What are the benefits of Scotland being independent?
The reason being independent will be better for you and for Scotland is simple. Being independent will mean the people who care most about Scotland – the people who live in Scotland – will be taking the decisions about our future.
The people of Scotland have the greatest stake in making our nation a success. That means we are more likely to make the right choices for our society and our economy – and to make decisions that mean our huge wealth delivers far greater benefits for the people living here.
Even David Cameron has said:
“Supporters of independence will always be able to cite examples of small, independent and thriving economies across Europe such as Finland, Switzerland and Norway. It would be wrong to suggest that Scotland could not be another such successful, independent country.”
~ David Cameron
As an independent country, taking into account all our resources, we’d be among the twenty wealthiest countries on earth – according to analysis by the Financial Times. This puts us ahead of countries such as Italy, France, the UK and Japan. With independence we can make this wealth work much better for the people living here – and that is why a Yes is so important.
Precisely how each person in Scotland can benefit depends on their individual circumstances:
- our young families will see a huge increase in childcare provision with all three and four year olds entitled to 1,140 free hours per year;
- for our younger people we can use our wealth and control over our tax system to attract more employers to invest in Scotland, creating more and better local jobs. This means more opportunities for young people, closer to home, keeping families together – a powerful legacy from a Yes vote;
- people with disabilities will see the hated Work Capability Assessments scrapped and carers will benefit from an increase to Carer’s Allowance worth £575;
- for our rural communities we can bring Royal Mail back into public ownership, and ensure fair delivery charges;
- for hard-pressed households we can take action to tackle rising energy bills, and ensure that benefits, tax credits and the basic rate tax allowance always keep up with rising living costs;
- for our older people we can ensure that the state pension increases by at least 2.5%, or in line with the cost of living or earnings, as part of a ‘triple-lock’ protection. And Scottish Government plans would see new pensioners receiving £160 per week under the single tier pension – around £5 a week or £260 per year higher than as part of the UK;
- our businesses will benefit from economic policy being designed for Scotland;
- and we’ll all benefit by being able to properly protect and invest in world class public services, including a quality NHS and education system, and from investing in a ‘rainy day’ oil fund, providing security for the future.
Today, we have a government in Westminster that most of us did not vote for, and yet that government is able to take major decisions that impact on families and communities in Scotland. As an independent country we will always get the government Scotland chooses – a government that will take forward policies designed to meet the needs of people in Scotland.
We can elect the government we think cares most about Scotland – a government that will look after the interests of people living here.
That means we can choose a better path. And it means we will be able to focus 100% on making Scotland better.
The future will be ours to decide. We will be able to make Scotland the country we all know it can be. Scotland is a very wealthy country – let’s make it feel like it!
SLIDESHOW: A LOOK Inside Scotland’s Independence Vote (PHOTOS)
Culled from the Yes Campaign Website
