Scotland - the facts

[TimberWolf]

What about fair share of UK debt that Scotland would certainly have to take on in event of becoming independent?

Well according to the Dim one it was all Labour's fault, and since Labour were voted in by the Scots (and Welsh), by a strange logic, the debt is all Scottish.

[scooterscot]

(England has the gas).

I know, your full of it.

[doodab]

You don't hear much about it because paying tax isn't the same thing as opening a savings account. If it were I would happily take the money I've paid in tax over the years and **** off tomorrow and I suspect quite a lot of other people would too.

BTW the 4.3% of Norway's GDP made up by tourism works out about £12 billion. Their GDP is almost 2x Scotland's. Presumably because they don't have a Whiskey industry.

BTW2 even the Scottish government doesn't claim that all of the land in Scotland is suitable for agricultural uses, the true figure is more like 62,000 km2, about 52,000km2 or which is only suitable for grazing livestock.

BTW3 wikipedia reckons that Norway's proven oil reserves are about twice that of the UK.

Your "facts" are starting to look a bit less factual to me.

Oh yes, the Norwegians still have a ship building industry as well. It's worth ~ £70 billion a year.

Did I mention they have a tax take of ~41% of GDP?

[oscarose]

I know, your full of it.

Just what I heard on radio 5, along with Murray losing in the tennis again . Scotland has the oil and England the gas. Falkland's reserves are ours though.

[mudskipper]

I know, your full of it.

you're

[DodgyAgent]

Norway:

GDP (nominal) 2010 estimate
- Total $414.462 billion[3]
- Per capita $84,443[3]

Scotland:

- Total GBP 139.774 billion[4]

From Wikipedia:

Also unemployment in Scotland is 8.7%
In Norway it is 3.3%

Scotland has no culture of enterprise outside of Oil and Whiskey and maybe a bit of fish farming. It has an entitlement culture that dominates its population. So how on Earth is it going to sustain itself ?

[KimberleyChris]

"So how on Earth is it going to sustain itself ?"

Not our problem, hopefully :-)

England out of the UK - NOW!!!

[oscarose]

Mr Donuts. Vote 'yes' please.

[Paddy]

been a lot of talk in the last few days about how Scotland couldnt survive on its own. I suspected this might be FUD (fear uncertainty and doubt being spread by some shadowy groups) thought it best to check out given its importance though. So lets compare scotland with the worlds fourth richest country NORWAY !

Norway Scotland

Population

4.9 million v 5.2 million

Oil reserves

16.4 billion barrels v 25 billion barrels

Farming land

10000km2 v 78000km2

Whisky

0 v £3billion pa

Tourism

4.3% gdp v £4.5 Billion pa

Finance industry

? v £20 billion per year

conclusion scotland would be better off than norway


oh and regarding the rbs debt, they were the biggest tax payer in the uk for many years up to the crisis often paying
£2billion per year in tax. So the bailout cost has largely
been covered by the money they have already paid in tax. Which you dont hear too much about for some strange reason

So a free scotland it is!

oh and sources -look them up yourself if you dont believe it. It will take you about 5min using google/wikipedia

Pint of Beer Scotland £1.80 Norway £8.00
Bottle Whisky Scotland £22.00 Norway £60
Income tax Scotland 25% Norway 50%

[DodgyAgent]

Pint of Beer Scotland £1.80 Norway £8.00
Bottle Whisky Scotland £22.00 Norway £60
Income tax Scotland 25% Norway 50%

No one works in Scotland so they can make tax rates at whatever level they wish