Of course it is a main source of information because it is a mouthpeice of Westminster, we take many figures from Westminster so that we cannot be accused of making these figures up. RBS btw: in a letter to staff, the bank's chief executive said there was no intention to move operations or jobs. (from Scotland) so it was as I said a silly idea that they were going to decamp. Now look at the BBC headline and tell me that is not SPIN and BIAS.
Ryder Cup? yes I am interested I play golf and I have played at Gleneagles. Are you now going to produce something about Standard Life?
When was the letter sent and can we see a copy? Assuming it was prior to today where RBS have basically said they would relocate to England, then it would seem they have had a change of heart. Either that or the letter kept the employees quiet Lloyds have also said they will relocate.
"Of course it is a main source of information because it is a mouthpeice of Westminster, we take many figures from Westminster so that we cannot be accused of making these figures up." Sorry, but I see no need to use the IFS as an "information source" whatsoever. The other sources should suffice. Unless of course one is cherry-picking data/conclusions that suit the yarn being spun. "BS btw: in a letter to staff, the bank's chief executive said there was no intention to move operations or jobs. from Scotland) so it was as I said a silly idea that they were going to decamp. Now look at the BBC headline and tell me that is not SPIN and BIAS." Correct. The story should be that RBS are moving whatever administrative/business resources necessary so as not to be hurt by market reaction to their perceived economic exposure to an independent Scotland.
I think people find it frustrating that the people who actually have a say in how things will plan out (all our parties and the Bank of England saying no currency union, the eu guy for finance and the euro saying eu membership and currency union couldn't both happen, businesses announcing they will leave Scotland etc) say what they will do and the YES campaign and it's supporters just go "nope, it'll all work out".
Here are a few facts for you carefully collected to be presented to the Scottish people. OK NO campaign where are your facts? Scotland has only 8.3% of the UK's population. 8.3%! Remember this important figure... 8.3% But we DO have... 32% of the land area. 61% of the sea area. 90% of the fresh water. 65% of the natural gas production. 96.5% of the crude oil production. 47% of the open cast coal production 81% of the untapped coal reserves 62% of the timber production 46% of the total forest area 92% of the hydro electric production 40% of the wind wave and solar energy production 60% of the fish landings 30% of the beef herd 20% of the sheep herd 9% of the dairy herd 10% of the pig herd 15% if the cereal holdings 20% of the potato holdings ...obviously 100% of the Scotch Whiskey industry. We have a... 17 billion pound construction industry 13 billion food and drink industry 10 billion business services industry 9.3 billion chemical services industry A 9.3 billion tourism industry 7 billion financial services industry 5 billion aeroservice industry 4.5 billion pound whiskey exports industry 3.1 billion pound life sciences industry Scotland still has 350 million pounds worth of textile exports We have 25% of Europes wave and wind energy potential. And finally we are blessed to have 1.5 trillion pound worth of oil and gas reserves. All of this, yet only 8.3% of The UK's population... Whaow Scotland should be rich! IGNORANCE... If you hear anyone saying "I DONT LIKE ALEX SALMOND" or "I DONT LIKE SNP"... THIS VOTE IS ABOUT SCOTLAND'S RIGHT TO ELECT ITS OWN GOVERNMENT... IT HAS NOTHING WHATSOEVER TO DO WITH ALEX SALMOND OR THE SNP. DONT LET POLITICAL IGNORANCE RUIN THIS OPPORTUNITY. Do you know... This is the UK's legacy of success in our history of being better-together is as follows... The UK has the 3rd lowest pensions in the 34 OECD countries of the world The UK has the single most expensive childcare in the European Union The UK has the second lowest-paid economy in the entire developed world The UK has the 3rd longest working hours in the EU The UK has the lowest number of holidays in the EU The UK has the 8th highest gender inequality pay gap out of the EU's 28 countries The UK has the highest likelihood of poverty in disablement in the EU The UK has the highest rail prices in Europe The UK has the second highest housing cost in Europe The UK has the highest fuel poverty rates in Europe. The UK is the 4th highest country of wealth inequality in the entire planet! But surely these awful figures cannot be possible when you read the following Scottish statistics... Now, finally, did you also know that in all of the UK's elections for Westminster ever!... Not one vote cast in SCOTLAND has ever mattered! Because of the Westminster numbers, whatever government England votes for, the UK gets. So we have no democracy here!!! 4 decades of tory rule that we voted against is proof enough, and our defiance was punished by the closure of all the mines; closure of all the steelworks; closure of all the shipyards losing hundreds if thousands of jobs. The term used by Westminster's Thatcher when these industries needed some assistance was "let the markets decide". Funny how when the greedy bankers collapsed everywhere they were bailed out to the tune of over a trillion pounds of our money... Not a mention of "let the markets decide". FACTS: Fact: Scotland has an oil boom waiting to happen on the West Coast, but Michael Hesaltine signed a cessation of any form of oil exploration in the entire area in the 80's to make way for nuclear submarines which Scotland doesn't want! Fact: Scotland has shown its revulsion time and time again to nuclear weapons but they place them here against our countries wishes. A recent contingency report was carried out a out the feasibility of relocating them in Portsmouth. The report stated that it was unfeasible because the detrimental risk to the area of an incident was too high. (Ok for the Clyde though) Fact: Scotland, with only 1 Tory MP, was forced to take the shocking attack on the poor & disabled called The Bedroom Tax, even though as our nations government, Holyrood voted to utterly reject this awful tax on the poor. Westminster gave us it anyway! Fact: We are led to believe that the oil in our waters is finished and its a dying industry. Yet 13.5 billion has been invested by oil companies in the last 2 years alone! Fact: The Clair Oil Field is about to open, and on its own has over 650 million barrels which will be extracted over 20+ years with production reaching a hundred thousand barrels a day! Fact: Scotland gives more to Westminster than it gets back. Do you really think they'd be so keen to keep us if we were being subsidised like they'd have us believe? Fact: Westminster has amassed over £1.3 trillion debt and still growing at nearly £6000 a second. Thats another £516 million today alone which YOU will have to pay for. Fact: Of the 178 countries that have gained their own independence across this planet, not one single one of them has ever asked to reverse this independence, and very few of them have the assets we have. SCOTLAND, WHAT ARE WE SCARED OF? WE HAVE A CHANCE... WITHOUT A SINGLE BULLET BEING FIRED, WITHOUT A SINGLE DEATH... TO GET OUR FREEDOM AND INDEPENDENCE, ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS PUT A CROSS IN THE YES BOX. SCOTLAND, ITS TIME TO STAND UP AS A NATION AND VOTE YES ON THE 18TH OF SEPTEMBER... AND BECOME A FREE AND CARING NATION AGAIN!!! VOTE YES AND SET OUR COUNTRY FREE!!!! Y E S ! ! ! Y E S ! ! ! Y E S ! ! !
"Are you now going to produce something about Standard Life?" Standard Life is alleged to have 90% of its business/customer base in UKminus. Will that suffice ??
"But we DO have..." A debt burden (courtesy of its banks) that seems to be somewhere between 80 and 180bn quid.
[video=youtube;rHmLb-RIbrM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=rHmLb-RIbrM[/video] Here you can see why we are winning thus argument.
On this whole "Scotland doesn't get the government it votes for, you get your mp's just like anyone else in the uk plus have your own government to vote for. The party that wins a general election usually does so with 10-15million votes, that means 50-60million people don't get a government they individually voted for. Out of interest what was voter turnout in Scotland in the last general election?
You must surely be picking up by now how badly the UK compares with other advanced developed nations, why do you want to support this?
Spurf we all can see your very passionate . Being honest during the Salmond televised speech it was the same old. Lots of jingoistic rhetoric with no real answers and a silly childish attack on the BBC. I know your not a man of religion but you treat him as the "Second Coming".
Italy, for example, has proportional representation. Since WW11 they have had 62 governments. Is that what we want too? No, our democracy isn't perfect and you don't always get the Gvt you voted for, but that's one of the downsides of democracy. Along with politicians, of course!
He answered the questions very directly indeed with complete facts. I can't believe that people can't see what is under their nose. I have to be honest I do think Salmond is a great man for Scotland, he could easily have joined the Labour and become Prime Minister I have no doubt of that, he is head and shoulders above most if not all the pathetic collection of MP's atm. He has terrible press of course because they know just how good he is and they are in fear of the man. I liken this to Markarios in Cyprus I thought he was the devil incarnate because of what I was fed in the newspapers and television, then I married a Greek Cypriot went to Cyprus and found the facts which were the complete opposite of what I and everbody else in the UK had been led to believe. Salmond has had a mission for thirty years and has been completely true to that cause, a rare event in our politics.
No idea, to be honest. It just shows the relative downside of proportional representation. In actuality, of course, that would be the fairest system. The downside is the emergence of numerous small parties who frequently end up holding the balance of power. When disagreements over future policy, etc emerge, then the fragile coalition falls apart, and an election has to called. The end result is invariably instability. 62 gvts in 69 years tells it's own story.