Letters / Already independent
Politicians are meeting this week in Shetland to discuss the position of Shetland, Orkney and the Western Isles in an independent Scotland.
It is to be expected that the only options being considered are whether Shetland should go with Scotland or the UK, but could Shetland survive and thrive on its own?
Most of what I say here applies equally to Orkney, but not so much to the Western Isles.
Shetland and Orkney have unique legal and historical claims. People frequently ask; “How would we manage without UK and EU grants and subsidies?”
The boot is on the other foot. Roughly half the tax revenue raised in Shetland goes to the UK treasury, never to return. If we stopped relying on grants and subsidies and stopped paying all taxes to the UK government, Shetland would be millions of pounds better off and would have the money to run its own economy as it wished.
As the cuts imposed from outside Shetland start to bite, we might like to reflect and ask whether the actions of greedy bankers and the Westminster government’s use of our money to bail them out really has anything to do with Shetland.
The secret McCrone Report in 1975 said: “Can one be certain that the oil is without doubt a Scottish asset or, even if it is, that these substantial revenues and balance of payments advantages would indeed accrue to an independent Scotland?”
Official doubt was recognised in 1975 and my recent experiences in court demonstrate that the Crown is completely unable to prove that Shetland is part of Scotland.
When a great portion of the UK’s oil supply comes through Shetland’s oil terminal (and if it’s Shetland’s oil anyway), why should we pay the highest prices? Would it not be better to remove VAT and excise duty and pay something like 30p per litre?
How about putting local shops on a level playing field with the multinationals by allowing them to trade tax and VAT free? Why do we need to charge tax in any form?
On the subject of oil, the McCrone Report said that in the event of an independent Scotland getting its hands on the oil: “The country would tend to be in chronic surplus to a quite embarrassing degree and its currency would become the hardest in Europe, with the exception perhaps of the Norwegian kroner”.
Both the UK and Scotland are desperate to keep the oil, especially since new finds vastly exceed 1975 expectations. However, if neither the UK, nor Scotland has as strong a claim as Shetland, the opportunities for Shetland are real and tangible.
Also from the McCrone Report: “..authoritative support for the charge that the Government has failed to do a satisfactory bargain with the companies is provided in the criticisms of the Public Accounts Committee which so far remain unanswered.
“… This has confirmed the total inadequacy of arrangements to secure Government revenue and shows that some of the most attractive measures to put this right would involve breaking the terms on which the licences were given.”
It is often said that Shetland politicians are incapable of running Shetland’s affairs. The question to be asked is: “Are Westminster or Holyrood politicians significantly better?” Would Shetland be better off with our own incompetent politicians, or incompetent politicians with proven conflicted interests?
In any case, an independent Shetland would prove very attractive to suitably qualified people. Shetlanders underestimate their own capabilities. Despite its detractors within and without, Shetland has unrivalled expertise in the handling of large projects such as harbour operations, oil rig decommissioning, cultural events and so on.
We have one of the largest oil terminals in Europe and the gas plant will add significantly to our economy. We already run our own economy.
Recognising our abilities and assets, we surely have the ability to take charge of our own destiny. Doing so does not require permission from Westminster, Holyrood, or anyone else – it just needs the confidence to do it.
Meanwhile, both Westminster and Holyrood will continue to undermine our self-belief to get their own way.
If Westminster and Holyrood make claims on Shetland, they need to prove that Shetland is part of Scotland. The courts show they are unable to do so. Neither Shetland nor Orkney can be proved to be part of Scotland.
The history shows that Shetland belongs to the people of Shetland and that those people are sovereign in their own right. We are already independent, we just need to admit it and assert the corresponding rights.
Stuart Hill
Ocraquoy
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