Scotland's new currency

[AtW]

'Deregulation' may have worsened the crisis but easy central bank monetary policies provided the fuel for it.

There was no easy monetary policy - rates were 5-6%.

Lax policies over how much debt is OK and the kind of transactions that are ok are to blame for this tulip - lending to people who can't afford it and claiming that this is AAA quality asset, plus derivatives tulip that allowed lots of entities to lend money they never had in the first place.

[scooterscot]

Google aren't a bank, so i'm not sure what they have to do with anything.

Like a bank Google & Amazon place themselves where profit can be maximised. However instead of one massive fail requiring bailing out they slowly suck the life blood out of the country through tax avoidance.

I wonder how much tax the exchequer has lost were the same items sold through shops on the high street.

[doodab]

Like a bank Google & Amazon place themselves where profit can be maximised. However instead of one massive fail requiring bailing out they slowly suck the life blood out of the country through tax avoidance.

So an independent Scotland will be using Bing then? That on it's own will wipe at least 0.5% off your annual GDP growth

Banks may place themselves where profit can be maximised but unlike google and amazon this isn't a simple case of low tax wins, hence the continuing preeminence of London (and the success of Edinburgh) as a financial center. Which is the point I've been making all along, there is more to it than just cutting taxes.

There is also the question of how an independent Scotland will negotiate tax treaties that have substantially different terms than existing bilateral agreements, because that is what is required to solve the Google / Amazon problem, and it seems to me that will require coordinated international action to change the standard terms of cross border taxation.

[AtW]

So an independent Scotland will be using Bing then? That on it's own will wipe at least 0.5% off your annual GDP growth .

How would using Bing wipe out 0.5% of GDP?

If anything it could increase it by means of having nice sponsorship deal with Microsoft - make them move from Ireland to a new low tax environment...

[doodab]

How would using Bing wipe out 0.5% of GDP?

Have you tried Bing?

[AtW]

Have you tried Bing?

Yes, I think they've made very good effort - their main problem with the product is that it's not Google.

[petergriffin]

Interesting comments from Barosso saying it may not be so easy...

BBC News - Scottish independence: Barroso says joining EU would be 'difficult'

So let's recap:

1) No Pound
2) No EU, that means no Euro
3) Broken relationship with London
4) No economic relationships with the continent

The future doesn't look bright for an independent Scotland.

[scooterscot]

So an independent Scotland will be using Bing then? That on it's own will wipe at least 0.5% off your annual GDP growth

Banks may place themselves where profit can be maximised but unlike google and amazon this isn't a simple case of low tax wins, hence the continuing preeminence of London (and the success of Edinburgh) as a financial center. Which is the point I've been making all along, there is more to it than just cutting taxes.

There is also the question of how an independent Scotland will negotiate tax treaties that have substantially different terms than existing bilateral agreements, because that is what is required to solve the Google / Amazon problem, and it seems to me that will require coordinated international action to change the standard terms of cross border taxation.

International standardisation is required for bankerster bonuses. For Amazon the customers are not going anywhere. Tax should be charge at the point of sale and not in the Cayman islands. Small business is being hammered by the likes of them. When we have control of our tax laws change shall be swift here, I hope.

[scooterscot]

So let's recap:

1) No Pound
2) No EU, that means no Euro
3) Broken relationship with London
4) No economic relationships with the continent

The future doesn't look bright for an independent Scotland.

1) They can use whatever currency we like.
2) It's not important but a nice to have.
3) There's a relationship with London? When did this happen?
4) Have you thought about a career in the no camp?

"The total value of international exports from Scotland in 2012 (excluding oil and gas) is estimated at £26.0 billion, of which £15.4 billion was from the manufacturing sector"

Scotland currently enjoys greater exports in manufacturing over services. By comparison England is much more dependant on services. Exactly why is demand going to evaporate for those international exports on Sep 19th? If we remain good at producing quality demand shall surely follow.

[Wanderer]

Think the threats are not as severe for a small economy as they would be a large one, like England. The bigger they are the further they fall. And my goodness what falling there is to be had. Look at property prices throughout the South of England. A new bubble is forming, the cost of homes is nothing to do with providing shelter over ones head anymore but an alternative investment for those with cash.

I've often thought that a larger economy is more stable in the long term. An independent Scotland could end up more like Ireland where they have been through a huge round of boom and bust...

I think if Scotland follows a capitalist approach like Iceland we'd be better off than we are now.

Scotland's dominant politics are Socialist and the capitalist Tory party have just 1 MP in Scotland. Why do you think this would suddenly swing to the right just because they become independent? I think it will be quite the opposite and they will move more towards their socialist ideals.

RBS was only a Scottish bank in the sense of name and not much else. If only I could recall the newspaper article, might have been the NYT, the recognition of many creditors that RBS liabilities were the creation of those in the city of London and very little to do with those at HQ.

RBS are headquartered in Edinburgh,they print Scottish bank notes and have done for years, it is a Scottish bank.


But even it it wasn't here are some questions for you:

1. If these banks with the word "Scotland" in their names are NOT Scottish banks then what is Scotland going to do for a bank when they become independent?

2. What would an independent Scotland do if one of their banks should fail as RBS did? And don't tell us that they could follow Iceland's example because you can't compare a country with a population the size of Aberdeen to Scotland.