Braveheart.

[Gourmander]

Why was Gordon Brown allowed to take all the taxpayers money out of England and give it to the Scottish banks? It came to over 7 billion pounds. They seem to be living the high life in Scotland, all paid for by the struggling English taxpayer. It's about time a London born Prime Minister was running the country.

[Bathsheba]

Not Manchester born? Or Leeds, Birmingham, Newcastle?

[Sgt.Rock]

Perhaps it was a payback for all the revenues from oil and gas from the North Sea?

[dundurn]

Who allowed successive British Governments to take all the oil from Scotland and use it to finance The Millennium Dome and the buying of votes in London Boroughs by allowing council tenants to buy their houses, but failed completely to replace even a portion of the housing stock they 'gave away'?

Stupid, simplistic example but it was a stupid original question.

Either you believe in the Union or you don't. If you do then you accept that sometimes money is going to go (perhaps inappropriately in your view) to one area rather than another. It may be the former mining village down the road, or the motorway that chops off a bit of your garden, or coastal defences anywhere when you live in an inland area. Get used to it - it's called nationhood and democracy.

On the other hand if you want to declare UDI for the Democratic Republic of West Yorkshire or Free Surbiton or wherever you live, feel free to go it alone, but it's going to be lonely and a bit like having no house insurance - scary.

By the way, the only thing high about the life they lead in Scotland is Ben Nevis and the Cairngorm Plateau. The rest of it is very like down here except at this time of year the weather is frightful and it gets really, really dark a lot of the time.

[Gourmander]

If Scotland had used their oil money wisely, instead of pishing it against the wall, then they wouldn't have to be bailed out by England every year.

[danchip]

gourmander, you'll be happy to know scotland wants to break away from the union and so english taxes will stay in england in theory,

your right in some respects in what your saying, it is wrong that scottish MP's can vote on what happens in england but english MP's cant vote on what happens in scotland

[Gourmander]

It can't happen quick enough, danchip. My benefits are about to be cut, but they can give them all that money. Why should I suffer because they want to drink and squander their money?

[jake-the-peg]

ROFL - think you've snagged a live one thre Gourmander!

[China Doll]

Rolls eyes

If you make Boo burst a blood vessel again I'm not going to be happy... NHS treatment ain't cheap you know.

[kinell]

gourmander,

i really must object to your generalisation regarding scots 'pishing' away our money 'up the wall',

why only yesterday i saw a scot 'pishing' in a shop doorway....

[kinell]

... people coming out of sainsburys had difficulty getting past him.

[sandmaster]

There's too much money in England - all you labourite millionaires are living the high life!!

[R1Geezer]

forget all the usual oil yada yada horsesh1t the sweaties always bring up, they don't own the kin North sea and England got it out for them anyway. Scotland gets 120% of the funding that England gets anyway. We've always bankrolled the chip on shoulder t0ssers it's just that this is a bit more direct. Nothing new. England supports Scotland always has and they hate us for it becuase they are so gutted that they just missed out of being English. Just get over it guys, most of them are in England pretending to be English anyway

[Gourmander]

CD, I hope B00'S ok. I had visions of her exploding all over the place, like something out of a horror movie. Hopefully she's back at work and not thrown a sickie, that would be a poor excuse.

[Gourmander]

Too true R1, the begging bowl is always out for more money, yet they won't support England in the World Cup.

[Sgt.Rock]

Nobody apart from a few English yobs will be supporting England in the World Cup. Wonder why?

[R1Geezer]

Is That the best you can do Sgt,.Jock! No wonder you're a nation of parasites, not an ounce between you!

The sad thing is I think the English quite like the old sweaties it's just that when push comes to shove they haven't got the bottle to just own up to themselves. I can quite understand why most of them live elsewhere and pass for English, Where their own country emtpies by the day. Which is a pity, I've had some great times in jockland, climbed most of the mountains, done a lot of training up there. I just wish they'd meet us half way.