Independent Scotland can manage its own economy - your views

Intro

Scotland’s own bank can function well

Jill Stephenson misunderstands the role of a central bank (Letters, December 7). A central bank IS the lender of last resort.

An independent Scotland with its own currency and central bank would be able to provide currency in a pandemic, plus have borrowing powers which the devolved Scottish Parliament does not have, so would be able to cope with the financial costs just as any other small independent country is currently doing.

As regards assuming a share of UK debt, this is determined by international law, which holds that if a country divides into separate independent states, the successor state inherits the debts and assets plus any international treaty obligations.

The parties may agree, however, to both be successor states. Except that was ruled out by the UK government in the legal advice it was given at the 2014 referendum. Scotland would, therefore, not inherit any share of UK debt, unless in the negotiations England was willing to agree that both nations were successor states.

England is unlikely to want this, because it would mean losing the former UK’s permanent seat on the UN Security Council, which would be declared vacant, leading to a diminished role for England on the global stage, which she is unlikely to find acceptable.

Mairianna Clyde, Merchiston Crescent, Edinburgh.

Must independence mean finances fail?

Jill Stephenson, an ardent unionist, writes that an independent Scottish currency would be a disaster, “at best fraught with difficulty and at worst bankruptcy.”

It is typical of unionists that they never, ever, look at the success of other small north European countries, few of whom have the resources of Scotland and yet are perfectly capable of managing their own currencies.

They also manage to have much higher standards of living and equality than Scotland. It is quite sad that a considerable (although diminishing) number of Scots are so dismissive of the capabilities of their fellows that they decry the very notion of Scotland being capable of running her own affairs. I believe it is called the “unionist cringe”.

James Duncan, Rattray Grove, Edinburgh.

Election results show democracy at work

Once again Jill Stephenson castigates our Scottish government.

She does realise we live in a democracy and the SNP have successfully won all elections since 2007?

As to her recent moan about finances within Scotland, does she also realise even taking Covid stuff out the equation, her beloved British government has her country £2.7 trillion in debt?

Roddy Watson, Orchard Bank, Edinburgh.

Why unionists have inferiority complex

There seems to be a sense of inferiority among unionists that makes them mortally afraid of Scotland creating and using our own currency.

Within the last 30 years at least three small European countries have done just that – Estonia, Slovakia and Croatia – with no ill effects. The first two have since chosen to join the euro, but in the years before they did so their currencies were stable. Incidentally, it took each of them less than a year from making the decision to introducing their new currency. Slovakia did it in 38 days.

Does Jill Stephenson think Scotland incapable of doing what these countries did?If so, why does she think the Scottish sky would fall in on us, when it has stayed aloft for all these others?

Lyn Jones, Tollcross, Edinburgh.