The Political Histories of Modern Scotland

Abstract

The referendum on Scottish independence to be held in September 2014 presents the electors with a choice between two apparent absolutes: 'independence' and the 'status quo'. In reality, however, the matter is not so simple. Neither of these options is on offer in quite the way that their advocates suggest. Indeed, both campaigns are engaged in efforts to convince the voters that their opponents' case is much more extreme than it actually is (Hassan 2013, 26). More is known about what might happen if 'Better Together' achieves its aim but it will not be the status quo ante. The passage of the Scotland Act, 2012, means that the nature of devolution after the referendum will be strikingly different from that which has existed since 1999. This piece of legislation which was debated at both Westminster and Holyrood is based on the deliberations of the Caiman Commission which sat in 2008 and 2009. The Act's most important provision is to increase the responsibility of the Scottish Parliament for raising the money which it spends. The current dispensation, whereby the Parliament has extensive spending powers but very few tax-raising powers, is often held to be a serious flaw in the arrangements established by the Scotland Act, 1998. Currently, the Parliament raises only around 15 per cent of the money which it spends but the figure would rise to