Pound Stirling?

[ludwig]

Is it reasonable for the SNP to expect that an independent Scotland could keep the pound?

[emmie]

if it goes through i sincerely hope we have a full split, you have your own armed forces, tax system, government, and no monies comes wafting from the other members of the United Kingdom for your upkeep.

[Wharton]

DaisyNonna - I don't imagine there is a country which is completely independent but Scotland has the choice in September to change things for the better. For example, it will have a written constitution. The UK is the only member of the European Union and of the Commonwealth that does not have a written constitution or a Constitution Act. The dominant constitutional rule in the UK is that Westminster can do anything it chooses. After independence in Scotland there will also be a single tier chamber only, no un-elected 'House of Lords'.

[Peter Pedant]

.There are dollarised economies - Vietnam and Zim spring to mind
the only problem is that they dont have big financial sectors ...

Scotland's financial sector is 12 x GDP.
The Bank of England has shown disinclination to support it when it goes bust again.

Alex S has to say how the currency will work when Scotland becomes independant. So far all the scots are getting on the subject are comments like:
That is comething we will discuss - game on !

as forest gump may well comment: independance is not a box of chocolates

[emmie]

do we have Scottish MPs in Westminster, if so don't they determine how the country is run, overall...

[Wharton]

emmie - 59 Scots MPs in Westminster

41 Labour
11 Lib/Dems
6 SNP
1 Conservative

53 of them have shown where they stand (or told to stand) on the Scottish currency question.

[Wharton]

Forrest Gump - "That Peter Pedant fella seems an ok sort of guy but why's he wanna pound the Scots? Come to think on it, I don' remember much about the Scots bein' bust. Maybe Peter Pedant's memory ain't too good too but I hope it gets better.

[jomifl]

Whatever pound the Scots choose, it won't be the sterling one. If in a fit of fierce independance they choose to hang on to the coattails of the new UK by locking their pounds value to that of sterling then so be it. Several other banana republics have locked their currencies to the US dollar and it seems to work as long as they don't mind being permanent victims.