After reading a post by douglas @newgreenme on twitter and following his link to his blogg i decided to post my responses to the questions he posted as I felt it was not enough to respond with a simple "scaremongering," as this does not address or explain why its scare mongering. It will take me some time to address all the questions as there are 500 and i haven't read them all yet , but, these are my responses so far and i hope it goes someway in explaining why its scaremongering in my opinion.
i believe all too often politicians and political types tend to pose questions and never actually address them. I am not a politician and my knowledge on some of the topics is limited , however, i have tried to address them as best I can with in the remit of my knowledge base and what research I have done on the matter in relation to the questions I have done tus far. I would be interested in any comment others have in regard of my responses.
310. What assessment has the Scottish Government made of the role of the UK Supreme Court in the appeals process in a separate Scotland?
Scottish law differs from English law, so one would presume that a supreme court of Scotland could be set up within the remit of the present Scottish legal system this i would suggest would function in line with percent international laws &i see little issue with appeals processes ext in keeping with present supreme court functions except it would be a separate supreme court of Scotland deciding by Scottish legal hierarchy & in line with existing human rights act & international laws
.311. What would be the final court of appeal in a separate Scotland before a case joined the queue at Strasbourg?
would be dependent on the resolve of previous question.
312. What assessment has the Scottish Government made of the legal obligations applying to the UK under international law that a separate Scotland would inherit? For example will a separate Scotland inherit the obligation of payment of compensation to those affected by nuclear testing and if so what share would it inherit?
can't answer this as i am not aware of what has or has not been already agreed.
313. What assessment has the Scottish Government made of a separate Scotland’s ability to negotiate mutual assistance arrangements for police and fire support from other police and fire services within the UK?
I can't think of any instances when Scottish police or ambulance has been dependent on services from departments of same in England or under what circumstances this would be necessary . I suggest that when divisions of the social services face such circumstances as reinforcement or support is required it is generally brought in from forces from neighboring regions and presume this would be the case . it is also a possibility that should such negotiations of mutual assistance become necessary there is also the option of another Irish or indeed Irish assistance being a plausible option as there are equally short distances to thes locations with adequate transport links to accomodate by air & sea as with England or indeed wales.
314. Who would be responsible for policing cross-border trains and planes if a separate Scotland no longer funded the British Transport Police?
i suggest that this issue offers not only job creation opportunities within the remit of a Scottish transport police sector as well as the opportunity for serving officers of this sector to make individual decisions on remaining within the remit of the English divisions or transferring to Scottish divisions i suggest dependent on geographical location and social mobility opportunities it would open in creation of a Scottish transport & immigration dept.within the sector.
315. What assessment has the Scottish Government made of whether courts in a separate Scotland should be able to deport offenders from other parts of the UK at the end of their sentence? And vice versa?
i cannot comment on what the Scottish government has already considered , but again this would be
something to be discussed under the terms decided after independence is achieved.
316. What guarantees can the Scottish Government give that a separate Scotland would receive the same income from European Structural Funds, which runs into tens of millions of pounds, as it currently does?
to this i have only 1 answer and that is what terms does the Scottish government already receive as a devolved government and what reason is there to suggest that agreements should be different outwith the fact that presently the Westminster government control the Scottish purse and that would change which is the present Westminster government worry. i suggest that the issue here does not lie within what guarantees Scotland's government can give to maintain income from European structural funds as any arrangement in this regard would be for the new independent Scottish government to agree with European counterpart in this regard and that indeed the 10s of millions of funds it currently receives as there is no reason to believe it should be a case of buisness as usual with exception that the funds come directly to Scotland and not via Westminster dictate or take.
317. How many votes would a separate Scotland have at the Council of Ministers for Agriculture and Fisheries if it becomes a separate member of the EU?
Scotland would have the same votes as it has now. why would it not?
318. What assessment has the Scottish Government made of the speed of EU direct payments, given that at present for new member states direct payments to farmers are phased in gradually?
this would be for the independent Scottish government to negotiate after independence and there is no reason to suggest that a good phasing in deal could not be negotiated in the interest of good trading . Scotland record on farming export and import production speak es for itself and it is in the interest of all concerned in these areas to resolve negotiations in the best interest of both the exporter and importers of produce.
19. In a separate Scotland, would Scottish fishing fleets still be able to declare their catch in England?
to be honest i don't understand this question.
320. In a separate Scotland, how would the fishing quota be split within the UK?
this would be subject of negotiation between the Scottish and other uk governments after independence.
321. What impact would independence have on the ability of Scottish producers to market Scottish produce to a UK market
what reason is there to believe that the uk market would be less interested in Scottish produce after Independence. the rest of the uk is reliant on many of Scotland products & businesses as it stands. indeed Scottish produce not only provides a large part of the revenue that support & sustains the rest of the uk economically but has many interests in other uk destinations as it does internationally what possible reason would the English government have to sabotage themself economically by make an issue of this . Scottish producers already trade in other uk destinations they don't have to re market themself in a market they already trade within it would not be in the best interest of any party to cease this.
322. What assessment has the Scottish Government made of whether a separate Scotland would be able to be part of the Common Agriculture Policy and Common Fisheries Policy and if it accepts it would be required to accept the acquis communautaire in this respect?
The Faroe Islands is an island nation situated in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean, between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroes is a self-governing territory encompassed by the external sovereignty of the Kingdom of Denmark. A nation of approximately 48,000 with its own democratically elected parliament and executive government, defined by the Home Rule Act of 1948.
Though the self-government of the Faroes is mainly developed in the internal sense, they also exercise a great degree of foreign policy. The best example is the fact that they chose to remain outside the European Union (then the EEC), when Denmark chose to enter as a member state.
The Faroes have negotiated a fisheries agreement and a free trade agreement with the EU.
There is little reason to believe that Scotland could not do similarly and follow their example once Scotland is independent when many of the new Scottish governments priorities will be with regard to negotiations regarding new policies treaties and agreements that befall any newly indipendent country.
In 2006 the Faroes entered into a special economic treaty with Iceland, the Hoyvík Agreement, which established a single economic area encompassing both countries where any discrimination regarding goods, services, capital and persons is prohibited. (http://www.mfa.fo/Default.aspx?ID=13248)
General fisheries policy remains "shared competence" of the Union and its member states.[3] Thus decisions are made primarily by the council of ministers..Fishing contributes generally less than 1% to gross national production EU.
In 2007 the fisheries sector employed 141,110 fishermen[5] In 2007, 6.4 million tonnes of fish were caught by EU countries.
In Fraserburgh, Scotland, the Fishing Industry creates 40% of employment and a similar figure is in Peterhead. They are the EU's largest fishing ports and home to the Pelagic vessel fleet. It is often in areas where other employment opportunities are limited. community funds have therefore been made available to fishing as a means of encouraging regional development.
The market for fish and fish products has changed in recent years. Supermarkets are now the main buyers of fish and expect steady supplies. & there is no reason to believe this would change.Fresh fish sales have fallen, but demand for processed fish and prepared meals has grown. these products still rely on fresh fish being caught and sold in the 1st instance.Despite this, employment in fish processing has been falling, with 60% of fish consumed in the EU coming from outside.
This is partly due to improvements in the ability to transport fresh fish internationally. Competitiveness of the EU fishing industry has been affected by overcapacity and shortages of fish to catch,Fish farming is the fastest growing area of world food production. In 1995 it produced 1/3 in value of world production of fish and shellfish. Main species in the EU are trout, salmon, mussels and oysters, but interest has been shown in sea bass, sea bream and turbot. Community support began in 1971 for inland fish farming, but was extended to other areas in the late 1970s. EU support covers similar areas to other land installations, but with additional concerns of technical and environmental problems caused by introducing major fish concentrations where farms are built. The industry suffers problems due to fluctuating demand for farmed fish.(wikipedia)
Approximately 69 per cent of the total volume of sea fish landed into the UK in 2003 was landed into a Scottish port.Scottish-based vessels landed 62 per cent by weight and 54 per cent by value of all landings by UK vessels in 2003. Landings into Scotland by UK and foreign vessels were 379,000 tonnes. The value of these landings fell by 10% to £283 million due to a decrease in landings of demersal species and an increase in landings of lower value pelagic species into Scottish ports.(ww.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/55971/0015243.pdf)
Scotland‟s border with England was fixed in the year 1237 by the Treaty of York. That treaty has never been rescinded. There was a tidying-up agreement between the two kingdoms in 1552 about the so-called Debateable Lands in the west, but otherwise the now completely definitive Scotland-England terrestrial border has never legitimately been altered in almost eight centuries. Hence, it was outwith the power of the UK Government to alter the constitutionally fixed terrestrial and sea borders at the mouth of the River Tweed. Berwick was never English. English law did not apply in Berwick at the time of the Union in 1707. The Treaty and Acts of Union did not in any way change the Scottish-English borders.( http://realmofscotland.com)
When we rationalize the scaremongering tactics of the present government of Westminster and the better together camp it is easy to find the information to disperse the arguments of the scaremonger camps with some basic and simple research which clearly reflects the advantages that independence would bring to Scotland as an independent nation.
Acquis communautaire is a French term referring to the cumulative body of European Community laws, comprising the EC’s objectives, substantive rules, policies and, in particular, the primary and secondary legislation and case law – all of which form part of the legal order of the European Union (EU). This includes all the treaties, regulations and directives passed by the European institutions, as well as judgements laid down by the European Court of Justice.
again, such issues when we disperse with the the linguistics used to attempt to confuse or complicate issues are all issues that would be subject to negotiation of the new independent sottish government and lets not forget either that as the facts indicated by the facts reflected in the small research i have done into this area it appears that it is not only in the best interest of Scotland but also other parties to negotiate terms that are fair and acceptable to all concurred in relation to agriculture and in fisheries concerns.
323. Would the BBC remain as the main public broadcaster in a separate Scotland?
I don't find this to be a big issue, and agree with your own assertion in regard to this. my personal reference would be the introduction of a sottish broadcasting service that negociated with other broadcasting services to offer the best deal to the public with regard to television services and that would eliminate the outdated lenience arrangements which personally i feel should be abolished given that into days broadcasting there is no non commercial tv all are subject to some form of promotional and advertising which the license fee was meant to keep consumers free of ( commercials and adverts) as this no longer applies even with in the bbc I feel that digital and various viewing deals, fair arrangements could be negociated in the best interest and favor of consumer who already in general terms has to pay for live viewing via whatever broadband or digital agreement they have.
324. How would the BBC be divided in a separate Scotland?
again a somewhat menial question.. we already have bbc Scotland, although it is largely dominated and controlled by London chiefs & exec's on large salaries often of which they are unworthy. Perhaps it would be fair to suggest under an independent Scotland the bbc although state funded ( unfairly these days by license fees from public coffers) we could hope for and expect a non bias , non politically influenced channel that reported impartially on news , & political affairs.
325. What license fees and charges would apply?
i think i'v addressed this . none i would hope.
326. Currently many viewers in countries outside the UK have to pay a fee to watch programmes on the BBC iPlayer. What would be the cost of this to Scots?
again i feel i have covered this question already.
328. Who would regulate the media in a separate Scotland?
i suggest an independent non profit making regulatory panel.
329. Would a separate Scotland still receive all BBC programmes or would there be a reduced license fee if Scotland only received BBC Scotland programming?
no reason to believe not, people using internet to view bbc thru not only iplayer but other internet sources ie, youtube etc around the world have access to all bbc programmes through sharing options.
330. Would pensioners continue to receive a free TV lice in a separate Scotland?
already covered this question as i perceive it would be viable to abolish the unlawful unfair tax the license fee represents.
331. Would Scots still pay their share to the BBC through the license fee on top of one for a separate Scottish Public Broadcaster?
previously covered this question.
32. What would replace OFCOM in a separate Scotland and what would the annual cost be?
subject to post independence considerations and debate.
333. What would be the regulatory apparatus and regulatory approach to the broadcasting and telecommunications sectors following independence?
covered by previous question and answer.
334. If Scotland is to have its own distinct regulator, what assessment has been made to assess the gaps in skills, expertise and knowledge that would need to be overcome in order to staff it effectively?
the skills expertise and knowledge already sexists in Scotland and employment and training in this sector is and has always been a employment creation opportunity since Scottsman John loggie Baird invented tv. what a ridiculous question.
35. Would Scotland have its own Broadcasting Code for television and radio broadcasters?
i suspect that the sottish people would want Scotland to adopt a code of broadcasting ethics in keeping with freedom of speech & expression codes that would be dependent on self regulations in keeping with good ethical practices as well as impartial & honest unbiased representations in relation to documentary news & social interest reporting. obviously consideration would have to be considered in relation to age appropriate content and warning regarding content but this i suggest would be subject to post independence arrangements and agreements that would be subject to consultation with the Scottish people.
336. What will replace the Advertising Standards Authority?
a new Scottish independent one with a emphases on moral, ethical and honest representation of advert product content at its heart i would hope.
337. What assessment has the Scottish Government made of whether a separate Scotland would have a distinct independent regulatory and enforcement body for advertising across all media?
i would hope assessment by the present or future Scottish government would be as in previous in response and not take its lead from the present regulotory system adopted by en gland where monetary considerations take presidence over honest representation of product, & promo content.
338. If Scotland is to have its own distinct advertising regulator, what assessment has the Scottish Government made of the gaps in skills, expertise and knowledge that would need to be overcome in order to staff it effectively?
what gaps in skill expertise and knowledge base? contrary to propaganda Scotland has a fantastic record in skills, expertise & knowledge base in creative scientific and all other comercial & non comercial sectors we are not a nation of numpty's and never have been and the opportunities to expand job training job creation and employment ac-cross every sector lies within our sphere as an independent nation.
339. How would a distinct Scottish regulator be funded?
who is any regulator funded.? by investigation consideration and negotiation of available options same as in any other country including England.
340. Should Dundee or Aberdeen win UK City of culture, how would a vote for independence impact this status?
should they win it would be nothing but good for the city who won economically and benefit the wider region resulting from the boost of visitors .same as anywhere else.
341. What assessment has the Scottish Government made of whether a Scottish athlete who currently, or intends to, compete for team GB at the Olympic Games will be able to do so in the future should they wish to?
why not represent team Scotland as a Scottish national . there is no reason to think Scotland and its athelets could not compete in olympics as an independent country . why would this be an issue?
342. How many Scots athletes would be disenfranchised by not being part of Team GB? this is hardly even worthy of a response given the discriminatory & bullying context it suggest therefore i shall pass and move on to next question.
343. Would a separate Scotland enter teams into the Olympics and Paralympics?
why wouldn't they ... a proud Scottish athlete is a proud Scottish athlete
344. If so, in what year would the first team be entered?
i suggest athletes from Scotland have not stopped training in fear of this being an issue so i suggest the next Olympics.
345. What assessment has been made of the impact on elite sport given that all Scottish medalists at the last Olympic games used rUK located and/or UK-funded facilities.
good athletes irrespective of what team or country they represent attract sponsership , the elitist issue is therefore rendered irrelevant.
347. How will the withdrawal from the UK effect the funding provided to racecourses and the racing industry by the Horse race Betting Levy Board?
we are not dealing with a Thatcherite closure of industries with the independent Scotland issue, racing is a big income spinner in Scotland and despite not being a betting woman myself i would be willing to bet the bookies ain't gonna jeopardize the revenue they receive from gambling at the races or anywhere else within the sector in scotland.
348. Would an independent Scotland have to establish a separate Anti-Doping Agency?
Scotland would create jobs and establish agencies in what ever sectors these were necessary which i am sure all involved in establishing a new independent nation do across all sectors of need for the development in the spastic area involved.
349. What would be a Scotland’s relationship with the Royal Mail be in a separate Scotland?
this would be subject of negotiation and of course were there issues then i guess it would be an issue of development in either a independent Scottish mail service open to tender within the private sector if necessary. mail is delivered internationally with or without the royal seal of approval in respect of the royal male brand. bearing in mind the queen is also queen of Scotland and the issue of a Scottish republic is not part of the independent Scottish referendum debate at this time.
354. What assessment has the Scottish Government made of whether the current level of postal workers who valiantly serve our communities remain the same?
one would hope that the scottish government would negotiate with representatives of the scottish trade unions & other postal company representative to improve improve the service and create more job and training opportunistic . despite the gowning email communications services there is still and always will be a requirement for good postal and livery services for parcels as well as mail
355. What assessment has the Scottish Government made of how a separate Scotland would pay for its share of the Royal Mail Pension Fund deficit?
this would be subject of negotiation and resolvability per ratio i presume.
questions 356-363 are covered in previous answers
as i mentioned there are apparently 500 questions posted on douglas@anewgreeme's blogg so will need more time to read and respond to them all so,
to be continued...
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