hand ball. If you don't have a particular affiliation to England it gets a bit boring. That can be irritating to people in Scotland, as well as "We this" and "We that" in coverage.

Of course if Scotland was in the world cup and won there would be plenty of boring Scottish people going on about it. But as the media is England dominated and as Scotland aren't likely to get anywhere any decade soon then it is not such an issue. I suppose the issues are the same in Wales too?