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Any thoughts on how possible Scottish independence might affect this?

by j_col 14y ago

objclxt 14y ago
Personally I don't see it affecting any of the five points raised: however, if you're looking to start a new business there may be some financial considerations. But to be honest, despite all the talk true independence is really quite a long way off, and certainly not until the EU financial situation has generally calmed down (so, a long way off!).
- mooism2 14y ago
  Isn't Scotland holding in 2014 a referendum on independence from the UK?
  - rmc 14y ago
    Yeah sorta. There's a lot of details to be worked out. The main political party in the Scottish Parliament wants independence. But in the UK/Westminster Parliament (of which Scotland is a part), the Conservative ("Tory") government isn't so keen on the idea. There's going to be a lot of horsetrading and politicing over what the referendum will actually say, e.g. if there was 2 questions "Do you want independence? Yes/No If not, do you want Scotland to have more power Yes/No", then the Scottish independence people can almost win either way, if 50.00001% vote for independence, they can claim it, if not, but a majority say "more power", then they can claim more power for Scottish Parliament
  - lifeisstillgood 14y ago
    The Scottish National Party (ruling party in Scotland) is trying to hold it in the weeks just after the 700th anniversary of the greatest Scottish victory over the English at Bannockburn. It's unlikely they are hoping for a nationalistic fillip but more a negotiating position over the actual wording of the referendum - but it is an amusing bit of chutzpah and what one expects of the SNP leader :-)
- aaronbasssett 14y ago
  The Scottish government has been pushing to lower corporation tax for a while now. They've been prevented from doing so by the English government as they fear that companies will simply hop the border to reduce their taxes.
  - Lio 14y ago
    It's a small point but that would be the UK government, there is no English government.
theallan 14y ago
Perhaps it would simply come down to what happens to the tax rates show a local government have the ability to raise and lower taxes? Lower taxes and more grants for small businesses === more people willing to try their hand at their own business.
justincormack 14y ago
Not much. They are likely to stay using the pound and Scotland already has its own legal system. And it would remain in the EU.
- mibbitier 14y ago
  You can't become independent, and remain using the UKs currency. Won't happen. If they do become independent, they will have to create their own currency, or join the sinking Euro.
  - rmc 14y ago
    Sure you can. The notes look different anyway, so you could just peg the new Scottish pound at 1:1 with the UK pound. No reason you can't use the same currency as another country. Some non-EU countries (Montenegro and Kosovo) use the Euro and aren't in EU.
    - protomyth 14y ago
      Quite a few countries are currently pegged to the US Dollar (e.g. Cayman Islands dollar), so it is not a new process for a country. Pegging to the UK pound would work better right now than going for the euro. On a currency side note, I do wish someone would not divide their main currency into 100's (decimal) so pennies wouldn't exist. How about being a nice non-decimal 12?
      - jarofgreen 14y ago
        The UK tried using non-100 divisors and gave up in 1971. http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/questions/moneyold.htm http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/questions/mo...
        protomyth 14y ago
        Yeah, but thats beyond even 100 divisions, they had 240. I was more thinking along the lines of 12.
lifeisstillgood 14y ago
Hardly at all. At the risk of a flame war (it's a perma-warm topic in the UK) Scottish Independance will have minimal up or downside when considered broadly. There are lots of clever Economists who expalin how different choices will cost / bring in millions or billions but I have yet to see anything promising more than 2k per citizen - and to be honest I doubt anyone will move house to get a 2k pay raise, so the overall effect - minimal of course some areas of Scotland are long term grindingly poor and recieive lots of start up credits (they are called enterprise zones) - but they are nit focused on HN style startups, services and light industry is the bigger recipien of enterprise grants.
- andyking 14y ago
  of course some areas of Scotland are long term grindingly poor and recieive lots of start up credits My area in northern England is like this - you can't move for constant advertisements for "start-up events," in the local newspapers, on the local radio and so on. It just feels like a way of spending EU money. I don't think they actually hand out many start-up grants or credits, they just run these endless "events." I live in a small town of 8,000, and they even have them every month there, plugged ceaselessly on the local radio station. It's quite a good way of propping up the local media with advertising revenue, but I'd be interested to know how many people actually get anything out of this.
- ktizo 14y ago
  some areas of Scotland are long term grindingly poor and recieive lots of start up credits (they are called enterprise zones) I grew up near Greenock, which fits that description fairly well and found that the Scottish Enterprise system round there was not at all geared for anything remotely ambitious. Although I found that the people on the front line were great, as I delved further into the depths of the monster I just got circulated between stuffy box tickers, who seem immune to novelty as it is never their department. The whole experience was just depressing and completely unrewarding.
- epo 14y ago
  "(it's a perma-warm topic in the UK)" No, most English people don't give a toss. It is a warm topic in Scotland so long as you don't ask how its going to be paid for.
epo 14y ago
That depends on their tax policies. Spending plans less English handouts leaves a huge gap to fill. Of course they'll try to support fledgling businesses but if the large wealthy businesses (and people) leave then ... I know plenty of businesses eyeing up moves across the border.
rmc 14y ago
Highly unlikely. Remember Scotland already has a separate legal system and different bank notes from England & Wales. The only way things could change massively would be if a newly independent Scotland left the EU, which as far as I know, noone wants. Scotland in the EU would mean Scotland would have access to the EU single market (which includes England etc.). This means there'd be no customs, visas etc with England (etc.)

Any thoughts on how possible Scottish independence might affect this?

by j_col 14y ago

Any thoughts on how possible Scottish independence might affect this?

Personally I don't see it affecting any of the five points raised: however, if you're looking to start a new business there may be some financial considerations. But to be honest, despite all the talk true independence is really quite a long way off, and certainly not until the EU financial situation has generally calmed down (so, a long way off!).

mooism2 14y ago
Isn't Scotland holding in 2014 a referendum on independence from the UK?
- rmc 14y ago
  Yeah sorta. There's a lot of details to be worked out. The main political party in the Scottish Parliament wants independence. But in the UK/Westminster Parliament (of which Scotland is a part), the Conservative ("Tory") government isn't so keen on the idea. There's going to be a lot of horsetrading and politicing over what the referendum will actually say, e.g. if there was 2 questions "Do you want independence? Yes/No If not, do you want Scotland to have more power Yes/No", then the Scottish independence people can almost win either way, if 50.00001% vote for independence, they can claim it, if not, but a majority say "more power", then they can claim more power for Scottish Parliament
- lifeisstillgood 14y ago
  The Scottish National Party (ruling party in Scotland) is trying to hold it in the weeks just after the 700th anniversary of the greatest Scottish victory over the English at Bannockburn. It's unlikely they are hoping for a nationalistic fillip but more a negotiating position over the actual wording of the referendum - but it is an amusing bit of chutzpah and what one expects of the SNP leader :-)
aaronbasssett 14y ago
The Scottish government has been pushing to lower corporation tax for a while now. They've been prevented from doing so by the English government as they fear that companies will simply hop the border to reduce their taxes.
- Lio 14y ago
  It's a small point but that would be the UK government, there is no English government.

theallan 14y ago

Perhaps it would simply come down to what happens to the tax rates show a local government have the ability to raise and lower taxes? Lower taxes and more grants for small businesses === more people willing to try their hand at their own business.

justincormack 14y ago

Not much. They are likely to stay using the pound and Scotland already has its own legal system. And it would remain in the EU.

mibbitier 14y ago
You can't become independent, and remain using the UKs currency. Won't happen. If they do become independent, they will have to create their own currency, or join the sinking Euro.
- rmc 14y ago
  Sure you can. The notes look different anyway, so you could just peg the new Scottish pound at 1:1 with the UK pound. No reason you can't use the same currency as another country. Some non-EU countries (Montenegro and Kosovo) use the Euro and aren't in EU.
  - protomyth 14y ago
    Quite a few countries are currently pegged to the US Dollar (e.g. Cayman Islands dollar), so it is not a new process for a country. Pegging to the UK pound would work better right now than going for the euro. On a currency side note, I do wish someone would not divide their main currency into 100's (decimal) so pennies wouldn't exist. How about being a nice non-decimal 12?
    - jarofgreen 14y ago
      The UK tried using non-100 divisors and gave up in 1971. http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/questions/moneyold.htm http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/questions/mo...
      - protomyth 14y ago
        Yeah, but thats beyond even 100 divisions, they had 240. I was more thinking along the lines of 12.

lifeisstillgood 14y ago

Hardly at all. At the risk of a flame war (it's a perma-warm topic in the UK) Scottish Independance will have minimal up or downside when considered broadly. There are lots of clever Economists who expalin how different choices will cost / bring in millions or billions but I have yet to see anything promising more than 2k per citizen - and to be honest I doubt anyone will move house to get a 2k pay raise, so the overall effect - minimal of course some areas of Scotland are long term grindingly poor and recieive lots of start up credits (they are called enterprise zones) - but they are nit focused on HN style startups, services and light industry is the bigger recipien of enterprise grants.

andyking 14y ago
of course some areas of Scotland are long term grindingly poor and recieive lots of start up credits My area in northern England is like this - you can't move for constant advertisements for "start-up events," in the local newspapers, on the local radio and so on. It just feels like a way of spending EU money. I don't think they actually hand out many start-up grants or credits, they just run these endless "events." I live in a small town of 8,000, and they even have them every month there, plugged ceaselessly on the local radio station. It's quite a good way of propping up the local media with advertising revenue, but I'd be interested to know how many people actually get anything out of this.
ktizo 14y ago
some areas of Scotland are long term grindingly poor and recieive lots of start up credits (they are called enterprise zones) I grew up near Greenock, which fits that description fairly well and found that the Scottish Enterprise system round there was not at all geared for anything remotely ambitious. Although I found that the people on the front line were great, as I delved further into the depths of the monster I just got circulated between stuffy box tickers, who seem immune to novelty as it is never their department. The whole experience was just depressing and completely unrewarding.
epo 14y ago
"(it's a perma-warm topic in the UK)" No, most English people don't give a toss. It is a warm topic in Scotland so long as you don't ask how its going to be paid for.

epo 14y ago

That depends on their tax policies. Spending plans less English handouts leaves a huge gap to fill. Of course they'll try to support fledgling businesses but if the large wealthy businesses (and people) leave then ... I know plenty of businesses eyeing up moves across the border.

rmc 14y ago

Highly unlikely. Remember Scotland already has a separate legal system and different bank notes from England & Wales. The only way things could change massively would be if a newly independent Scotland left the EU, which as far as I know, noone wants. Scotland in the EU would mean Scotland would have access to the EU single market (which includes England etc.). This means there'd be no customs, visas etc with England (etc.)