Here here...nothing much else to add...if Scots don't start voting for independnece after all these world-renownd experts have come out in support, then theres no hope for our country...

#1 - Even spelling will be better under the SNP! ;o)

Didn't know George Mathewson was a world renowned expert on independence until you mentioned it, Daibhidh.

Sir George has hit the nail on the head. Whatever one may think of the SNP, a massive victory for the party on 3 May is the only way of moving Scotland forward. I want to see Alex Salmond firmly installed in Bute House as First Minister. That is the first essential.

Some of us are already looking forward beyond 3 May to the day when the London parties disappear from the Scottish political spectrum. That is the reason we founded the Scottish Enterprise Party (SEP) to take their place, and to cover a part of the spectrum where a gap is presently disenfranchising up to a quarter of the electorate. We are keeping out of the SNP's way as far as possible this time round, but still hope to have one or two MSPs elected on the list vote as a basis for future development.

Sir George has conclusively exploded the myth that independence would have an adverse effect on the Scottish economy. The other myth that has been assiduously propagated by vested interests is that Scotland is financially dependent on London handouts. The SNP has already done a creditable job of demolishing that myth.

Now the fledgling SEP has carried out an exhaustive exercise in forensic accountancy that has revealed a Scottish surplus on balance of accounts with the rest of the UK of such a magnitude that the prospect of losing it must be ringing all the alarm bells in London. The analysis will shortly be posted in full on the SEP's website (still under development) under the title of The Great Deception. We intend to continue in this vein. Please see:?www.scottishenterpriseparty.org?info@scottishenterpriseparty.org

#5 Haha. "Sir George has conclusively exploded the myth that independence would have an adverse effect on the Scottish economy." When other business leaders took a different view they were wrong-headed and fools, but now that one man agrees with you then the myth is exploded, eh? What a hoot!

Let's see Labour lie and twist their way out of this one!

Duncan (6): The businessmen put forward by Labour to defend the union seem mainly to be David Murray and Willie Haughey - if Labour need to play the Old Firm card, they must really be scraping the bottom of the barrel.

"Globalisation is here. . ." But in what form will it stay?

Politics and economics are up in the air just now. The victory of the Democratic party in the US mid-term elections and the stalled Doha world trade talks suggest that the rules for globalisation will need to be heavily modified. Only this week the US president said to an international audience that the US administration now supports "social justice". New politics beckon.

Visited the SEP site - and it appears that at the very least the consistent recent momentum of Scotland reclaiming it's independence, deceitfully appropriated from the bunch of improvident muppets allegedly representing our Scottish interests at the time, we could have a selection of well constructed political groupings with a range of Scottish centred proposals and workable initiatives to choose from.
The present bunch of improvident muppets function only with the hidden hand of Westminster placed firmly in the place where most of their thinking is done. Time to put these particular glove puppets back in the trunk and lock it firmly.
Alex Salmond is the only current contender for First Minister, but it looks likely that his potential to raise the level of political debate and action will encourage others at present in political hibernation due to a 300 year season of deprivation now coming rapidly to an end in May 2007.

George Mathewson is not alone in recognizing that the current Labour/Liberal Democrat administration have failed us miserably.

Scotland desperately needs a jolt. Some of us have become hopeless and cynical and have given up on the future. Others are just too comfortable for their own good.

One of the best things to have happened in the last 50 years is the independence debate which sets us all thinking and talking about the future, rather than dwelling on the past or whingeing about the present.

The fact is there is something seriously screwed up with our economy, when roughly half of the working population are employed by the government and large chunks of the urban population are on state benefits of one kind or another. There is an urgent need to radically reform public spending.

He is absolutely right in his view that the Scottish National Party are the only political party currently who display the economic policies and the people of real ability to form a Government which will move Scotland forward successfully after May's elections.

#1
"all these world-renownd experts"

you mean this one!

A good coup for the SNP but they'll need to keep this up for the whole campaign - the economic case is still their weakness
I still don't think it helps if SNP supporters consistently label those who doubt their fervour as "weak", "cowardly" or fearties...or use the U-word
Many of us have a feeling for the idea of independence BUT we need convincing - this constant labelling suggests a paucity of argument , a quasi-religious faith and a disrepect for the electorate which may backfire on them....

11 G

You could not have put it better.

It's for those proposing Independence to WIN our votes .
The approach the SNP supporters on these posts at present is far too often continuing to harm their cause. Thanks to them the pro-SNP argument appears no more valid than that of some "everything to all people " play ground bully.

This comes down to "Vote SNP, they may not be very good but the other parties are rubbish". With the Tories deciding that the only policy they will go into the election with is spending more on winning the war on drugs I think this will be persuasive.

"This would be more likely to increase rather than decrease with independence."

And your evidence of this assertion is what?

11, 12 and 13...how surprising your comments are (oh theyre not they are the same as you always enter) - I think if you were to read all the comments above I dont read any that say you are all fearties etc. so u are clinging to this anti snp stance for what?? are you hoping we'll call you fearties and traiters so that you can do your damnest to do a "divide and rule" shout????

#14 I think you're right. What a difference individuals could make to this election. Imagine if Jack McConnell had gone away and Wendy Alexander, Susan Deacon, Iain Gray and others were instead at the helm of Labour. And imagine if instead of Sturgeon, Swinney and others were backing up Salmond. And imagine if instead of Nicol Stephen, the Lib Dems still had Jim Wallace and, erm, some others...

Instead we have the unelectable fighting the indefensible.

16 bill - alba

No it's quite clear that we are waiting for the SNP to convince us to trust them with our vote...and the more the SNP crowd on these posts refuses to debate in a reasoned fashion, and throws insults towards those who don't follow their dogma, the less we are likely to accept their vision for Scotlands future under SNP leadership.

Shout and giggle all you like. People like us are part of Scotland too and our views are the ones that the SNP should be trying to win over. It is clear that they no longer have to try to win you over... clearly they have your unquestioning loyalty already.

Each day that passes we see yet more unqualified , and economically unbalanced electioneering from the SNP leadership ..far too much of which does not stand up to close scrutiny. Your attempts to divert attention from this failing , by obscuring discussion of the facts and by attacking us personally simply won't work. The issues will be addressed by us and you will always be uncomfortably aware that the SNP has still failed to win us over.

I'm voting SNP.
I dont see how being spoon fed by London is helping Scotland one bit. In fact it's damaging to our self respect. We dont NEED handouts. There is a big wide world out there and we should be playing a full part in it. How is a dependency culture "economically balanced"? #18?

We're a civilised talented country. Other countries go to war for their independence and self respect. All we have to do is vote for it. We will reap the rewards for generations.