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Wednesday, June 11, 2014

100 days ahead of referendum: Gordon Brown warns of losing Scotland just like US once



About 790,000 voters in Scotland have signed a declaration in support of the independence in 100 days prior to the September's referendum. The chief executive of the official pro-independence Yes Scotland campaign, Blair Jenkins, is absolutely sure that the referendum would achieve its target receiving one million of signatures. This goal was set by the Scotland’s first minister Alex Salmond and one of the biggest supporters of the independence campaign.

Salmon said that receiving 20% of the Scottish electorate was an absolutely unprecedented case in Scotland's political life.
He said the gaining 1 million of votes was an important goal "an important target for us because it demonstrates the reach and the depth and strength of the campaign." He said that nearly 2 million "yes" votes are needed to succeed.
At the same time, the vote would not be unanimous as there is a rival pro-UK group. Alistair Darling, the chairman of the official pro-UK campaign Better Together, said that the choice made on September 18 would not be between Scotland or Britain, but between two competing visions of Scotland’s future.
According to the reports by the Times, the Labor party along with the Tories and Liberal Democrats may agree to give the Scottish parliament more significant tax and policymaking powers if the referendum is not held.
Nevertheless, despite all the efforts of the pro-UK supporters, the polls say that about 70% of undecided voters switched to support independence. The Yes campaign is much more successful and has far more active support than its opponents.
On June 10, Scottish Labor MP and former secretary of state for Scotland Jim Murphy started his travel across Scotland as he kicks off his "100 Towns in 100 Days" tour, holding meetings to convince undecided voters.
The former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown will also be speaking at events throughout the week.
According to the Guardian, Gordon Brown has accused Prime Minister of UK, David Cameron, of putting the survival of the country’s integrity at risk by threatening and using ultimatums concerning the Scottish referendum.
The former Labor prime minister said the Conservative government had repeatedly wrongly portrayed the choice facing Scotland's voters.
"Breakaways often happen – or are at least hastened – through the mishandling of discontent," he writes in an essay for the Guardian published as the yes and no campaigns marked 100 days before the referendum on 18 September. "From the catastrophic mistakes with America in the 1770s to the bloody transfers of power in Ireland, then India and Africa, Britain has never been very good at dealing with secessionist movements."

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