Gordon Brown’s Cabinet ministers 'discussed referendum' on Scottish independence
The Times, 31st March 2008 - Senior members of Gordon Brown’s Cabinet have discussed the idea of holding an immediate referendum on Scottish independence, but have ruled it out on the ground that such a move would only play into the hands of the SNP.

Tycoon in independence vote call
BBC News, 30th March 2008 -Scotland's richest man has called for an immediate independence referendum to allow the country to move on.

SSP urges independence referendum
Deeside Piper, 30th March 2008 - Scottish Socialist Party leader Colin Fox has called for an early referendum on independence.

Salmond calls for referendum on Scottish independence
The Scotsman, 26th March 2008 - FIRST Minister Alex Salmond today challenged opposition parties to come up with an alternative to independence that could be put to the public in a referendum.

Holyrood review will exclude independence
Tayside Courier, 26th March 2008 - PRO-UNIONIST opposition parties at Holyrood yesterday signed a blank cheque for a review of devolution that will not even consider the issue of Scottish independence.

Newsnight's Jeremy Paxman Says England Doesn't Care About Scots Independence
Daily Record, 23rd March 2008 - And the Newsnight presenter claimed Scots should "snap out of" the belief that people down south worry about the break-up of the Union.

McLeish backs SNP debate on independence
The Scotsman, 23rd March 2008 - FORMER Labour first minister Henry McLeish will this week give his support to the SNP's "national conversation" on independence for Scotland.

Mass Petition Planned For Independence Referendum
Swans.com, 10th March 2008 – Joe Middleton “Recently I attended an international advisers meeting in Barcelona to help organise the next CONSEU (Conference of Stateless Nations in Europe) and it occurred to me that Scotland has a great many advantages in its drive towards independence.”

Scottish or British – a question of allegiance
The Scotsman, 12th March 2008 – a proposal to make Britain's teenagers pledge an oath of allegiance to the Queen was immediately dismissed by Alex Salmond, the First Minister, as "Monty Python-esque"

Role of the third sector in Scotlands Future
e-gov monitor, 12th March 2008 – Charities and voluntary groups have a vital role to play in determining Scotland's constitutional future, representatives were told today.

Sir Menzies reveals Brown's secret talks on pact to deny SNP power
The Scotsman, 5th March 2008 - GORDON Brown held two secret meetings with Sir Menzies Campbell during last year's Scottish election campaign in an attempt to forge a new Labour-Liberal Democrat coalition and keep the SNP out of power, it emerged last night.

Professor calls for update in attitudes to Scottish independence
The Herald, 7th March 2008 - The cause of Scottish independence needs to ditch 19th-century ideas of nationhood and join "a springtime of victorious dwarves" in which smart, small nations take the lead, according to one of the leading thinkers on Scottish nationalism.

Connery Confident over Scottish Independence
PR Inside, 25th February 2008 - Actor SIR SEAN CONNERY is confident his native Scotland will soon have independence from the British Isles.

Kosovo Inspires Independence Daze
Washington Times, 25th February 2008 - Kosovo's declaration of independence last week raises all those questions and more. For starters: Why is statehood OK for some people but frowned on for others? After all, isn't the right to self-determination the essence of democracy itself?

Scotland may lose some devolved powers, claims Brown
The Journal, 26th February 2008 - The Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced that a review into devolution could actually result in the loss of some of Scotland's existing powers as well as the increase in others.

Berwickers Ready to Return to Scotland First Time in 500 Years
Bloomberg, 20th February 2008 - Berwickers are backing a motion by a member of the Scottish Parliament who says the town should return to Scottish control for the first time in 500 years. While conceding that the border is unlikely to be redrawn, locals say the debate spotlights how they are neglected by the U.K. government.

Serbian Independence
The Times, 18th February 2008 - Gun shots, car horns and firecrackers rang out across the snowy streets here yesterday as Kosovo declared itself the newest nation in the world.

Would Indepenedence Be a Velvet Divorce From UK
The Herald, 18th February 2008 - UN peacekeeping forces were moving into position last night as the inhabitants of Berwick declared independence from England. Secessionists are insisting that opinion polls confirmed that the majority of the population wished to leave at the earliest opportunity and become part of recently-independent Scotland. Amid scenes of jubilation in the border town, there are anxieties about the fate of the remaining ethnic English still living in the disputed zone.

I'll launch legal bid to take Berwick back into Scotland, says Salmond
The Scotsman, 18th February 2008 - ALEX Salmond would start legal moves to bring Berwick back under Scottish control if the town's residents voted to leave England in a referendum, it emerged yesterday.

Powers Struggle
The Sunday Herald , 17th Feburary 2008 - The Sunday Herald Debate

Actress Joins Storm Over Constitution
The Herald , 15th Feburary 2008 - Elaine C Smith, the actress, waded into the row over Scotland's constitutional reform yesterday by accusing David Cairns, the Scotland Office Minister, of failing to "keep pace" with the country's wishes.

Salmond casts net wide for ideas to build a Celtic Lion
Scotsman, 14th Feburary 2008 -HOLYROOD Cabinet ministers are being sent on international fact-finding missions as part of the next stage of the "national conversation" on independence.

Stop playing games on constitutional change
Scotsman , 11th Feburary 2008 - EXACTLY what is going on with the Constitutional Convention that was mooted last year by the three Unionist parties at Holyrood?

Scots MP in bid to ditch our money
Sunday Mail , 10th Feburary 2008 -A SCOTS MP sparked controversy yesterday by calling for Scottish banknotes to be ditched.

If at first you don’t succeed, try to change Barnett again... and fail
The Herald, 8th Feburary 2008 -The Whitehall funding formula for Scotland needs to be overhauled soon or Scottish independence might happen via the back door with the English demanding separation, a senior peer and former Treasury minister suggested yesterday.

Scottish Notes Under Threat
Economist , 7th Feburary 2008 -the British Treasury has launched a raid on this iconic lolly. Scottish and Northern Irish banks (unlike their English rivals) are still allowed to print money, which is worth exactly the same as Bank of England cash. But a new plan would make them back their notes more fully.

Power struggle has barely begun
The Scotsman , 31st January 2008 -IT'S two months since Wendy Alexander first announced plans for a cross-party commission to look at new powers for the Scottish Parliament.

Constitutional powers question for PM
The Herald, 28th January 2008 -Gordon Brown was last night urged by the Conservatives at Westminster to make clear publicly where he stands on the Scottish Constitutional Commission's "love-in" about giving more powers to Holyrood.

Give the people a voice – and restore their faith in politics
The Scotsman, 24th January 2008 -THE Scottish Parliament will today witness a historic event in Scotland's constitutional development, with the launch of a "people's petition" to hold a referendum on Scottish independence.

Britain Seeks Its Essence, and Finds Punch Lines
The New York Times, 26th January 2008 -Detractors spread the rumor that the government was looking not for a considered statement, but for a snappy, pithy “liberté, égalité, fraternité”-style slogan that it could plaster across government buildings in a kind of branding exercise.

Equitable No More
The Hindu, 26th January 2008 -“I have never seen such a polarised U.K. economy. The rich are so very, very rich... But the poor are getting poorer.”

Clouding history to muddy waters of independence debate
The Scotsman, 19th January 2008 -THE question of Scottish independence raises big questions. What happens to the nuclear weapons? How much of the oil does Scotland get? What happens to the national debt and, as important, assets: things like the contents of museums and embassies around the world? Can Berwick Rangers continue to play in Scottish football?

Unionist allies plan agenda for change
The Herald, 16th January 2008 - The constitutional commission planned by the three pro-union parties to set out changes to Scottish devolution could be operating within two months, according to those close to discussions yesterday.

More power is music to Alex Salmond's ears
The Telegraph, 16th January 2008 - As they trip gaily on in their bid to dance to Alex Salmond's tune and wrest more powers from Westminster to Holyrood, the founding fathers - and mothers - of the Wendy Commission are ignoring one important fact: their plans must bring a referendum on Scotland's constitutional future that much closer.

Scottish? English? Library Thinks Twice
The Washington Post, 15th January 2008 - The stroke of a pen at the Library of Congress, which rebranded 700 years of Scottish literary tradition as "English literature", has in recent weeks generated a spluttering uproar here.

Unionist ‘summit’ in bid to thwart SNP
The Herald , 15th January 2008 - Leading politicians from Holyrood and Westminster will gather behind closed doors in London today for their first meeting to discuss the prospect of giving the Scottish Parliament more powers.

Don’t sell out, terrorise them with your Scottish money
The Sunday Herald, 30th December 2007 - THE SUGGESTION that Westminster pass a law making Scottish banknotes legal tender in England would remove one of the major irritants in our relationship with the southern neighbours.

Tory success in England will drive Scotland further away
The Guardian, 27th December 2007 - Cameron may bemoan the stain of separatism, but electoral victory will only accelerate the march to independence

40% of Scots now support independence
The Sunday Herald , 16th December 2007 - The latest snapshot has revealed that 40% of the population want the Scottish government to negotiate independence with the UK government, a figure that is up 5% in three months.

Express to back Scottish independence
The Guardian, 19th December 2007 - The Daily Express, once a bastion of unionist politics, is about to declare itself a supporter of independence for Scotland.

Surge in support for Scottish independence: poll
AFP, 17th December 2007 - Some 40 percent of Scots support an end to the 300-year-old union with England, up from 35 percent in a similar survey in August, pollsters TNS System Three found.

Cameron's union dues
The Guardian, 11th December 2007 - The Conservative leader's belated attempts to back the union between Scotland and England are doomed to help hasten its end.

Paisley speaks on Scottish independence
UTV, 10th December 2007 - The people of Scotland have a right to decide their own future in relation to the Monarchy, Ian Paisley insisted today..

Unionist pact to debate devolution may hasten independence vote
The Scotsman, 9th December 2007 - A DAY before Wendy Alexander's troubles exploded over dodgy donations two weeks ago, I was informed by one of her close colleagues that the Labour leader's fightback was about to begin

Do you call yourself British?
The Telegraph, 8th December 2007 - More than two thirds of people in England want the Union with the rest of the United Kingdom to continue and less than a fifth feel "English, not British," reveals an ICM poll for the Sunday Telegraph to mark 300 years of the Acts of Union.

Scottish tax move aims to stop demands for independence vote
The Guardian, 7th December 2007 - Scotland could be given greater tax and spending powers in an attempt to thwart demands for a vote on independence.

Scotland Awakes
The Guardian, 30th November 2007 -It's 199 days since the SNP's Alex Salmond became first minister of Scotland and the nation appears to bask in a new sense of self-confidence. But how tangible are the changes? And is the country really united behind its leader's vision?

Alexdander calls for tax powers to replace the Barnett formula
The Herald, 1st December 2007 -Wendy Alexander yesterday called for a Scottish Constitutional Commission to draw up plans over the next year for the Barnett funding formula to be replaced.

Scots Labour leader calls for more financial powers at Holyrood
The Scotsman, 23rd November 2007 - SCOTTISH Labour leader Wendy Alexander has called for more financial powers to be handed to Holyrood. She acknowledged tensions between Scotland and England, but said "housekeeping bills" should not be allowed to destroy the Union.

It will take two sides to scupper the union
Sunday Herald , 18th November 2007 -THE POLITICIAN-TURNED-PSYCHIC is a dangerous creature that should hasten a rush for the alarm bell. There's an Orwellian unease about a fearless political prediction that's usually based on an assumption of control of the present, and too often a gross rewrite of the past.

The Big Question: Is Alex Salmond right to believe that Scotland will be independent by 2017?
The Independent , 15th November 2007 -Alex Salmond, the Scottish First Minister, has announced that the SNP's new target is full independence within 10 years. It is the first time since the SNP victory in last May's elections in Scotland that he has set a deadline for withdrawal from the UK.

Scotland in 2017 - independent and flush with oil, says Salmond
The Guardian, 14th November 2007 - Alex Salmond has predicted that Scotland will win independence from the UK within the next decade, gaining the freedom to set its own taxes and laying claim to most of the oil reserves in the North Sea.

Salmond: 'Independence for Scotland in ten years'
The Scotsman, 13th November 2007 -SCOTLAND could become an independent country within ten years, First Minister Alex Salmond said today.

Senior MSP signals Labour shift on independence referendum
The Herald , 12th November 2007 - A senior Labour MSP yesterday signalled a significant shift in his party's position on an independence referendum, saying he was willing to discuss the matter with shadow cabinet colleagues.

Anti-Scots Rant of Shamed Tory
The Daily Record, 9th November 2007 - SHAMED Tory Nigel Hastilow is under fire again, this time for a racist rant against Scots.

Public figures back full debate on Scotland's place in the UK
The Herald, 5th November 2007 - Politicians, business leaders and union officials yesterday called for a full debate on Scotland's place in the UK after an investigation by The Herald dispelled the myth that Scots are Britain's subsidy junkies.

Scorching the Myth
The Herald, 2nd November 2007 - A series of myths about Scotland's financial position in the United Kingdom are exploded today in a special investigation by The Herald.

Tax and Mend
The Economist , 1st November 2007 -Giving the Scottish Parliament the power to tax as well as spend would please both the Scots and the English

MP hits out at rise in anti-Scottishness
The Scotsman, 1st November 2007 - AN SNP MP yesterday accused opposition parties and the English press of encouraging anti-Scottishness, as tensions heighten over independence and the Holyrood budget.

While Labour howls, the union is busy disintegrating
The Guardian, 31st October 2007 - As globalisation weakens national governments, the break-up of Britain's homogenised state becomes inevitable

Time for an English solution to devolution
East Anglian Daily Times, 31st October 2007 - Labour claims Tory plans to solve the West Lothian question could result in the break up of the United Kingdom.

Breaking Up Might Not Be So Hard To Do
The Observer, 28th October 2007 - Political honeymoons rarely last, as Gordon Brown has recently discovered. It must, therefore, be galling that his native Scotland is refusing to turn sour on Alex Salmond.

The Four Horsemen of Devolution
Student Newspaper, 30th October 2007 - According to last May’s election manifestos and party political broadcasts, Scotland should be on the verge of meltdown. But six months later, Scotland still exists and we still await the four horsemen.

"Independence would help Scotland"
Midlothian Advertiser, 29th October 2007 - Successive bosses of Scotland's main economic development agency have regularly concluded the country would gain from independence, the SNP conference has heard

Give the Scots financial independence - so long as they pay for it themselves
Daily Mail, 29th October 2007 - This was the week that the iniquities of the so-called Barnett Formula, the bribe that the English pay to stop the Scots going their own way

BBC apologises over fresh independence gaffe
The Sunday Herald, 9th September 2007 - THE BBC has been forced to issue another apology for its coverage of Scottish politics after getting its facts wrong about the devolution referendum 10 years ago.

Salmond: I wil ban nuclear traffic
The Times, 9th September 2007 - THE Scottish first minister Alex Salmond is to issue a direct challenge to Westminster’s control of UK defence policy by seeking to ban the transportation of nuclear weapons on Scottish soil.

Alexander's husband 'backs' independence
The Times, 26th August 2007 - WENDY ALEXANDER has been dealt an embarrassing blow in her first week as Scottish Labour leader after footage emerged of her husband making a case for independence. To View the video click here

Top mandarin accused of 'fawning' over Salmond and breaking bias rule
The Scotsman, 21st August 2007 -SCOTLAND'S senior civil servant has courted further political controversy by criticising the UK government for failing to properly communicate with the Scottish Executive during the row over Tony Blair's treaty negotiations with Libya.

Benefits to Scotland of Independence
The Herald, 21st August 2007 - As the national conversation begins, the Unionist parties will no doubt continue to argue that independence would bring no benefits to Scotland. Well, here are just a few of the advantages I suggest would accrue.

Independence for Wales Back on the Agenda
IC Wales , 16th August 2007 - As a Scottish White Paper brings independence north of the border a step closer, Plaid Cymru’s Leanne Wood discusses how the ‘I’ word is now back on the Welsh agenda.

'Nation' Speaks out on Independence
Midlothian Advertiser , 15th August 2007 - Early exchanges in Scotland's "national conversation" were overwhelmingly pro-independence. An official Scottish Executive blog seeking comments attracted nearly 100 postings within hours of the exercise being launched.

Holyrood Ploy by Brown to Head of Indenpendence Threat
Guardian , 14th August 2007 - Gordon Brown is to press the Scottish parliament to seek further powers to run Scotland's domestic affairs in an attempt to outmanoeuvre the nationalist leader, Alex Salmond.

Scottish Government Publishes Plan for Independence Referendum
Interanational Herald Tribune, 14th August 2007 - Scotland's nationalist government on Tuesday announced proposals for a referendum on independence, but acknowledged strong opposition remained to such a vote.

Jenkins’s commission will examine Scotland’s place in the media world
Sunday Herald, 12th August 2007 - IT IS not often you see hard-bitten television executives and journalists choked with national pride, but the Bute Room in Edinburgh's National Museum played host to a few trembling lips last week.

Salmond uses independence referendum to win more powers for Holyrood
Sunday Herald, 12th August 2007 - FIRST MINISTER Alex Salmond will this week try to enlist support for far-reaching constitutional change by unveiling plans for a multi-option referendum on Scotland's relationship with the UK.

Support Soars for SNP Executive
Midlothian Advertiser, 12th August 2007 - A total of 1012 adults across the country were questioned for the study, which was carried out by Progressive Scottish Opinion between July 31 and August 7.

The SNP has not lost sight of Independence
The Telegraph, 11th August 2007 - What is heartening for Mr Salmond and his party is that the tactics they had devised for government are working and working well... so far.

Salmond to demand a ‘Scottish Six’ and call for broadcasting to be devolved
Sunday Herald, 4th August 2007 - The first minister, Alex Salmond, is planning a summit with the BBC where he will demand a separate six o'clock news programme for Scotland and an increased share of broadcasting resources.

Save Scotland's Media
The Guardian, 31st July 2007 - Christopher Harvie 'It's time to break up the BBC and establish a Scottish Broadcasting Corporation.'

Holyrood bid to grab new powers
Scotland on Sunday, 29th July 2007 - SWEEPING new powers could be transferred to Holyrood under a radical plan to extend the influence of the Scottish Parliament

The Saltire flies high, despite Brown's flag-waving plans
The Scotsman , 29th July 2007 - SCOTLAND will be exempt from Gordon Brown's plans to fly the Union flag from every public building, it was confirmed yesterday.  

Independence Paper To Be Released
BBC News , 26th July 2007 - First Minister Alex Salmond is to publish a white paper proposing a Scottish independence referendum.

Switching Of Scotland's Window to the World
The Herald , 23rd July 2007 - You may not have noticed but the BBC's latest trust scandal has effectively shut down Scotland's independent television production sector.

Newsnight ‘misled’ viewers over independence survey
The Herald, 23rd July 2007 - Newsnight presenter Jeremy Paxman was found to have misled viewers during a debate on Scottish independence.

Give Change A Chance
Scottish Left Review, July/August 2007 - There is a range of SNP policy initiatives intended to ensure both a fairer distribution of wealth and a fairer distribution of opportunity.

Why Scottish Broadcasting Matters - Part One
All Media Scotland , 5th July 2007 - the most powerful levers for a nation’s well-being or ill are not in the hands of politicians but of the broadcasters.  

Alex Caws Canny on Independence
The Scotsman , 5th July 2007 - Alex Salmond used the "I" word in front of the Queen.

Blair is no Democrat
GlobalResearch.ca, 3rd June 2007 - Blair is only in favour of it when it gives the "right" result - ie the one he wants. That has been evident in Iran and Palestine. It is now evident in Scotland.

The 17-Day Wait
The Scotsman, 2nd June 2007 - IT TOOK him 17 days to get round to it, but yesterday Gordon Brown finally picked up the phone personally to congratulate Alex Salmond on becoming First Minister.

Making History In Scotland
Washington Post, 26th May 2007 - Sean Connery makes the case for Scottish Independence and for Trebek to "Suck it". Full Washington Post article here.

Growing Support for Independence
Gulf News, 19th May 2007 - leading nationalist in Scotland has predicted that support for a referendum on independence will grow in the wake of Scottish Nationalist Party leader Alex Salmond's election as First Minister.

Adam Smith Institute: Scots "thousands of pounds better off" after independence
Politics.co.uk, 28th April 2007 - The Scottish economy could enjoy record growth if Scotland became independent, leaving the average Scot many thousands of pounds better off each year.

Author Welsh throws weight behind poll for independence
The Scotsman, 30th March 2007 - TRAINSPOTTING author Irvine Welsh was today due to throw his weight behind demands for an independence referendum as another poll showed the SNP maintaining its lead over Labour.

Salmond plays banker in vital election battle
The Scotsman, 16th March 2007 - Even John Major admits independence could work for Scotland.

Brown can dress as John Bull, but the costume will never fit - John Major
The Telegraph , 9th March 2007 - Even John Major admits independence could work for Scotland.

Hacks Playing Politics Soil Journalism
AllMedia Scotland, 16th March 2007 - On Sunday, a newspaper ran a story that Scotland was heavily subsidised by England. It concluded that, should the southern cash be taken away by independence, it would “cost Scots billions”.

Why Scotland Can Do Better On Her Own
The Herald, 1st March 2007 - When I left Scotland nearly six years ago, the political debate concerned itself with the economy, and parliament's or the executive's ability to steer the economy.

Watch Tower: Is Scotland leaving UK?
India Central Cronicle,28th February 2007 - Those who seek a separate Scotland argue that when it becomes sovereign, Scotland will be eligible for full membership of EU as well as UN and would make the country visible and strong.

Mother Scotland
The Scotsman, 22nd Feb 2007 -A charming, sharp and delightfully combative conversationalist, Winnie Ewing is a lively 77-year-old widow.

All fine clowning, but what if Blair does go down in black disgrace - Ian Bell (Links to other website)
The Herald, 20th Feb 2007 - Strange days. Here, in one corner of the sometimes-united kingdom, we have a first lord of the Treasury - Tony, to you - co-operating with the cops. Elsewhere, our new labouring Jack is discussing "persistent indiscipline" amongst juveniles. No irony intended, then.

A nation with nothing to lose but its fear
The Herald, 7th Feb 2007 - Continuing our debate on the Union, Hugh Macdonald recalls the lessons learned at his father’s knee and asks: how well do arguments against independence stack up?

Independence would make life less taxing for Scottish business
The Scotland On Sunday, 4th Feb 2007 - Response to Bill Jamieson's article on Roger Bootle's reported comments on the economics of Scottish independence (Links to other website)

Forgotten friends in the north
New Statesman , 29th Jan 2007 - As far as political news value goes, Scotland has a standing roughly on a par with a middle-sized English local authority.

Just Like Scotland, I'm in the Middle of an Identity Crisis
The Telegraph, 28th Jan 2007 - History is telling me that size isn't everything. But it's not nothing either.

Would Scots do as well on their own?
The Sunday Times, 28th Jan 2007- Should Scotland become independent and could it survive, indeed thrive, economically, if it were no longer part of the union?

Politics and the Press
Saltire Society Newsletter, 22nd Jan 2007 - Murray Ritchie, former political editor of The Herald, calls for more political balance in the Scottish press.

Independence may be a good thing for Scots farm industry
The Scotsman, 22nd Jan 2007 - With elections to the Scottish Parliament looming, the Scotsman looks at how Scotland's agriculture would cope going it alone

Why breaking up could be the making of us
The Herald , 22nd Jan 2007 -Quo vadis Britannia? we might well ask. For the 300th anniversary of the Act of Union threatens to open a Pandora's box.

I'm proud to be British – but let's put the Union to the vote - Jeff Randall
The Telegraph , 19th Jan 2007 - Rather than have them chipping away at the foundations of our society, let's call their bluff. Put it to the vote, north and south of Hadrian's Wall.

Perfectly reasonable position on currency
The Herald , 19th Jan 2007 - A letter from Alex Neil, MSP, The Scottish Parliament replying to John Robertson's letter.

There is an easy answer to the West Lothian Question, by Simon Jenkins
The Guardian , 17th Jan 2007 - There is no such thing as Scottish independence. There is no need for a separate English parliament. There is an easy answer to the West Lothian question. There is only one debate. This is how best to order the neighbourly relations of distinct peoples within the British Isles.

The Calcutta Telegraph, 15th January 2007
Gwynne Dyer discusses the covers the history of the union for the people of Calcutta, India.

Scotland marks 300th anniversary of increasingly disunited union with England
International Herald Tribune, 12th Jan 2007 - The anniversary Tuesday of the Scottish parliament's voting to accept the treaty is focusing attention on growing discord, with advocates of Scottish independence gaining strength in their campaign for a referendum on breaking the union.

England and Scotland: a disunited kingdom
The Daily Mail, 11th Jan 2007 - 300 years after the Treaty of Union, the Daily Mail's poll shows most Scots want to break away ... and most of the English agree. In fact a majority of voters in Scotland and England want the countries to split.

Harry Reid Joins the Convention
One of Scotland’s most eminent journalists, Harry Reid, has joined the Scottish Independence Convention, throwing his weight behind the campaign for a referendum and proclaiming his belief that the Treaty of Union is dead.