Jingoism mars Scottish independence debate

Scottish independence provokes an emotional reaction for many, not least because most of us were brought up, north and south of the border, on a diet of wicked English redcoats horribly oppressing noble ginger patriots, while the latter talk with great eloquence and badly improvised accents about liberty.

The SNP has played on this rather simplistic view of the relationship between Scotland and England, announcing the question of whether Scotland should be an independent country this week on Burns Night, amid continuing rumours that the vote itself may take place on the anniversary of the battle of Bannockburn.

Walter Scott’s version of haggis and history – and the politicians who choose to use that to their advantage – aside, the referendum throws up some interesting questions for the investment industry.

The impact of an independent Scotland on Edinburgh, as the UK’s second-largest financial centre and for the time being home to some of the UK’s biggest asset management firms, is chief among them.

Colin McLean, managing director at SVM Asset Management in Edinburgh, thinks the UK’s increasingly isolated position in Europe undermines the importance of a connection with London for Scottish banks.

"Financial institutions in Scotland mainly conduct business outside of Scotland," he said, "and most of that is governed by European legislation and directives, so the framework within which they operate is unlikely to change much."

"Britain doesn’t have as much influence in Europe at the moment, and not just because of the latest spat but because the Conservatives in Europe have withdrawn from the main lobbying group – so their influence on legislation in Europe has limited clout."

"The UK’s clout in Europe has been successful at times, but at other times including now it is less so."

McLean’s frank analysis is timely because David Cameron’s speech yesterday in Davos, in which he basically accused Berlin of not playing by the rules it had set for other less influential states such as Greece, is unlikely to win us any more friends across the channel – at least not among the governments that matter.

The benefits of Scotland’s association with England should include a strong voice for Scots on the global stage, based on the Government’s ability to defend British interests in Europe, the United States and further afield.

It may win approval among the armchair Churchills of middle England, but this habit of browbeating our neighbours from the fragile scrap of economic high ground we occupy does nothing to maintain that position.

It is not yet clear whether Scots alone will be allowed to vote on Scotland’s future, and that too is provoking a stormy debate, but a recent poll by ICD for the New Statesman showed that Scots themselves are divided right down the middle on the question.

I would be sad to see the country I grew up in carved up by petty nationalism, but I would be even more disappointed if – after an expensive fight to keep the union intact – the benefits of a United Kingdom for Edinburgh and for London were thrown away by political ineptitude in Brussels.