“Madness and folly” of Alex Salmond 16/6/14

Sirs,

Never, never have I heard and read of so many undiscerning folk, right across Scotland, ranting and raving as to why Scotland should be an independent country. Such folk, to my dismay, are even living on Lewis and Harris.

Very few of them, I notice, refer to the content of the SNP 670-page White Paper which they unveiled last November. I suppose that shouldn’t really surprise us. Many of the country’s leading, and respected, experts have been saying that the document has “glaring omissions, inconsistencies and obvious errors throughout” so it was probably not worth citing in defence of any opinion. We agree with the implications which these experts have left us. Although a weighty and comprehensive document, it contains only black ink on white pages. Wise is everyone who listens to their very credible and discerning forecasts.

On Scotland’s finances, the respected Professor Tony MacKay of MacKay Consultants, said: “The SNP propose setting up an Oil Fund to use the oil revenues for future generations, along the lines of a similar fund in Norway. That would have been a very sensible proposal in the 1970s but I believe is unrealistic now, for two main reasons: the declining oil revenues; and the SNP's commitments to a high level of public spending. There would therefore be little or no money left to invest in an oil fund.”

On currency, Professor John Kay, former economic adviser to Alex Salmond, said: “Alex Salmond has said, I think, rather stupidly that there is no plan B. The trouble with having no plan B is you don’t have any negotiating power if you don’t have a Plan B. So there has to be a Plan B. And Plan B has to be an independent currency….the Scottish Government has stated definitively that it would continue to use Stirling in a monetary union. There is a slight problem about that, in that you have to negotiate a monetary union – it’s not entirely clear that you could negotiate a monetary union. It’s rather hard to see a country that represents 91.5% of a monetary union granting a great deal of oversight of its banking policies and fiscal policies to a country that represents 8.5% of the monetary union.”

On business, the Chair of Intelligent Office UK, Margaret McPherson said: “I have worked in business all across the world, and I know how important it is being part of a large and successful economy. Business people I talk to in places like New York can't understand why we would want to cut ourselves off from the successful single UK market. I don't understand it either.”

Neither do many other rational people in Scotland understand it. Even those at the top in Brussels don’t understand it. One prominent leader at the EU warned against any nation embarking on 'solo adventures in an uncertain future!” That’s exactly what Mr. Alex Salmond is recklessly doing: he dares to take the people of Scotland on an ‘independence’ financial joyride they can ill afford. And if that’s not irrational enough he also desperately wants to be part of…wait for it…the EU! What madness and sheer folly.

Listen to this: when other countries are frantically wanting out of the EU, Mr. Salmond is craving to be part of an undemocratic Union that is costing Scotland more than a wee fortune every year. O yes, there’s also the Euro, which every country within the zone regret now having. Why? Because of the staggering losses they have sustained over the past few years. Isn’t that quite incredible! Mr. Salmond doesn’t know what currency his ‘dream’ country will have, whereas the EU does – it will be the Euro. Every country that has joined the EU since the creation of the single currency has had to pledge to join the Euro. Yes, the nationalists like to downplay this and say that it is not the case, but it is a matter of fact. Croatia – who joined the EU in 2013 will join the Euro in 2014. The UK currently has an opt-out from the Euro and will not have to join unless it wants to. Scotland must, it has no option.

Sorry, Alex Salmond, but we don’t want you to relegate everything that Scotland already has. Scotland is already a distinct country apart and Scotland will continue to be a grand country apart, even within the UK. No-one needs to scratch their heads over the independence question. There are already three clear answers: no, no, no. We are already independent, thank you very much.

Mr Donald J Morrison

85 Old Edinburgh Road

Inverness

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