I voted yes....but felt like I'd been kicked in the ba's the day

[neilo]

I think it is a tad more difficult than many believe.
It looks easy when people are throwing this £15bn deficit number around, but the actual fact is that this is absolutely no indication whatsoever of where an independent Scotland would sit financially. This figure is only the difference between what Scotland gave to the treasury, and what Scotland paid out in public spending last year.



As has been pointed out, this is the first year in quite some time that the number is actually negative

I'm pretty certain that simply isn't true at all.


* I'm being pedantic but the way you describe the flow of money there is interesting. Scotland does indeed pay its revenue to the treasury but rather than Scotland then paying out money in public spending it is actually this money the UK government spends on Scotland. Keeping services running in the years that Scotland hasn't made enough to cover it.

[JackSnakes]

I'm pretty certain that simply isn't true at all.


* I'm being pedantic but the way you describe the flow of money there is interesting. Scotland does indeed pay its revenue to the treasury but rather than Scotland then paying out money in public spending it is actually this money the UK government spends on Scotland. Keeping services running in the years that Scotland hasn't made enough to cover it.

I am not trying to describe the flow of money, simply explaining how this £15bn deficit figure was arrived at, which is the amount of money Scotland makes in taxes against the amount of public spending.
To work out a nation's economy is, I think, a little more complicated than that, which is why I think it is ridiculous that this figure is being used as some kind of stick to beat the yessers with.
However, you may be right about my assertion regarding the surplus - it is possible I have confused the fact that Scotland has paid in more per capita for many years than the rest of the UK (it has also taken out more per capita so without a bit more research I'd have to withdraw that one)
Stewarty does have a point though in that comparing Scotland's economy whilst it is part of the United Kingdom to the economy of an independent Scotland is a wee bit "apples/oranges". The two situations would be vastly different.
Whether one would be vastly better, or vastly worse, or just a wee bit either side of the line marked "same as before" no-one really knows.
You can only ever have a best guess.