Scotland warned it could lose the pound and be forced to join Euro

[Incognito]

I think most people in England fear it will be more like a divorce the Scots will get the house and maintenance, we carry on paying the mortgage and they will complain bitterly about how bad they were treated.

i.e. they will get the Oil, a Debt free RBS & HBOS and a Barnett formula subsidy,we will get messed about on the border, Scottish MPs will be allowed at Westminster and English ownership of Scottish property will be outlawed.

If they succeed it might spur England on so it might be worth it.

I have no problem with us taking our share of the debt. However, I would imagine that Halifax stays part of Lloyds and BOS gets diverged with whatever the share of the debt is at that point. Which in 2014 will be looking a lot better.

Why would we ban the English from Scotland? We do not hate the English, we simply want to be independent. Why do people automatically take that as meaning hatred.

[Freamon]

And what if China recognises Scottish independence and starts buying oil directly from them paying in yuans as well as providing a "security" force to defend liberty of local population?

I don't think Scotland itself (the state) has any oil to sell. It's all extracted and sold by oil companies (some British, some foreign). The state collects tax revenue on the oil exported and the profits from its sale. I suspect that if the Scottish devolved government started trying to collect these taxes from BP itself and spend them locally, then Westminster would have something to say about it.

[AtW]

I don't think Scotland itself (the state) has any oil to sell. It's all extracted and sold by oil companies (some British, some foreign).

Scotland (if it was independent state) would be able tax those companies, not on profits mind you - they are very good at not showing much of those, but based on price of barrel of oil on foreign markets - anything above price of X would go straight to Scotland's coffers.

And if BP decides it's not profitable enough to stay there then I am sure Statoil would take a longer term view, especially given that they actually have proper expertise in doing the drills.

I guess BP will just have to keep outsourcing work to Haliburton in the Gulf of Mexico.

[Freamon]

Scotland (if it was independent state) would be able tax those companies, not on profits mind you - they are very good at not showing much of those, but based on price of barrel of oil on foreign markets - anything above price of X would go straight to Scotland's coffers.

And if BP decides it's not profitable enough to stay there then I am sure Statoil would take a longer term view, especially given that they actually have proper expertise in doing the drills.

I guess BP will just have to keep outsourcing work to Haliburton in the Gulf of Mexico.

But as it's not an independent state, it can't. And it certainly can't sell oil to China, as it has none to sell.

[AtW]

But as it's not an independent state, it can't. And it certainly can't sell oil to China, as it has none to sell.

It can sell a couple of nuclear subs parked on its shores though, say rental of the sub pens would fetch a few trillion yuans?

Also few more paid by ChGCHQ for rental of a few "domes" on mountain peaks.

[Paddy]

I don't think Scotland itself (the state) has any oil to sell. It's all extracted and sold by oil companies (some British, some foreign). The state collects tax revenue on the oil exported and the profits from its sale. I suspect that if the Scottish devolved government started trying to collect these taxes from BP itself and spend them locally, then Westminster would have something to say about it.

But that would be against EU regulations

[Freamon]

But that would be against EU regulations

Why?

[Arturo Bassick]

You do realise that HBOS was a merger between the Halifax and the Bank of Scotland? To call it a Scottish bank is wrong, it is quite clearly a British bank.

And the profile of the two at the top as it crashed and burned:

Andy Hornby and James Crosby, both English. However, unlike you I will look past the blinkers and not say it was an English problem. It was a City of London problem though.

Whilst 'Broon' may have been at the helm, he was no sole fallguy. Bills are put to Parliament where they are scrutinised, debated and then if accepted they are enacted. This was a British creation and saving the banks benefited the British because I will guarantee you that more English debt is tied up in both those banks than Scottish debt.

You want us to take the debt? Fine, we'll just call in all those English loans and mortgages. Not really a good idea though is it, (a) for Scotland or (b) for England.

Dont be an arse. You are lecturing me on exactly the point I was making to Scooter. Current debt is a joint venture, something he is in denial about.

[Incognito]

Dont be an arse. You are lecturing me on exactly the point I was making to Scooter. Current debt is a joint venture, something he is in denial about.

No, I was lecturing you on the fact that HBOS shouldn't be called a 'Scottish bank' with 'Scottish debt' as you said:

If anything an independent Scotland should take on Scottish debt so RBS and HBOS debts should go with the independence as well

[Ignis Fatuus]

Anyone can hold a referendum any time that they like, but only the UK Government (not the Scottish government) has the legal authority to remove Scotland from the UK.

Where do you get that idea? It sounds to me as if you are implicitly adopting the doctrine that parliament is sovereign, which in fact is an English doctrine and is not the constitutional position in Scotland. The Act of Union did not change that, because the Union did not consist of Scotland becoming part of England and adopting her laws and constitution.

See for example the judgement in the case of MacCormick v Lord Advocate 1954 in the High Court. (That's the High Court in Edinburgh). Or refer to Mitchell's 'Constitutional Law' (pub. Green and Son, Edinburgh).

To be pedantic, either the Scottish or the English parliament could abrogate the Act of Union (the Scottish Act or the English Act respectively) - but the British parliament has no such power since it is not a party to either of the two Acts of Union. Since there is no English parliament at the moment, that leaves only the Scottish parliament with the right to abrogate the Act of Union.