On 18 September 2014, Scotland and the rest
of the United Kingdom will experience an extremely interesting experiment: the
Scottish Referendum on independence. I am intrigued by the run-up and am keen
to see the result. It might have large implications on the United Kingdom and
its participating countries. I regard it as the first popular democratic
attempt to let people actually decide in what kind of country they wish to
live. However, even without a majority vote in favour, this referendum will
have consequences for the United Kingdom but also for the fellow EU-Member
States and potentially outside of Europe.
Polls show that the pro-independence group
holds the smallest majority though some other inquiries show differently.
Immediately, Westminster seemed to be panicking: it offered more autonomy,
mainly on financial matters, to Scotland in order to keep the Scots within the
Union. Also, the bullying on the issues of EU membership and the currency was
intensified.