Passions run high at 'Largs News' big debate

With only two weeks to go before the referendum, the two hour-debate predictably saw passions running high on both sides of the argument over whether Scotland should have independence.

The chairman, long serving “News” editor Drew Cochrane, frequently had to remind vocal sections of the audience to show courtesy towards the speakers.

The panel of four were, on the “No, thanks” side Jackson Carlaw, deputy leader of the Scottish Conservatives, who attended in place of Tory leader Ruth Davidson who was called to an STV debate, and former local Labour MP and broadcaster Brian Wilson.

For the Yes Scotland campaign were former Scottish Enterprise chief and local man Robert Crawford, and Ayrshire surgeon Dr Philippa Whitford.

The debate began with the speakers being given 12 minutes each to outline their arguments for and against independence.

Jackson Carlaw Mr Carlaw, who was first to speak, said that the situation had now changed with postal votes having been cast. He had already voted and it was good to see so many people engaging passionately, he added.

“When I go abroad and see the union flag, the blue I see is the blue of Scotland. I am proud of what we have achieved, stood for and fought for and what Scots have contributed to the UK.

"This is the most successful political union there has ever been. We have contributed as a nation with our skills, inventiveness and entrepreneurism to the whole concept of the UK. On balance, I believe in the UK and I believe the best future rests in the UK. The really big political decisions of the future rest with the union.” On currency he asked: “If the rest of the UK decide that a currency union is not in their best interests then what kind of currency will an independent Scotland have? It’s not a game show question, it’s a fundamentally important decision for people deciding the future of the country.” Robert Crawford Economics expert Robert Crawford told the debate he was not there as an SNP or Yes spokesman, but as an individual with concerns for the future of his country, Scotland. Speaking about the economic aspects of the debate, he said that “maintaining the status quo is not working”.

He stated that arguments were being levelled that Scotland was too small a country with too small an economy, but research had shown that small economies were much more likely to sustain economic growth.

“Over half of the 30th wealthiest countries in the world are small countries. Small economies are typically growing faster and longer. Being small is not a barrier to economic success.

“Economic trend beyond growth is necessary — and I can see no evidence from the No camp how we are going to get it.” He gave examples as Austria, Norway, Sweden, Holland, Iceland, Belgium, Ireland, Luxembourg, Monaco and Liechtenstein.

He added that socially and morally we live in a deeply unfair society, with the concentration of wealth in the South East of England — “taking resources from the rest of the UK — and in my case, Scotland.” Brian Wilson Brian Wilson criticised Mr Crawford’s “starry eyed views” about the economies of small counties, saying “we have been living as part of a huge integrated economy for centuries.

“He lists small countries — and the SNP speak about Ireland and Iceland as being part of the ‘arch of prosperity’. But they were driven into penury because they didn’t have the strength of a large economy.” There was no proper NHS in Ireland, he said, and no proper welfare state, and it had suffered mass youth emigration.

On the question of the NHS, he gave as an example an initiative in Stornoway, where he lives, which looked at cardiac risk in the young. He had taken his sons to the event and discovered that the nurses came from Papworth Hospital and from a hospital in South Wales, and that was why he was proud of the “British Health Service”.

However, he went on to attack Dr Whitford for “speaking rubbish” about cancer treatment in the North of England. This was a reference to comments made by Dr Whitford who had wrongly claimed, in the media, that a privatisation agenda was forcing a top cancer hospital in Newcastle to consider cancelling operations.

Later, Dr Whitford apologised and admitted she hadn’t checked them out before making them.

But Mr Wilson was booed and jeered by some of the audience when he said the claims were nothing more than “saloon bar gossip”.

Dr Philippa Whitford In her opening remarks, Dr Whitford said her comments had been based on what a surgeon had told her during an operation and although she had used the example as “an anecdote” she had apologised as she had mentioned the wrong hospital.

Dr Whitford, who has led a high profile campaign claiming a No vote would lead to increasing privatisation of the NHS in Scotland, said people needed to be aware that they had to decide whether to recommit to being ruled by Westminster — where Governments seemed to believe in the “relentless move of public resources into private hands.” “Since devolution we have got rid of Mrs Thatcher’s Trusts and gone back to being a single Scottish unified, publicly funded service which we have been since 1948. It never has been a British NHS.

“What’s been happening in the last year and a half in England is that it’s being broken up and franchised out.” She spoke about the “market driven ideology” and quoted Andy Burnham, Shadow Secretary of State for Health as saying the NHS in England was on “a knife edge”.

She described Scotland, as “the sick man of Europe”, while Westmister maintains financial control of funding through the Scottish block grant and the Barnet formula — “but we don’t decide what not to spend the money on, for example Trident.” In a lively question and answer session, topics such as pensions, immigration, Trident, Border controls and the future of Hunterston were raised.

On Hunterston, Brian Wilson ridiculed the SNP’s “crazy” policy of aiming for 100 per cent renewables. Indicating that he would be happy to see another nuclear power station built at Hunterston, he concluded: “We’ll end up importing nuclear power from England.” After the two-hour debate, chairman Mr Cochrane thanked the speakers, pointing out that Scotland was engaged in the greatest debate it had faced, and, addressing the hall, he said: “You were a wonderful audience!”