February 14, 2014
That’s what people must be wondering after reading a Post piece reporting Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne’s threat that an independent Scotland would not be able to use the pound. The Post quotes Osborne as saying that the pound is not something that you can divide like a CD collection.
It is difficult to understand the possible meaning of this threat. It could mean that England would not negotiate the terms of a monetary union with an independent Scotland, however it is hard to see why an independent Scotland would want to have a monetary union with an England run by the conservatives. Their policies have helped to give the UK a downturn that is worse than what it experienced in the Great Depression. Presumably breaking free from these policies is one of the main motivations for seeking independence.
Of course if Scotland chose to use the pound as its national currency, as countries like Panama and Ecuador have adopted the dollar as their currencies, it is difficult to see what England could do to stop them, short of going to war. In other words, it’s not clear what Osborne was threatening.
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