Can you believe the nerve of Alex Salmond?
He has had how many years - 30 or more? - to ponder and decide on the question he thinks should be asked regarding independence for Scotland.
He says that he wants the question to be:
Do you agree that Scotland should be an independent country?
But because he is such a sweetie he wants to consult on this to ask Scottish voters if they think the Scottish parliament should have more powers.
Now the wily Alex knows full well that greater powers for the Scottish parliament are not within the remit of any referendum set by the self-same Scottish parliament. He knows that such powers rest with the parliament of the United Kingdom. He also knows that the granting of additional powers to Scotland would need to be discussed in a UK framework, affecting, as such would, the whole of the UK.
How would his nationalist colleagues in Northern Ireland and Wales feel about Scotland getting additional powers and they not? The Welsh First Minister has already voiced his concern
How would the English feel about Scotland getting more and more powers while still 'sticking their oar' into English business?
Alex Salmond and his SNP cronies know that won't fly. So...
They hope to stir up the pot so that anti-English and anti-Westminster feeling, in Scotland, rises at what they will portray as 'Westminster interference in the legitimate aspirations of a sovereign nation and people, etc.'
I trust that the Scots, not usually considered gullible fools, will see through his charade and political posturing and will understand that the only question they can be asked is In or Out and then they take their own decision.
Salmond also now wants to hold the referendum in autumn 2014 "on the same terms as any Scottish election, to the same standards and with the same guarantee of fairness"
He then goes on to say that the Scottish government proposed to extend the franchise to 16 and 17 year olds for this vote.
Usually the gap between saying one thing - same terms as any Scottish election - that is, franchise at 18 - and then saying something very different - extending the franchise to 16 and 17 year olds - takes longer than a sentence or two but not for Alex and the SNP!
So dear reader, what is your view?
Simple Yes or No question?
Multiple choice? If this then the referendum has to include the rest of the UK and be run by the government of the UK since it affects all of its constituent parts.
What constitutes a majority? If the turnout is 75% and of these 53% vote for Independence and 47% vote against, would Scotland get Independence? Bear in mind that with figures like that it would mean that of the possible electorate 60% either voted no or by abstaining could be considered to have voted for the status quo = No to independence. As usual the devil will be in the detail
He has had how many years - 30 or more? - to ponder and decide on the question he thinks should be asked regarding independence for Scotland.
He says that he wants the question to be:
Do you agree that Scotland should be an independent country?
But because he is such a sweetie he wants to consult on this to ask Scottish voters if they think the Scottish parliament should have more powers.
Now the wily Alex knows full well that greater powers for the Scottish parliament are not within the remit of any referendum set by the self-same Scottish parliament. He knows that such powers rest with the parliament of the United Kingdom. He also knows that the granting of additional powers to Scotland would need to be discussed in a UK framework, affecting, as such would, the whole of the UK.
How would his nationalist colleagues in Northern Ireland and Wales feel about Scotland getting additional powers and they not? The Welsh First Minister has already voiced his concern
How would the English feel about Scotland getting more and more powers while still 'sticking their oar' into English business?
Alex Salmond and his SNP cronies know that won't fly. So...
They hope to stir up the pot so that anti-English and anti-Westminster feeling, in Scotland, rises at what they will portray as 'Westminster interference in the legitimate aspirations of a sovereign nation and people, etc.'
I trust that the Scots, not usually considered gullible fools, will see through his charade and political posturing and will understand that the only question they can be asked is In or Out and then they take their own decision.
Salmond also now wants to hold the referendum in autumn 2014 "on the same terms as any Scottish election, to the same standards and with the same guarantee of fairness"
He then goes on to say that the Scottish government proposed to extend the franchise to 16 and 17 year olds for this vote.
Usually the gap between saying one thing - same terms as any Scottish election - that is, franchise at 18 - and then saying something very different - extending the franchise to 16 and 17 year olds - takes longer than a sentence or two but not for Alex and the SNP!
So dear reader, what is your view?
Simple Yes or No question?
Multiple choice? If this then the referendum has to include the rest of the UK and be run by the government of the UK since it affects all of its constituent parts.
What constitutes a majority? If the turnout is 75% and of these 53% vote for Independence and 47% vote against, would Scotland get Independence? Bear in mind that with figures like that it would mean that of the possible electorate 60% either voted no or by abstaining could be considered to have voted for the status quo = No to independence. As usual the devil will be in the detail
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