Scotland’s nearly three-century historical union with Britain has been plagued by epidemics and Brexit. Translated and captioned this video International mail, financial Times Makes an extraordinary road trip with one goal in mind: to take the pulse of the population before legislative elections that should happen today.
Seven years ago, the Scots voted 62% against Brexit, and once again showed their deep attachment to the UK and the European Union. But today, epidemics and exit protocols enter into forceEuropean Union Changing minds, even the most liberal.
In an extraordinary road trip through Scotland, Correspondent of financial Times Muir Dickey goes to meet people from different fields to understand why more and more Scots are wooed by freedom.
Mostly pro-independence young Scots
In 1707, the Scottish poet Robert Burns had already sensed some residents’ fear of losing their territorial distinctiveness by uniting with England. However, at the time, this sentiment was in the minority. But recently, a growing number of Scots have been opposing the union.
In 2020, surveys showed that the majority of Scots wanted to break up with England. Most of them were between 16 and 24 years old. Like student Beth McPhee: “Most of the youth are curious today. They think what will happen if we become independent?
But for some Scots, the current health and economic crises are not creating the right conditions to mitigate. This is what Charlotte Smith, a student from the north of Scotland, thinks:
I was for Scottish independence, but I don’t think it’s time to leave our defenses in the UK. “
Brexit has “sickened” the Scots
For author Michael Keating, who signs a book on the British partition, the United Kingdom is no longer united by empire and welfare state, and British identity no longer leaves so much room for Scottish specialties. He also points out that Brexit is “disappoint” Scots, even the most politically liberal. The case is that of a retired professor, Peter LeBoran.
My view was that Brexit will not bring any reform, and it is true. “
The Scottish Party in power today, SNP According to Nicola Sturgeon, the request for Scotland to leave the United Kingdom to re-enter the EU independently. The general election on 6 May will give a glimpse of the number of Scots tempted by this option.
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