Independent Scotland would face currency problem

The nation of five million will hold an independence referendum on September 18, 2014, at the instigation of the Scottish National Party (SNP), which runs the country’s devolved government.

Pro-independence campaigners say Scotland would keep the pound, at least in the early years of independence, and could later hold a sovereign debate on whether to switch to its own currency.

But Osborne and his deputy Danny Alexander, who is Scottish, said in a joint article that monetary union would not work as well in “a disunited kingdom”.

“The pound we share now works and it works well. Under independence all the alternatives are second best. So our question to the nationalists – are you really saying second best is good enough for Scotland?” the two men wrote.

As things stand, opinion polls suggest about 30 percent of Scottish voters favour independence while 50 percent would stick with the status quo, but those who want Scotland to remain part of the United Kingdom are not taking victory for granted.

The central government in London will publish on Tuesday a detailed analysis of the implications on currency of Scottish independence. The article by Osborne and Alexander sought to make the case against independence ahead of that report.

It said that if an independent Scotland kept the pound and thus had its monetary policy set by the Bank of England, that would amount to “handing over to what would become a foreign government key decisions over the Scottish economy”.

“This is one of the big contradictions in their (the nationalists’) whole economic approach,” the article said.

“Campaigning to ‘bring powers home’ with one hand, while giving them away with the other … It simply doesn’t add up.”

Osborne and Alexander accused SNP ministers of “tying themselves in knots” over the currency issue because in their heart of hearts they knew that economic and political union across the United Kingdom worked well.

In a speech delivered in Scotland last week, Alexander said the euro zone crisis had shown that combining monetary union with fiscal independence was challenging.

“While such arrangements can appear successful in a period of stability, they can lead to brutal readjustments in times of economic stress and uncertainty,” he said.

Osborne’s Conservative Party and Alexander’s Liberal Democrats are both against independence but are not dominant forces in Scottish politics. The opposition Labour Party, traditionally a major force there, also opposes independence.

Source: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/04/20/uk-britain-scotland-currency-idUKBRE93J0K020130420

Scotland has an issue with anti-Catholicism

Amazingly, discussion of the subject tends not to be about how best to tackle it but rather about whether or not it exists.

It is both bizarre and frustrating to see that a matter of objective fact – based on, among other data, Crown Office conviction statistics – proving that anti-Catholicism is demonstrably present in Scotland, is treated as a matter of opinion or a “point of view”.

Society, as far as I can see, does not do this with any other topic. When considering, for example, childhood obesity, smoking-related cancer and violence against women, it may be a minority who are affected … but that reality is never proposed as a challenge to the fact that a measurable problem exists. Why is the threshold so high for anti-Catholicism? And why can’t discussion focus on how we tackle this problem?

Many Catholics are utterly exasperated at a seemingly wilful denial of a clearly catalogued problem and a complete disinclination to challenge it within wider society, while column inches are constantly given to deniers.

It is very important in discussing this topic that the anecdotal does not substitute for the empirical. Were you to ask a cross-section of women if they’d ever experienced sexism and found that a number had not, you wouldn’t be justified in concluding “sexism may not exist”.

Health studies generally indicate that between 17% and 25% of smokers develop cancer. If you asked a sample of smokers if they’d developed cancer, statistically around 80% wouldn’t, yet no-one would conclude: “smoking-related cancer probably doesn’t exist”.

To assess such matters, it is important that we steer away from anecdotal and personal experiences and follow a far more rigorous factual methodology.

The empirical evidence is clear: The Act of Settlement of 1701, together with Article II of the Treaty of Union of 1707, prohibits a Catholic from ever becoming head of state.

An analysis of convictions under Section 74 of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2003) which created the offence of “aggravated sectarianism” consistently shows that religious hate crimes against Catholics are more numerous than hate crimes against all other religions combined and that Catholics are between five and six times more likely to be subject to such an attack than anyone else.

An opinion poll based on a statistically significant sample of Scottish adults in September 2011 found that 68% of Scots had an “unfavourable” opinion of the Catholic Church, though interestingly there was majority approval for many of the Church’s messages. And 51% did not agree with the statement that “on balance the Catholic church is a force for good”. All the results were dramatically more negative than the polling results for the same questions in England and Wales.

A recent statistical analysis of the Scottish census results reveal significant levels of employment disparity across several occupations and industries, when you compare Catholics with non-Catholics with similar education and qualification standards. Repeated assertions to the contrary based on older and smaller data samples are utterly flawed and completely false.

It is therefore perfectly possible to posit a convincing case for the widespread existence of residual and at times pernicious anti-Catholicism in Scotland to the present day. The cacophony of denials, including by some Catholics, is simply a facet of the problem.

Perhaps we can learn something from the 1999 Lord Macpherson Report and his description of London’s Metropolitan Police Force as “institutionally racist”. However, he also stated that most of the Metropolitan Police are not racists.

A key point from this, seemingly contradictory, set of statements is that the decent non-racist majority did not feel empowered enough to challenge the racist minority – thus leading to the creation of a “canteen culture” of racism.

This mirrors Scotland, where the majority of Scots are not anti-Catholic. However, neither are they minded to recognise and challenge anti-Catholicism in its different forms.

A country where public prosecution statistics show that religious hate crimes against Catholics comprise more cases than all other religious hate crimes combined has an issue with anti-Catholicism. A country where Catholics are statistically at least five times more likely to be subject to such a crime has a problem with anti-Catholicism.

The evidence for widespread occupational disparities for Catholics is simply overwhelming and should no longer be swept under the carpet by apologists who have never experienced it. The time is long overdue for a meaningful honest debate but before any problem is solved, its existence must first be acknowledged.

Source: http://www.heraldscotland.com/comment/columnists/scotland-has-an-issue-with-anti-catholicism-thats-a-fact-and-we-have-to-face-it.21235091

Same Sex Marriage

06/27/2013

A Bill to allow same sex couples to marry in Scotland.

The proposals offer protections for religious bodies, individual celebrants and the Bill also makes it clear that freedom of speech is unaffected.

Under the plans, religious bodies who wish to perform same sex marriage will have to opt in. If a body does decide to perform same sex marriages, protection will also be in place for individual celebrants who consider such ceremonies to be contrary to their faith.

It was also confirmed that a review  will be undertaken on the Civil Partnership Act 2004 in Scotland, driven by the need to consider the position on opposite sex civil partnership.

Health Secretary Alex Neil said:

“This is a historic moment for Scotland and for equal rights in our country.

“We are striving to create a Scotland that is fairer and more tolerant, where everyone is treated equally. That is why we believe that same sex couples should be allowed to marry.

“A marriage is about love, not gender. And that is the guiding principle at the heart of this bill.

“At the same time, we also want to protect freedom of speech and religion, and that’s what the Bill sets out to do. That is why it will be up to the religious body or individual celebrant to decide if they want to perform same sex marriages and there will be no obligation to opt in.”

Should the Bill reach Royal Assent in early 2014, it is anticipated that the first same sex marriages will take place in 2015. It will take around 12 months to put the legislation in place.

Crown Office advice published today makes clear that criticism of same sex marriage is not in itself an offence, nor is the expression of religious views.

Engagement with key education stakeholders on revising sexual health education guidance will begin in September to ensure it is kept up to date.  Existing guidance makes it clear that parents and carers can, following discussions with the school and the local authority, withdraw their children from classes on sexual health education.  This right will be retained.  Revised guidance is expected to be in place by early 2014.

The Equality Act 2010 will be amended to further protect individual celebrants who do not wish to carry out same-sex marriages but belong to a religious body who has ‘opted-in’ to do so. The amendment will also protect any persons integral to the religious aspect of the ceremony and religious premises.

The amendment will be made through an Order under Section 104 of the Scotland Act 1998 at Westminster after the Bill is passed.

Source: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2013/06/same-sex-marriage-27062013

Scottish Clans

The Clan is a concept which dates back to the 12th Century. The Scottish clans were originally extended networks of families who had loyalties to a particular chief, but the word ‘clan’ is derived from the Gaelic ‘clann’, meaning literally children.

In Scotland a clan is still a legally recognised group with an official clan chief. The chief’s Seal of Arms, incorporated by the Lord Lyon’s letters Patent, is the seal of the corporation and only the chief has the legal right to use the seal on behalf of his clan.

“For that is the mark of the Scot of all classes . . . there burns alive in him a sense of identity with the dead, even to the twentieth generation.”
(RL Stevenson.)

Clan names are usually associated with land: an area of Scotland where the clan lived. The clans lived off the land, with cattle being their main source of wealth and, along with border disputes, the prime cause of inter-clan unrest. The most important clan chiefs held power over the lands within their control, acting as a king, protector and judge.If a clan chief expanded territory, the new peoples swearing him allegiance often took the clan name. So, the history of clans is complex and interwoven and finding out which clan you belong to can depend on which era of history you’re looking at. And there were many bitter rivalres and feads along the way, none of which have been carried through to the modern day, fortunately!

The clan system was the main political system in Scotland until the time of the battle of Culloden in 1746, when the Jacobite rebellion was crushed by the royal troops of King George II. The Highland Clearances were key to the ending of the clan system. Thousands of Scots emigrated to the New World, seeking a better life.

Many clans have their own tartan as well as a seal, and deciding which tartan to wear is often based on family history. For many families of Scots descent its hard to work out the appropriate clan as some surnames are Scotland wide, have variations in spelling or include words with etxra meaning for example ‘Mac’ means ‘son of’. But most Scots or people of Scots descent can work out their clan with a little research into family history. The place where ancestors lived during the peirod when clans predomiated Scottish history, is usually the best guide as swearing allegiance to the local clan chief was commonplace.

 Source: http://www.scotland.org/features/scottish-clans

Marriage, Family, and Kinship

Marriage. Over a third of marriages are civil rather than religious. Scots law requires that marriages be monogamous and be between consenting adults (over age 16) and provides for the recognition of marriage “by habit and repute.”

Traditional weddings take place on Friday or Saturday, with the groom in formal attire (often kilted) and the bride usually in white, forbidden to see the groom until the ceremony. Weddings normally are conducted near the bride’s home. The bride enters last and is “given away” by her father or a senior male relative. Divorce can be obtained on the bases of adultery, intolerable behavior, desertion, and de facto separation.

Domestic Unit. An increasing number of households (around 30 percent) contain a single adult, while those with one male and one female with children (around 20 percent) have been decreasing. Around a quarter include one male, one female, and no children, and just over 10 percent include three or more adults with no children. At least a third of households are headed by women, a fifth of those widowed or divorced, whereas two thirds of households are headed by men, over half of which are married.

Inheritance. Until the 1960s, the incomes, savings, and properties of both spouses were considered totally separate, with marriage conferring no claims. Parliamentary acts in 1964 and 1985 established equal claims at divorce on most property acquired during marriage, and household goods and savings from housekeeping allowances are equally shared. A peculiarity of Scots law is that minors can enter into binding contracts.

Kin Groups. The clan system today has significance primarily for historians and tourists. Ties of kinship are activated by conditions of class and economic opportunity, with poverty, family businesses, and extreme wealth tending to heighten the importance of kin group obligations. Scotland is a small country with a high degree of overlap in social and kinship networks. Thus, urban networks involving politics and public life can be very dense, creating a sense of familiarity across a wide social field.

Source: http://www.everyculture.com/Sa-Th/Scotland.html#b

The Scottish People

 

Warm, fun-loving and generous Scottish people

Scottish people have a worldwide reputation for warmth and friendliness. Whether it’s the 2.5 million visitors who travel to Scotland every year or the thousands who come to live permanently, so many talk of a genuine friendliness and a welcoming hospitality.

Did you know that almost three quarters of European visitors say that one of the main reasons for visiting Scotland is its people?

Everyday friendliness

The Scots love people – and they like to make others feel at home. You’ll find an enthusiastic friendliness in so many places. Ask a stranger for directions, buy something in a local shop, eat or drink in a pub or restaurant or put on the kettle in your workplace kitchen and you’ll be met with a smiling face and a friendly “Let me help”, “Tell me more about yourself” or “How are you?”

Culture and identity

Scottish people are proud of their nationality but they also have a long tradition of welcoming new people and cultures. Historically, Scotland has appreciated the benefits of embracing different cultures.

Today, Scotland is a richly diverse country with dozens of different cultures living in harmony. Tolerance, equality of opportunity and social justice are important principles of Scottish people and communities.

We love a party

Scotland knows how to party – and extends an invitation to all. From large Hogmanay (New Year’s Eve) street parties and music and film festivals to more intimate Burns’ Suppers and St Andrew’s Day celebrations, there is always a fun event to attend.

Getting together, sharing good times, ‘having a blether’ and welcoming others with open arms give Scotland its reputation for being a happy and friendly country.

Really, it’s no wonder that 50 million people around the world claim Scottish ancestry – and so many want to be a part of our Scottish family.

Source: http://www.scotland.org/about-scotland/the-scottish-people

The Population

Scottish Population	Around 5.2 million
Population of Scotland’s main cities	Glasgow – 592,820 Edinburgh – 486,120 Aberdeen – 217,120 Dundee – 144,290 Inverness – 56,660 Stirling – 89,850 (National Records of Scotland 2011)
Birth rate	11.3 births per 1,000 population (2010, General Register Office for Scotland, now National Records of Scotland)
Death rate	10.3 deaths per 1,000 population (2010, General Register Office for Scotland, now National Records of Scotland)
Net migration rate	4.1 migrant(s) per 1,000 population
Population growth rate	0.54% (between 2009 and 2010) (National Records of Scotland, April 2011)
Life expectancy at birth	female: 80.1 yrs male: 75.3 yrs (For those born around 2008) (National Records of Scotland, 2010)
Literacy	99%

Source: http://www.scotland.org/about-scotland/the-scottish-people/population-of-scotland

Current Religion

As in any country, religion forms a vital part of the culture in Scotland. A recent census has established that the majority of the country practices Christianity. While the national church of the country is the Church of Scotland, it is important to recognize that it is not under the control of the state. Even though Christianity is the largest religious group in Scotland, there are various other religions being practiced, each with their own history and connection to Scotland.

Christianity not only has the largest following in Scotland but is also one of the oldest, with its presence here dating as far back as the second century. The Church of Scotland has played a vital role in the promotion of tolerance and has much influence on the country’s culture. Other denominations include the Roman Catholic Church, Presbyterians, Pentecostals, Baptists and Episcopalians, along with Methodists, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Congregationalists. It is believed that Judaism was introduced into Scotland during the High Middle Ages. The highest concentration of followers of Judaism is found in Glasgow  and Edinburgh, with small groups found spread out across the country.

Over the years, as immigrants and travelers began to arrive on the shores of the country, different religions were established. Visitors to Scotland will also find that religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism are also practiced. There are also minority religions such as Rasta, Neopagan and Bahai Faith. The census also revealed that there was a percentage of the population in Scotland that have no ties with religion, as well as groups that promote and develop secularism and humanism. Paganism is rarely found in Scotland, with Shetland being the only destination where this form of religion is common.

Source: http://www.scotland.com/religion/