Scottish Referendum: The Second

Campbell, Victoria

Publication

Scottish Referendum: The Second

Campbell, Victoria

Description

Scotland has long had a quarrelsome relationship with the United Kingdom. This has ultimately led to the destruction of the traditional Scottish way of life, when England and Scotland formed the United Kingdom in 1707. Since then, Scotland has effectively been under the rule of a nation that has different values and different goals. This was most recently brought to sharp focus by the British referendum to leave the European Union. In 2016, a majority of voters in Scotland chose to stay with the EU, though England carried the vote to leave. Therefore, despite voting to remain in the United Kingdom in their own Referendum in 2014, many Scottish citizens are increasingly displeased with the balance of power. Because of this, there has been an increasing wave of support for a second referendum for Scottish Independence from the UK. In 2014 voters deemed it impractical for Scotland to split from the UK, as they would have had to deal with not only establishing their own government more strongly, but also with applying to join the EU. With Brexit, that concern is less relevant. Additionally, because Scotland already has a government and bank, it is not inconceivable that they could become independent. By looking into the process of the Republic of Ireland leaving the United Kingdom, and of applying to join the EU, as well as the other challenges of establishing a new country, this paper will consider whether it is economically feasible for Scotland to secede from its union with the United Kingdom.