Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

More schoolyard politics from the yes camp.

http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-...itics-28943041

Let's see how throwing a tantrum plays out with international investors and with negotiations to enter the EU, NATO and other international bodies and institutions.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

It's not "a tantrum" as such, and it seems to be a risk they are prepared to take.

As far as the undecided are concerned the ball is in the Tory, Labour, Lib Dem court. All they have to do is once and for all unilaterally and absolutely rule out any sharing of the pound and put the issue to bed.

Their language has softened, and in some cases shifted, since their initial ruling out of the sharing of the pound. In the face of continued insistence on the part of the Yes campain they need to (re)assert that position if it is indeed (re)assertable.

Problem solved.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

I suspect the politics of phraseology is a little more sophisticated in Northern Ireland than it is over here Mr A. The nationalists may continue to argue it's a bluff, but there is no sense around here that people in general are combing through the words and phrases used by the politicians and coming to that conclusion. The committed Yes campaigners say it's a bluff because that's what their campaign leaders have told them. The committed No campaigners, the opposite, for the same reason.

In the middle of it all, there are a lot of uncertain people - and in a constitutional referendum, uncertainty is the friend of the status quo. It is doubtful whether any further "clarification" is necessary, or even helpful.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

Therein lies the rub.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

That threat may well come back to haunt Salmond's Tartan Twits.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

The Yessers are correct in saying they won't actually be defaulting by not taking the debt but the market is run by investors and any playing of political games over debt will be frowned upon irrespective of the technicalities of an official default.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

There has been a lot of wilful misunderstanding of this point from the Yes camp. They keep saying "you can't default on a debt you don't have", but they conveniently forget that actual default is but one of many factors the ratings agencies look at when deciding a score.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

Their financial ineptitude is really being shown up. They're behaving like Argentina.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

Well Eck is running out of countries to try an emulate. He's previously (while campaigning furiously for Euro entry) claimed Scotland should be more like Ireland, then Iceland and now Norway. When Norway goes down the pan thanks to his reverse Midas words Argentina might step up to be the next model to copy.

Also today the guessers are making big things of a poll showing them as being exactly where they were before the two debates. :)

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

Yup and even then the credit score is a debatable concept. The UK was downgraded but we didn't have to pay higher interest rates. Ultimately investors buy Government debt and use their own criteria for doing so. There is a marked contrast between Osbourne who immediately ensured the markets that the UK will honour all the debt and Salmond playing games with the 'we may/we may not' pay off debt.

Whatever happens the willingness to play games with other people's money will not inspire them to give you more cheaply.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

Just saw that Survation poll. So, essentially, Darling's win in the first debate shifted 3 points worth of voters towards No. Salmond's win this week shifted 3 points worth of voters towards Yes. Quite aside from the fact that a 3-point swing is within the margin of error, Salmond ought to be very worried that his last game changing opportunity has sailed off into the sunset without changing anything much at all.

Better Together can't afford to take its foot off the pedal, but it is very hard to see where the Yes camp is going to get the votes from in the next 3 weeks. Even hoovering up every singe undecided isn't going to do it. And in any case, recent polling data (trying to remember which one it was) suggested that, when squeezed, the DKs are likely to come down 2:1 in favour of No.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

Oh dear, some Yessers are taking things too far...
Link

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

Clearly they're not very confident that they can win the argument. They're behaving like little more than a rabble and Scotland should be ashamed of them.

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

The knives are out already ...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukne...r-No-vote.html

No role for Eck in their plans, then. Strange, that ...

Re: Will Scotland Leave the UK?
 

Maybe Sean Connery needs a new gardener...