And then that fateful day came....
Yesterday, as you all know, the voters of Scotland were asked,
'Should Scotland be an independent country?'
And unfortunately, by a rather significant majority, more significant than exit polls predicted they voted..... No.
Apparently the result in Fife, heavily in favour of 'No', (45% Yes, 55% No) which has a population of just over 300,000 (the third highest of Scottish local authorities) was the final decisive factor. The heavy pro-union result across Edinburgh, with an electorate of 378,000, second only to Glasgow in terms of electorate, (only 38.9% voted for independence there!) was even more decisive for confirming a 'No' result, in my opinion. One important thing that must be noted is this: which council areas were least in favour of independence, and which were most in favour? As it turns out, only four council areas in the whole of Scotland voted Yes to independence
Council area: Yes-No vote (%):
Dundee City Yes 57.3%, No 42.7%
West Dunbartonshire Yes 54%, No 46%
Glasgow Yes 53.5%, No 46.5%
North Lanarkshire Yes 51.1%, No 48.9%
(Inverclyde was extremely close, with the gap between the Yes and No votes just 0.16%)
I was hoping that the result would be considerably closer, so that at least there would be hope for the future even if the United Kingdom remained a united nation. But with a gap as wide as 10.8% in favour of staying in the union, it is unlikely that further devolution will come to pass in practice-after the failed 1979 devolution referendum, similar promises did not come to pass.
I would like to thank everyone who campaigned for independence, and who voted for independence in the polls, and also for the high turnout of 84%. I would like to give an honourable mention to the cities of Dundee and Glasgow, and the nearby areas of West Dunbartonshire and North Lanarkshire, who early on gave hope for the 'Yes' side.
Alan.
'Should Scotland be an independent country?'
And unfortunately, by a rather significant majority, more significant than exit polls predicted they voted..... No.
Apparently the result in Fife, heavily in favour of 'No', (45% Yes, 55% No) which has a population of just over 300,000 (the third highest of Scottish local authorities) was the final decisive factor. The heavy pro-union result across Edinburgh, with an electorate of 378,000, second only to Glasgow in terms of electorate, (only 38.9% voted for independence there!) was even more decisive for confirming a 'No' result, in my opinion. One important thing that must be noted is this: which council areas were least in favour of independence, and which were most in favour? As it turns out, only four council areas in the whole of Scotland voted Yes to independence
Council area: Yes-No vote (%):
Dundee City Yes 57.3%, No 42.7%
West Dunbartonshire Yes 54%, No 46%
Glasgow Yes 53.5%, No 46.5%
North Lanarkshire Yes 51.1%, No 48.9%
(Inverclyde was extremely close, with the gap between the Yes and No votes just 0.16%)
I was hoping that the result would be considerably closer, so that at least there would be hope for the future even if the United Kingdom remained a united nation. But with a gap as wide as 10.8% in favour of staying in the union, it is unlikely that further devolution will come to pass in practice-after the failed 1979 devolution referendum, similar promises did not come to pass.
I would like to thank everyone who campaigned for independence, and who voted for independence in the polls, and also for the high turnout of 84%. I would like to give an honourable mention to the cities of Dundee and Glasgow, and the nearby areas of West Dunbartonshire and North Lanarkshire, who early on gave hope for the 'Yes' side.
Alan.
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