10 Great Reasons for Scotland to Vote for Independence

On September 18, 2014, every person on the voters’ roll in Scotland will be able to vote either Yes or a No in answer to the question

“Should Scotland become Independent?”

Many people are either undecided or confused by the issues. Naturally they turn to the media – television, radio and newspapers - for guidance.

Unfortunately, it has become increasingly obvious that the media is heavily biased towards the status quo, and strongly encourage a No vote.

Thanks largely to the internet, for the first time ever the masses have access to the original reports through both published articles and video, to see for themselves the state of the union, without that bias.

Reporting agencies have a habit of putting their own slant or ‘spin’ on what was actually said or written, and the truth can actually turn out to have only a nodding acquaintance with what is published.

Also, for the first time ever, 16 year olds are being allowed to vote. The outcome of this decision is so momentous, and will affect young people for the longest time, that the decision was taken to drop the voting age from 18 to 16.

It seems odd then, that according to reports on Facebook, many schools have banned the Yes Scotland Facebook page through filters, while leaving to No Campaign’s (Better Together) page accessible.

There have also been reports of schools banning their teachers from discussing the forthcoming referendum in class, even with Modern Studies pupils sitting examinations in the topic.

Let’s have a look at the issues that matter and will give you 10 great reasons for Scotland to vote for independence.

1. Democracy and self-determination for the first time (last time Scotland was independent, pre-1707, it was run by the aristocracy and the common people had no vote)
2. Stop the Westminster benefit spending cuts aimed at the poorest in society.
3. Save the NHS from privatisation (it’s already started in England)
4. Get rid of the bedroom tax
5. Get rid of Trident
6. Develop the West Coast oil fields
7. Take control of North Sea Oil – there is reckoned to be another £300 billion worth still to be extracted.
8. Start a new public Scottish postal system – Westminster has an agreement with the newly-privatised company to not raise the prices to remote areas, but only or a certain length of time. This is a backwards step for Scotland. Eventually there will be no service, or else we’ll have the most expensive postal deliveries in the UK if we stay in the Union.
9. Money raised in Scotland will be used in Scotland. We will all see a rise in the standard of living. It is thought Scotland could become one of the richest nations on the planet, so long as we invest the oil money wisely. An oil fund would be a good place to start.
10. We will probably never have to suffer a right-wing Tory government again. Scots are caring people who like to give the less well off amongst us a helping hand.

This is a great video below and I strongly suggest you watch it. Quickly, before it gets banned (again).

Scotland has only twice, EVER, influenced the voting results to get the government they actually voted for.

This happened when the Labour Party came to power in 1962 and again in the first general election of 1974. The first vote was so close it resulted in a hung parliament, but in the second general election Labour won a majority which they would have retained even if the whole of Scotland had stayed at home on polling day.

On all other occasions, these parties would have got in regardless of what Scotland voted.

In Westminster, there are 54 Scottish MPs and 600 rest of the UK (rUK) MPs, mostly English.

This in effect, means that Scotland, a supposedly EQUAL party in the Union, cannot be heard, and their MPs are over-ruled at all times.

To put in power parliamentarians you vote for is called DEMOCRACY. We live in a democratic nation. Except if you live in Scotland.

Only a Yes vote will give Scotland democracy and a voice that can be heard.

It doesn’t matter if you hate the man or hate the party.

THIS IS NOT A VOTE FOR SALMOND OR THE SNP. THIS IS A VOTE FOR SCOTLAND'S FUTURE.

There will be a Scottish General Election after independence and you can vote for the party or policies you prefer.

For the second time, your vote will count. The first time is when you vote Yes, the second time is when you vote for the changes YOU want to see, knowing it will not be over-ruled by a distant parliament in London, whose cabinet of 28 consists of 23 millionaires who have no idea what it is like to live a normal life and struggle to find the money to pay for necessities.

This cannot happen by voting No. A No vote means nothing changes for the better. In fact, it is going to get a lot worse when government austerity measures planned for 2015/16 come into force.

The Con-Lib coalition government have already started privatising the English NHS, and the current benefit cuts are here to stay. Labour has agreed to continue slashing the benefits bill, albeit at a slower pace.

Does it matter if it is overnight or over a fortnight? They are still going to cut the income of the poorest people in society, without a second thought.

Remember, these men are personal millionaires!

What George Osborne actually said was the rUK had no intention of joining a currency union with Scotland.

Despite that, we can continue to use the pound. It can just be pegged to sterling, or Scotland could start a brand new currency.

Economic experts from the Fiscal Commission have looked in detail at the monetary options open to a new independent Scotland and have decided that a monetary union would suit both Scotland AND rUK.

Many people would prefer to not having a monetary union because it does mean giving up some fiscal powers to rUK and vice-versa.

The UK is heavily indebted to the tune of a massive £1.3 trillion, and this is rising daily.

Many other countries have collapsed with much less debt. If rUK collapses during a currency union, Scotland will be dragged down too.

There are many arguments for keeping the pound and pegging it to sterling, or even to the mighty US dollar. Other countries have done this.

Starting a brand new currency is the most expensive option. I still remember when Britain changed over to decimalisation from pounds, shillings and pence and inflation went through the roof! A new Scotland would not want to risk that.

Scots can continue to use the pound no matter what. It really doesn’t matter what is said now by various government bodies or by newspaper columnists because after independence we can sort out a permanent banking system either through the Bank of England (started by a Scot, by the way) or through some other institution of our choosing.

Remember, Scotland is an oil-rich nation, probably the only one history so far to have discovered oil and become poorer as a result.

Scotland will get kicked out of the EU and not allowed to re-join, screams the newspaper headlines.

The Press pounced on the comments of out-going president of the EU, Manuel Barroso. The man retires before September 18. Someone new will be in power by then. Do you remember what he said? He compared Scotland to Kosovo.

You are kidding me! A war-torn ex-Soviet state is a completely different issue to a peaceful nation of people who have already been useful members in the EU for nigh on 40 years.

Barroso does not have the power to veto an indy Scotland.

Only other member states have, and despite Prime Minister David Cameron being reported to have approached 34 European and international allies seeking support against an independent Scotland, reports suggest all other countries believe it is the people's right to choose and that no objections will be raised.

Talks have taken place between the Scottish government and various senior bodies within the EU, and it is believed there will be a smooth transition to full membership should Scotland vote YES for independence.

We have heard for years and years about how the Scottish people are a drain on the UK treasury, how we take out more than we put in, how the English are fed up with ‘whingeing Scots’, but the truth is, Scotland with just 8.4% of the population of the UK, pays 9.6% into it, while getting 9.3% back.

That is a net surplus no matter what way you look at it!

We have a thriving markets with:

• food and drink £13 billion
• banking
• financial services
• construction £17 billion
• education five of the world's top universities
• tourism £9 billion
• agriculture 11.6% of total UK farming output
• engineering works
• whisky export £4.3 billion

to name but a few.

We are also on track to produce a massive 25% of the EU’s total green energy production, through wind, water and tidal power, and ongoing investment is enlarging this industry exponentially.

One day, even when the oil runs out, Scotland will be an extremely healthy state economically.

North Sea Oil

Over 90% of North Sea oil is in Scottish offshore waters,despite the UK government sneakily and quietly moving the sea border north in 1999 to encompass an extra 6000 square miles of sea area (and a few oilfields).

The amount of oil being produced is falling, and has been dropping steadily since 1999 when it reached its peak. The rise in the price of oil has more than compensated for this loss.

£300 billion worth of oil has already been extracted since it was first discovered in the early 1970s.

This is 509 billion US dollars.

Where has that money gone?

Well, London built the hugely expensive ring road around it, the M25, and the incredibly pricey Channel Tunnel. They built huge stadia in London for the Olympic Games, and are currently upgrading their underground rail network.

Watch this video, filmed by BBC Alba (the minority Gaelic-speaking TV channel) and kindly subtitled in English by someone who was concerned that such ground-breaking news was not getting out to the English-speaking masses in Scotland.

The speaker clearly talks about letters sent to Professor Gavin McCrone in light of his report into the State of Scotland, made back in 1974/5 which only recently emerged for public scrutiny after having been marked SECRET and hidden for 30 years.

It was discussed way back in the 1970s that London could make full use of that income, described as “” by the building of the ring road and the Channel Tunnel”.

Here we are, 40 years later, and all these things came to pass. Nothing was built in Scotland from North Sea revenues. In fact, our cities are in a sorry state of repair, especially Aberdeen, the oil capital.

There is enough North Sea Oil left to last another 50 years at least, especially now that new technology has been developed to remove hard-to-get-at reserves.

For 16 year olds, voting for the first time, they may worry that the oil will run out just as they reach retiral age.

There are oilfields off the West Coast of Scotland that have not been developed, specifically in the Firth of Clyde, south of Arran and East of Kintyre.

They were discovered by the big oil companies in the early 1980s, but Thatcher’s government refused them permission to search further.

The MOD had expressed concerns that drills may disturb submarine operations in the coastal waters, and of course their hugely expensive nuclear submarine, stationed at Faslane.

The SNP have promised to remove Trident from our waters and from our country.

Most other parties in Scotland would like to see it removed too.

How dare the London government park such an atrocious and dangerous beast right next to our biggest city. It just shows the contempt they hold us in. The Glasgow conurbation and surrounding areas are home to the majority of the population of Scotland with 2 or 3 million people.

In order to develop these fields, and search for more in the western offshore waters, where there is also believed to be substantial oil reserves, we have to become independent from the UK.

Westminster has committed itself to Trident and will not move it, unless forced to.

They will not want to leave it in the hands of a foreign power, which an independent Scotland will become.

Scotland will become a very rich nation once we have control of the oil revenues through taxation. It would be even better if Scotland’s oil industry was nationalised and brought under public ownership, but it is doubtful if that could be achieved at this late date.

One of the richest countries in the world is Norway, a tiny country with a population of just 4.5 million people.

Like Scotland, they have oil, but they own the oil companies too and have wisely invested in an oil fund.

Under independence, pensions and social security will continue to be paid as now. Under the terms of the Edinburgh Agreement, signed by both parliaments, both Scotland and rUK have promised to make the transition to independence as smooth as possible.

The UK government has confirmed that they will continue to pay pensions in an independent Scotland.

The only difference that should be noted is the name of the government body on official receipts and letters. The word Scotland (or perhaps just the letter ‘S’) will be placed strategically where before it was absent.

The DSS will become the SDSS. The BBC will become SBC.

You will still be able to watch all your favourite TV shows, as they are broadcast via satellite to a wide area. After all, you can go to Spain and still watch Eastenders or Coronation Street. It is inconceivable that you will not be able to do that from Scotland.

This is a momentous decision for Scotland.

Yes it is a bit scarey and a little bit of a leap of faith, but the rewards should more than make up for anything we might lose for being part of the Union, which was never under-written with a constitution.

The new Scotland will have a written constitution, just like the majority of countries in the world. We will earn new respect.

The current devolved parliament has done an excellent job of looking after Scottish affairs despite tight monetary limitations in the block grant dished out by Westminster (or Westmonster as they are affectionately known).

They have proven they are up to the task of steering Scotland through the difficult phase after a YES vote to full independence, as laid out in the White Paper.

• They have provided free further education and free medical prescriptions for all. It is a job just started.
• The Scottish NHS desperately needs more investment.
• The retiral age will be lowered to make up for the fact that life expectancy is less than the UK average in Scotland.
• Pension rates will rise as our new country finds its feet.
• Mothers will be helped back into the workplace with free child-care.

None of this can happen with a No vote, and in fact the Tories plan to further reduce the block grant by a massive £4 billion, putting the continuation of free education, prescriptions etc, at risk.