tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4399996114293362843.post2050446065817019652..comments2024-01-29T02:50:01.795-04:00Comments on The Grendel Report: Scotland's Independence Bid: History, Prospects, ChallengesTheBeowulfhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10040385291032059208noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4399996114293362843.post-81105372740197265652013-05-04T10:29:27.280-03:002013-05-04T10:29:27.280-03:00There are certain points regarding potential Scott...There are certain points regarding potential Scottish independence which require clarification as they are based on assumptions and questionable interpretation of actual facts.<br /><br />'a 2014 referendum that could end the Act of Union of 1707' <br /><br />Such a referendum could NOT end the Act of Union but could lead to the end of the Treaty of Union in 1707. There were in actual fact two Acts of Union - one by the Scottish Parliament and one by the English Parliament.<br /><br />'allow Scotland to leave the United Kingdom'<br /><br />Scottish independence would be the DISSOLUTION of the United Kingdom. <br /><br />'Westminster has pragmatically agreed to a referendum'<br /><br />The following is an extract from an article 'Holyrood has authority over referendum' published in 'The Herald' newspaper on Saturday 11 February 2012 -<br /><br />'But in a contribution to the UK Constitutional Law Group the experts say allowing Westminster to grant the referendum power should not be an acknowledgment of sovereignty. "It is important any such agreement should not be taken as an unequivocal endorsement of the view Westminster alone is entitled to authorise a referendum on the constitutional future of any part of the UK," they say.'<br /><br />'greater power can only be granted to Scotland by the UK Parliament and here there is potential for conflict. To take the extreme example, constitutional matters are reserved but it is hard to see how the Scottish Parliament could be prevented from holding a referendum on independence should it be determined to do so. If the Scottish people expressed a desire for independence the stage would be set for a direct clash between what is the English doctrine of sovereignty and the Scottish doctrine of the sovereignty of the people.'<br /><br />SOURCE: 'The Operation of Multi-Layer Democracy', Scottish Affairs Committee Second Report of Session 1997-1998, HC 460-I, 2 December 1998, paragraph 27.<br /><br />'Yet whatever the protestations of Westminster politicians and the wording of the Scotland Act, almost nobody in Scotland believes that the Parliament is a mere subordinate legislature, a creature of Westminster statute. Its claims to original authority are twofold: its basis in the referendum of 1997 as an act of self-determination; and the residual traditions of Scottish constitutional law and practice which never accorded untrammelled sovereignty to Westminster.'<br /><br />SOURCE: 'SCOTTISH INDEPENDENCE: A Practical Guide', p. 296.<br /><br />'In 1613, King James VI of Scotland also became king of England'<br /><br />That is probably a typographical error.<br /><br />'on 25 March 1603, James VI of Scotland became James I of England.'<br /><br />SOURCE: 'Scotland: The Shaping of a Nation', by Gordon Donaldson, p.46, ISBN 0 7153 6904 0, Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 74-15792.<br /><br />'Scottish acceptance of the 1707 Act of Union, after endless negotiating, was the result of a combination of factors' -<br /><br />'England retaliated in 1705 with the Alien Act, which declared that, until Scotland accepted the Hanoverian succession, all Scots would be treated as aliens in England and the import of cattle, sheep, coal and linen from Scotland into England would not be allowed; this measure stimulated the Scots into appointing commissioners to treat for union.'<br /><br />SOURCE: 'SCOTTISH HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS' by Professor Gordon Donaldson, p. 266, ISBN 1-897784-41-4.<br /><br />'Commissioners representing Scotland and England sat from 16 April 1706 to 22 July when the Articles of Union were signed.'<br /><br />SOURCE: 'SCOTTISH HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS' by Professor Gordon Donaldson, pp. 268-269.<br /><br />Apart from the mention of the Company of Scotland in Article XV of the Treaty of Union there is no mention whatsoever of the 'Darien Disaster' on the Isthmus of Panama.<br /><br />'The Scottish Parliament was abolished'<br /><br />No it was not. Its last meeting was on 25 March 1707 when it was adjourned to meet on 18 April. The Parliament was dissolved by proclamation on 22 April 1707 but it NEVER dissolved itself.Michael Follonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09240836734238072216noreply@blogger.com