The current independence debate, I believe, is not about patriotism; many Scots I met in the summer made the point that you are not a “better Scot” if you support independence, or the status quo.
But we, and in particular, the Scottish people, do need to know the price tag of independence. Setting up a new Scottish state from scratch will not be cheap. The SNP White Paper must tell us how much it will cost us to set up.
The SNP Government are promising more and more ‘goodies’ for an independent Scotland. But people arent daft: they know everything comes at a price.
So I want to know how much we are expected to pay to go it alone as an independent state. Rather than making empty promises, the White Paper has to tell us how an independent Scotland would fill the black hole.
On the pound: Alex Salmond's assertion that the pound was “as much Scotland's as it is the rest of the UK's" is not backed up by international law.
The White Paper must therefore set out a credible Plan B on currency, because the current plan would not work.
On currency union with the rest of the UK. The UK Government, and plenty of others, have pointed to the challenges of currency unions between different states. You only need to look at the Euro area to see that everything can appear fine in year one, and how quickly circumstances can change.
It is highly unlikely to be agreed, not because of any malevolence, but because it wouldn't work.
On pensions, SNP ministers should say how much more pensions would cost each individual if Scotland leaves - it will defintely go up.
This is a decision for Scotland - but it needs to be made on the basis of the facts.
