Scottish independence plans dismissed as a 'work of fiction' as Alex Salmond insists he wants to keep the pound, the Queen and CBeebies



Voters go to the polls in referendum on 18 September 2014

Scottish government launches 670-page blueprint for independence

First Minister dogged by questions about how he will deliver the promises

Alistair Darling dismisses report as a 'meaningless'



Alex Salmond was accused of producing a ‘fantasy’ manifesto last night as he tried to shore up faltering public support for his dream of Scottish independence.

The Scottish National Party leader unveiled a 670-page ‘blueprint’ setting out the case for independence ahead of next September’s landmark referendum.

Mr Salmond, Scotland’s First Minister, said the document laid out ‘a prospectus for the kind of country we should be’. He added: ‘Scotland’s future is now in Scotland’s hands.’

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Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond presents the White Paper for Scottish independence at the Science Museum Glasgow

But critics said the manifesto was an uncosted ‘wish-list’, which failed to answer key questions such as what currency an independent Scotland would use.

It also emerged that English taxpayers would be asked to continue propping up the Scottish economy, even if Scotland becomes ‘independent’.

The Bank of England would be expected to bail out Scotland’s banks, and the SNP said Scotland would refuse to take on its share of the UK’s national debt unless it was allowed to keep the pound. Former Labour chancellor Alistair Darling dismissed the document as a ‘work of fiction’.

Mr Darling, leader of the cross-party Better Together group which wants to retain the union with England, said the White Paper on independence had ‘failed to give credible answers on fundamentally important questions’ in areas such as currency and tax.

He went on: ‘It is a fantasy to say we can leave the UK but still keep all the benefits of UK membership.

‘The White Paper is a work of fiction. It is thick with false promises and meaningless assertions.

‘Instead of a credible and costed plan, we have a wish-list of political promises without any answers on how Alex Salmond would pay for them.’

Mr Salmond and Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon hold copies of Scotland's Future, claiming it sets out how a Yes vote in next year's referendum could pave the way for a new era for the nation

At a packed press conference the Scottish National Party set out its case for independence in the glare of the media spotlight

Opinion polls over the last year have consistently shown a majority in Scotland are against independence, although a significant number of voters remain undecided, making the outcome uncertain. Mr Salmond said an independent Scotland would keep the pound, the Queen and popular BBC programmes such as Strictly Come Dancing, EastEnders and CBeebies.

The SNP’s long-awaited document includes a raft of populist policies, many aimed at women voters who are disproportionately sceptical about the idea of independence.

The SNP also insisted that Scotland would remain part of the EU, with the document even describing Scotland as its ‘29th member’. But there was little sign of how the party would overcome warnings from the European Commission that membership would not be automatic.

Incredibly, the new document suggests that English students would continue to have to pay tuition fees to attend Scottish universities, even though those from Scotland, and all other EU countries, pay nothing.

The UK Treasury suggests that independence would leave Scots facing average tax rises of £1,000 a year. But the SNP claimed that increased revenue from oil would leave Scots better off.

Downing Street yesterday said it was ‘highly unlikely’ England would want to continue in a currency union with an independent Scotland, leaving the Scots to create their own currency or attempt to join the euro.

Claim v Reality

Alex Salmond, yesterday published an extraordinary wish-list designed to convince Scots they would be better off voting to dissolve the 300-year-old union with England.

Here, JAMES SLACK analyses the reality behind the SNP’s uncosted and often fanciful list of promises. Funding the giveaways CLAIM: Scotland can afford an extraordinary list of giveaways, including 30 hours of childcare per week in term time for all three and four-year-olds; abolition of the so-called ‘bedroom tax’; increasing the State pension by £1.10 a week and ensuring the minimum wage rises in line with ‘cost of living’. All existing perks, such as free prescriptions and no tuition fees, remain.

REALITY: Even before yesterday’s wish-list, the Institute for Fiscal Studies estimated Scotland had a £3billion black hole in its finances. The SNP claims the money will be recovered by tackling tax avoidance, ending the married couples’ tax allowance (which hasn’t been introduced yet) and no longer funding the Westminster parliament. The No campaign insists the pledges are unaffordable without swingeing tax rises.

Keeping the pound CLAIM: Scotland allowed to keep the pound. Bank of England is lender of last resort.

REALITY: George Osborne and Labour’s Ed Balls have both made clear they would not agree to this.

O il and gas riches CLAIM: An oil and gas-rich Scotland would be the eighth richest country in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

POST-IT NOTE JIBE TO US



The SNP invited ridicule yesterday when it boasted its vision for Scotland made the US Declaration of Independence ‘look like a Post-It note’.

Its 670-page manifesto includes a mass of trivial detail – such as a pledge to continue broadcasting pre-school channel CBeebies – without answering key questions on its future currency or membership of the European Union.

By contrast, the US Declaration of Independence sets out the fundamental belief that ‘all men are created equally’ and is considered to be one of the most influential documents in history.

The comment was made by a parliamentary aide to SNP leader Alex Salmond in the Daily Record. REALITY: The figure is based on gross domestic product (GDP) data for 2011. But a huge proportion of the income from North Sea oil and gas goes to foreign investors, and gross national income (GNI) is therefore the figure that should be used. No Scottish data on GNI is available. UK oil and gas production has fallen by an average of 7.8 per cent a year since 1999.

Nuclear disarmament

CLAIM: Trident nuclear weapons, currently based on the Clyde, removed by 2020. Scotland to remain in Nato.

REALITY: Senior Nato officials have warned Scotland could be barred from joining in the event of a dispute over Trident. Under article 10 of the Nato treaty, the SNP, which is opposed to nuclear weapons, would be forced to accept the alliance’s first strike nuclear policy.

abandoning the BRITISH ARMY

CLAIM: Scotland protected by a new defence force with 15,000 regulars and 5,000 reserve personnel.

REALITY: A survey by the respected Henry Jackson Society found a ‘majority’ of Scottish soldiers will prefer to remain in the British Army, rather than sit ‘twiddling their thumbs’.

Border checkpoints

CLAIM: Border checks with England will not be put in place. For non-EU migrants, a more relaxed points-based system to that used by Westminster. Dungavel Detention Centre in Lanarkshire closed and dawn raids ended. REALITY: If Scotland adopts a more lax approach to immigration, there will be a clamour for checks to take place on the English side of the border. Otherwise, Scotland would become a gateway for illegal entry to rest of the UK.

the terrorist threat

CLAIM: Scotland kept safe by a single security and intelligence agency, combining work of MI5, MI6 and GCHQ.

REALITY: Security officials in the UK – and our allies overseas – would not be obliged to share secrets with an unproven spy agency. A report produced for the Home Secretary warned Scotland would have a ‘reduced capability to tackle a persistent threat’.

Joining the Euro CLAIM: Scotland will immediately be allowed to join the EU. It will not be forced to join the euro.

REALITY: Spain may block Scottish membership, amid fears it will encourage separatists in Catalonia and the Basque region. New countries joining the EU are required to adopt the euro as soon as relevant criteria have been met.

Ditching the Beeb CLAIM: A Scottish Broadcasting Service (SBS) would be established using the assets of BBC Scotland. SBS would broadcast Strictly Come Dancing, Doctor Who and CBeebies in return for giving the BBC access to its existing resources north of the border.

REALITY: Programmes such as Strictly have huge commercial value. The BBC could charge a premium for the show and use the money to establish its own facilities in Scotland. Popular BBC shows like Strictly Come Dancing and Doctor Who would not disappear from Scottish TV screens if the BBC becomes a 'foreign' broadcaster, Mr Salmond told reporters The Citizenship Question CLAIM: British citizens habitually resident in Scotland will automatically be considered Scottish citizens, as will Scots-born British citizens living in England.

REALITY: Many Scots living in England are furious that while Mr Salmond wants to give them a passport, he will not let them vote on independence. English people living in Scotland might want to refuse citizenship. The independence referendum, to be held on September 18 next year, gives voters ‘a choice between two futures’, the paper states.

A Yes vote will mean ‘the most important decisions about our economy and society will be taken by the people who care most about Scotland, that is by the people of Scotland’. It adds that ‘the door will open to a new era for our nation. Scotland's future will be in Scotland's hands’. But it claims a vote in favour of staying part of the UK would mean that ‘Scotland stands still’. As a result of that, the paper states a ‘once-in-a-generation opportunity to follow a different path and choose a new and better direction for our nation is lost’. In addition to negotiating with London on retaining the pound, an independent Scotland would also be plunged into protracted talks to rejoining the European Union.

ATHLETES COULD JOIN TEAM GB

Sir Chris Hoy with his gold medal during London 2012 Scottish athletes could still represent Team GB at the Olympics even if Scotland became independent.

Future sports stars would have to choose between a Scotland-only team or a British one, the Scottish Government said.

But Scotland would still field a separate Olympics team.

At present, athletes can choose which country they represent if they meet its qualifying criteria.

The Scottish Government said while it ‘hopes that all athletes who are qualified to represent Scotland will do so, this is a personal decision’.

The Better Together campaign has seized on Team GB’s success at last year’s Olympics as evidence Britain does better when united.