The End of the Union or the end of big Alex?

“Do you agree that Scotland should be an independent country”, Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond wishes to ask Scots.

Let’s have a full and earnest debate. After watching the exchange on the timing of the referendum between him and the British Prime Minister David Cameron it should be a full, frank, detail ladened one too. Whether the referendum actually takes place in 2013 or 2014 there are many important questions to be fully explained and clarified. I suggest this article from the BBC as a starter: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-16636325.

Perhaps a different question should be asked, and not just if we would actually prefer “Devo Max” or further development of the already devolved powers of the Holyrood Parliament from the Westminster one. It should be “do you want to end the political and economic union with England?” The world’s longest lasting current political union since 1707. The United Kingdom will still exist as it did before the Union of the Parliaments in 1603-1707 regardless of the referendum’s outcome. This point has already been made by Alex Salmond with HM the Queen as head of state.

However, the coming debate should highlight what arrangements exist currently with the Union. As people may not fully appreciate its extent and full nature. What could be given up as a result of its demise and of course what may be gained by a Scottish sovereign government. Any good or promising economic reasons for a secession from the Union should be promoted and demonstrated to be substantial not just by SNP politicians, but their prominent supporters too. There are many potent emotional and historical arguments being voiced however the economic ones should hold a substantial sway on any result because the details will matter on how an independent state functions effectively.

The UK appears to be the exact construct that the EU would like to become. It is currently enduring extreme political and economic strains with the restrictions of Euro currency membership and lack of fiscal autonomy for supranational EU institutions like the ECB (along with a crippling amount of debt issuance to both public and private sectors). What would a German say about ever-lasting fiscal transfers to peripheral southern nations?

The UK has a single currency, fiscal transfer, bonds issuance and AAA ratings, tax harmonisation, military and civil protection agencies. Yet still vital areas like education and their legal systems exist separately along with religious institutions since 1707. The EU will never get its Union as close as this. Should the UK ends theirs? It’s an English question too as there’s two in any marriage. The constitutional steps involving the British Government must be addressed.

Jeremy Warner of the Daily Telegraph is more vehement on the position of the SNP so far, he comments recently “[Salmond] hasn’t remotely began to articulate how monetary union between two states operating independent fiscal policies would work. The Eurozone crisis has demonstrated beyond debate… you can not have crisis free monetary union without fiscal union”.

This is definitely one topic I’ll be revisiting as time passes and the debate develops. I’m all ears and open to thought out arguments from both sides.