The Scottish independence referendum

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The Scottish independence referendum
By Adam (Adam the Fish)

On 18th September 2014, Scotland’s citizens voted decisively to reject a split from the three-hundred-year-old union it shared with England in the United Kingdom. With a record turnout and passionate campaigns prior to the referendum on independence from both the “Yes” and “No” (“Better Together”) sides of the argument, the decision was a historic one.

Circumstances leading to the referendum
Whilst independence is something that has historically been debated in Scotland, the main drive in the 2014 referendum began during the Scottish Parliament election in 2007, where the Scottish National Party (SNP) - led by Alex Salmond - formed a minority government, pledging an independence referendum. Although this did not materialise, when the SNP formed a majority in the next government, the Edinburgh Agreement was negotiated and the terms for a referendum were laid out.

Campaigns
With this Agreement, campaigning began. The main organisation in charge of promoting the independence cause was “Yes Scotland” whilst the “Better Together” campaign opposed it. Pro-independence was supported by the SNP and Scottish Green Party, whilst the major three Westminster parties formed the Better Together alliance.
Initial polls suggested that the vote would very easily be a “No”, although as time went on, the huge lead the Better Together campaign originally held was gradually eaten away in opinion polls.

Arguments
The “Yes” campaign centred on points regarding the potential prosperity of Scotland if its oil revenues were invested rather than spent by Westminster; the privatisation of the country’s National Health Service (something which parties such as the SNP have tried to avoid) and social justice, such as free higher education - something currently available in Scotland, but not the rest of the UK - and the Welfare system. The “No” campaign originally largely focussed on the perceived uncertainties of the independence proposals, such as membership of organisations like the European Union (EU), United Nations Security Council and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO); the possibility of a currency union with the remaining UK - something which anti-Independence parties had said would be impossible, and the ability of Scotland to bail out its economy in times of hardship, the major example being the 2008 banking crisis when the UK government was required to bail out major banks.

Televised debates
In the weeks prior to the referendum, several televised debates were broadcast. The first between Alistair Darling (for the Better Together campaign) and Alex Salmond (for the Yes campaign) - shown on the STV, therefore controversially only being broadcast to Scottish viewers - gave the “No” campaign victory, according to a poll immediately after. However, a second, broadcast nationally on the BBC, was won by the Yes campaign’s arguments. Both of these debates were criticised for becoming little more than political “slanging matches” at times. A further debate between several thousand of Scotland’s young voters - for the first time, 16- and 17-year-olds were able to vote - took place shortly after.

Westminster contingency plans
Shortly before the referendum, an opinion poll was released putting the “Yes” campaign ahead of Better Together and for the first time it was widely considered that Scotland could actually vote to become an independent nation. The reaction from anti-independence parties was to suggest that devolution would be the result of a “No” vote - meaning that the Scottish Parliament would gain some extra powers (for instance, in taxation) should there be a “No” vote. This was intended to swing voters back to the “No” side on the basis of the promise of the extra power being taken from Westminster to Holyrood - the home of the Scottish Parliament.

Referendum
Voting took place most of the day on 18th September, closing at 22:00 before votes began to be counted. The vote was to be proportional - meaning that overall votes nationally would be what counted - and the target was therefore set after a record turnout of 84.9% at 1,809,958 votes to win. The majority of areas voted “No” across the country, and eventually in the early hours of 19th September it was confirmed that the vote would officially be a “No”. The Better Together campaign eventually received 2,001,926 votes (55.3%) to 1,617,989 votes (44.7%) for the pro-independence side.

Immediate aftermath
The deputy leader of the SNP, Nicola Sturgeon expressed her disappointment, as did the many other Yes voters across the country. Alex Salmond accepted the loss as a democratic decision, saying that the people of Scotland had voted, and that he was immensely proud of the things the "Yes" campaign had achieved regardless of its greater-than-expected loss at the polls. He later, however, announced his resignation as the First Minister of Scotland and leader of the SNP. The Queen released a written statement from her Scotland residence urging the country to display a “spirit of mutual respect and support” following the vote.
Demonstrations were held in George Square, Glasgow leading to minor disturbance but otherwise most reactions were entirely peaceful.

Future plans
Plans laid out during the campaign period will now have to be executed, and promises from the Better Together campaign followed through. This, hypothetically, should lead to more powers for the Scottish government, although the result has sparked a national debate on further devolution to all four member states of the UK.

Despite independence itself being rejected, change is inevitable - in attitudes if nothing else - as a result of the referendum and incredibly vibrant campaigns leading up to the vote. For the most part, both sides can now reconcile and work towards future arrangements, being proud of their contributions, achievements and conduct during the debate. What the future holds is still absolutely unknown, but Scotland is now undoubtedly in a very different position in the UK to that which it was in only decades ago.

Further reading
This article doesn't cover everything, but if you’ve found it interesting, you may wish to read the BBC News coverage of events, or find out more from the Yes Scotland and Better Together campaigns' websites.