SALMOND LOSES THE PLOT AGAIN.

One would have thought that an intelligent politician would think twice before making a pig's ear of a major announcement, but not so Alex Salmond and his Scottish Nationalist pals.

 

A few months ago, Mr Salmond told us all that, should the Scottish people vote for independence, this would not afect their membership of international organisations such as the European Union and NATO; it was his assertion that Scotland would retain memberships as a 'successor' state. It wasn't long before various senior figures made it extremely clear that this was rubbish and that a newly independent Scotland would, in fact, have to apply for membership of these bodies. Salmond and his friends were made to look like incompetent fools.

 

Despite their previous experience, they've now been at it again. An independent Scotland would continue to use the pound sterling in a 'currency union' with the remainder of the United Kingdom, claim Salmond and his Finance Minister, John Swinney; "Oh no they won't !", came the resounding response from the UK's Treasury and even from Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne. It seems that Mr Salmond has put his foot in it again.

 

Salmond is obviously keen to convince his fellow Scots that voting for independence would have little real impact on these critical areas of their lives, while the truth may be very different. Of course, an independent Scotland may well be successful with its applications to join the EU, NATO, the Commonwealth and so on, but they would have to join on the current terms on offer to new members and would not enjoy the status which the United Kingdom now has. They could also continue to use the pound sterling but they would have no control over it; they would be entirely bound to the policies of the Bank of England and UK government in its management and could even be required to follow the practice in the EU of having to have their annual budget approved by the bankers and government of what would then be a foreign country.

 

Salmond is a man who is hell bent on separating his country from the rest of the United Kingdom and will tell his people anything in order to get them to vote his way. His recent claims about international memberships and currency clearly show that he is now also a desperate man and must be fearing the worst when Scots go to the polls next year; a 'NO' vote will almost certainly signal the end of his career as a senior figure in Scottish politics. Can't happen too soon, I say.