What's Happening?
the U.K. (light blue)
(Wikimedia)
This Thursday, September 18, Scots will vote on whether Scotland should be an independent country. On September 6, for the first time, a poll showed a slight majority of referendum voters in favor of seceding from the United Kingdom, the three-century-old union between Scotland, England, and Wales (Northern Ireland is a more recent addition). The result threw the race into a statistical dead heat that had seemed all but impossible only a month ago, when the pro-independence camp trailed in the polls by more than 20 percentage points. The latest polls have been less favorable to the Yes Scotland campaign pushing secession, but the race is now considered too tight to call.
This means Scottish independence is closer to a reality now than at any point since 1707, when Scotland—which by then had spent most of a millennium as an independent kingdom but was growing short on funds—signed the Act of Union with England.
Should Scotland Be an Independent Country?
What's the Background?
The Scottish National Party (SNP) formed 80 years ago to advance Scottish independence. Beginning in the late 1990s, in response to votes in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, the U.K. government devolved some powers to newly created governing bodies in those countries. For example, the freshly minted Scottish Parliament was empowered to pass laws concerning education, the environment, and health, among other issues. Scotland also continued sending lawmakers to the British Parliament in London, whose members come from all parts of the union, and which retained authority over matters such as defense, foreign policy, and economic policy.