Bad news for separatists

In recent times it seems that the strategy of Scottish separatists wasn't so much to convince the Scots of the supposed benefits of an "independent" Scotland (let's leave the EU out of this for now) but to provoke the English into driving Scotland out.

So it's interesting to see the figures from the latest British Social Attitudes Report from the National Centre for Social Research. These figures can be spun both ways - see The Scotsman: Scots get too much cash, say rising number of English and Scottish Unionist: Nationalists fail to whip up English resentment for alternative spins. A Pint of Unionist Lite: All a question of presentation... notes the different ways of looking at this.

But here are some of the interesting figures:

• Nearly a third (32%) of people in England now feel that Scotland gets more than its fair share of government spending, up from 22% in 2003.
• Well over half (61%) agree that Scottish MPs should not vote on English legislation, though this figure was already almost as high (60%) in 2003.
• Only a minority oppose the devolution that is already in place. Fewer than one in five people in England (18%) oppose the idea of Scotland having its own Parliament, while only 20% oppose the Welsh Assembly.
• There has been no increase in the desire that Scotland should leave the UK; only one in five people in England (19%) want this, no more than felt that way in 1999 (21%).
• The majority (57%, the same figure as in 2001) think England should continue to be governed from Westminster rather than by an English Parliament (17% in favour) or regional assembles (14% in favour).
• Forced to choose, 47% of people in England say they are British while 39% say they are English.
• While the proportion saying they are British is down by 11 percentage points on 1996 (58%) it is up three points on 1999 (44%).
• More than half (55%) of people in England say that the creation of the Scottish Parliament has made no difference to how well Britain is governed.
• 50% trust the UK government to look after England’s interests either ‘just about always’ or ‘most of the time’.

The obvious conclusion is that the UK's current arrangements are broadly felt to work and it is only a couple of comparatively minor issues that still maintain resentment. And only a third were concerned about the Barnett Formula, a situation that should eventually correct itself. This is hardly the image of England in uproar and hatred towards Scotland that some like to play to.

So if the Scottish separatists were hoping on the English doing the job for them it seems they've totally misplaced their hopes. Maybe they should go back to explaining why they want Scotland to be like Iceland is now.

Oh it seems that even Iceland doesn't want to be like Iceland is now. (Christian Science Monitor: Will EU lifeline sink Iceland's fishing industry?)

Yes to a single currency

I bet many of you never thought I'd say that!

But no, it's not that single currency that's at issue. Instead David Mundell is bringing a Private Member's Bill that would require the acceptance of Scottish banknotes on the same basis as Bank of England ones. (BBC News: 'Legal' bid over Scots banknotes)

I have to say I've never had much of a problem with Scottish notes myself, but normally when I do come back from Scotland I aim to spend the notes in London where they're relatively well known, or even break them all in Scotland so I don't have any. However I gather they are more problematic in the country.

Where I have had problems though are with Northern Irish banknotes, even in places that don't give Scottish notes a second glance. This is probably because they're much rarer down here. I hope that when the Bill is finally presented it will place them on the same footing as Scottish notes throughout the UK. Being able to shop and order with confidence that the money in your pocket will be accepted wherever you are in the UK is straightforward common sense and I'm surprised it's taken this long to enact.

The "Where Were You When..." Meme

Normally I'm not one to do these, but Mars Hill: The "Where Were You When..." Meme has explicitly tagged me so here goes. So here is where I was when the following events happened:

Princess Diana's death - 31 August 1997

I was actually asleep and only found out when my mother came into the room at about eight o'clock that day, on the phone to her mother who had just told her the news. Initially I was confused as I thought I heard her say "the Prince of Wales" and I remember commenting that it solved some big dilemmas the monarch was facing. The she clarified and I turned on the news to get the details. I remember then going to church that morning where the congregation was even larger than normal. The rest of the day was spent mainly watching the news coverage of everything going on and the growing hostility to the Royal Family on that day. During the following week I was back at school in London and the conversations amongst strangers on the tube were clear that something big was happening.

Margaret Thatcher's resignation - 22 November 1990

I was at school when my class came in after (I think) the morning break to be told by our Latin teacher who had heard both the announcement and the famous weather forecast of "Thatchy Pog". I was stunned but not entirely surprises, as my family was entirely pro Heseltine. Later on the day on the second ballot I did an opinion poll of my class and found John Major leading to Douglas Hurd and I was the only pro Heseltine person! But I was young at the time.

Attack on the twin towers - 11 September 2001

I was working in the coffee shop at Marks and Spencer in Canterbury and didn't find out anything until after I finished my shift at about six that evening. On the way home I bumped into a local councillor who told me the World Trade Center had been destroyed and my reaction was sheer disbelief. I then made it home to the flat I was staying in to find my flatmate who told me and I saw the footage of the towers falling for myself. Having been up the towers only the previous summer I was amazed at the devastation. It took time to sink in that the world was entering a war.

England's World Cup Semi Final v Germany in - 4 July 1990

I can't remember this one at all! My family was never particularly keen on football so we weren't watching or following it.

President Kennedy's Assassination - 22 November 1963

I was waiting to be born.

On the Union's birthday

Unfortunately I've been tied up all day so unable to write something substantive about the 300th anniversary of the Union of the kingdoms of England and Scotland. So here's a substitute - the National Anthem, as played at the Edinburgh Military Tattoo:



I have many fond memories of seeing the Tattoo several times when I was young and my grandparents lived in Edinburgh. Hiopefully one year soon I'll be able to see it again.