There is an assumption by many that should scotland gain independence that the isles would be quite happy to sit in bed with Scotland and hand over all the oil revenues, but it doesn't take much reading to hear the murmurs coming out of the isles that they too may wish to be independent from Scotland. Now that is perfectly reasonable and acceptable under the remit of rights of self determination, all I ask is what happens once the oil revenue is gone ? Independence isn't about a short term boost to make one party popular it should be about the long term economic viability of this country now view Scotland without oil revenues is it really long term still as viable ? Also why should Scotland have independence and not the isles if they wish it so !
@piratelassie....
If it wasn't for the oil would you still want an independent Scotland?
“We're trapped in the belly of this horrible machine....
And the machine is bleeding to death."
Scotland can afford to be independent without the revenue from oil.
Fair enuff.... But....
By the time they've bickered & debated, placated with devolution, bickered & debated again, finally given a referendum on independence, etc.... 25 years or so would have passed & all the oil will finally be gone, by which time they will be nothing but a burden to the rest of Scotland so no loss anyway.
“We're trapped in the belly of this horrible machine....
And the machine is bleeding to death."
Documents like;
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/136390/production_projections.pdf
highlight how far along the road we are from "UK Peak Oil". The switch to being import dependent happened in 2005/2006, and the UK as a whole now is 36% dependant on import oil. By 2030 (a mere 17 years away), the UK is expected to be 67% import dependent (assuming anyone has any left to sell us....). Even assuming the oil is all Scottish, a time will come soon after 2030 when the oil cannot even keep Scotlands fires burning and cars going, without Scotland becoming import dependant too. So as a sustainer of an independent Scotland, oil, even if Scotland could lay claim to it, is a pretty short fix. Within a few years, oil becomes so insignificant that its not worth considering, and the fledgling Scotland is going to have to find something else to sustain it. Now, I would have that thought that something as significant as independence would need to be based on something better that a sub 20 year short fix. The union is, after all, 306 years old and counting, and thats still quite young in world history. Orkney and Shetland have, meantime, been pledged as security for 545 years. Would we really want to open the next chapter in Scotlands history to find that after all these arrangements that have been in place for centuries, independence is a 20 year flash in the pan, after which Scotland (probably minus Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles by then), is grovelling to the United Kingdom of England, Wales and Northern Ireland to be allowed back in again?
Please do answer some of these questions Pirate Lassie. The silence is deafening.
Last edited by orkneycadian; 26-Aug-13 at 19:04. Reason: Shocking grammar
Orkneycadien Scotland can afford Independence even without oil
It's worse than that. The more it dawns on them that Ugly Fat Eck was lying about the retrievable resources still in the North Sea/Atlantic Ocean, and the more they realise that it's going to be ever more expensive to retrieve less and less of the black stuff, the more they resort to lies and nonsense. Some are now claiming that we don't need oil to balance the books. They were insane to start with, it's now getting to the stage where they should be locked up for their own good!
It isnt Scotlands oil at present, it belongs to the UK. There are maritime boundaries which already ARE defined as under Scots jurisdiction. This is because of the different legal systems in Scotland. An Independent Scotland would use these boundaries as the basis for a division of assets. As many of the oil fields are in what would be, indeed what are already identified as Scottish waters then those oil fields would 'belong' to the people of an independent Scotland. There are recognised procedures to make these decisions when countries become independent ... This wouldnt be the first time this has happened.
Norway has the highest petrol prices on the planet. I'm not sure people would want to follow their economic pattern.
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.
Regardless of all the pros and cons of being independent, I think if the loonies down south drag us into another conflict that cant be won, it will be mana from heaven for the Nationalists
Oedipus was the first man to plug the generation gap
Bookmarks