Scotland's referendum: If at first you don't succeed http://www.economist.com/node/21542806 The independence debate in Scotland: Interviewing Alex Salmond, the man who wants to break up Britain http://www.economist.com/blogs/bagehot/2012/01/independence-debate-scotland-0 The only way to save the Union is to stop throwing cash at the Scots - and treat them as equals http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2087122/Scottish-independence-The-way-save-Union-stop-throwing-cash-Scots.html?ito=feeds-newsxml Europe's regions go it alone at their peril [Free Registration may be required] http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d8955a74-4121-11e1-b521-00144feab49a.html#axzz1jkCsYaef Scottish Parliament http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/ BBC: Scottish History http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/scottishhistory/ In 1707, the sovereign state of Scotland was joined together with England to create the Kingdom of Great Britain. Over three hundred years later, there are still Scots who would like to see an end to this union. There have been some steps made in this direction through the process known as devolution. In 1999, the Scottish Parliament was (re) created and they retain authority over some home affairs. Most recently, there has been talk of another referendum on the matter of Scottish independence led by Alex Salmond, who serves as the head of the pro-independence Scottish National Party. Salmond and his colleagues are hoping to hold a referendum on the matter in 2014, and it may be a bit of an uphill battle on the ballot. According to a recent poll, only about a third of all Scots want to break away from the union. There have been some grumblings in the south as some English members of parliament (MPs) complain that Britain subsidizes the public services in Scotland. Conversely, the Scots argue that Britain receives generous revenues from North Sea oil and gas revenues. It's a situation that merits closer attention, and no doubt there will be increased coverage if the referendum makes it to a ballot. The first link will take interested parties to a piece from last week's The Economist on the question of Scottish devolution and possible independence. Moving along, the second link leads to an interview with Alex Salmon, courtesy of the "Bagehot" column in The Economist. The third link leads to an opinion piece from the Daily Mail by Melanie Phillips which weighs in on this developing situation. The fourth link will take users to a piece from this Tuesday's Financial Times on the increase in regionalist and separatist movements across Europe as of late. The fifth link will whisk visitors to the homepage of the Scottish Parliament. The last link leads to a page created by the BBC which provides visitors with information about the history of Scotland. All of the sections are quite interesting, but visitors won't want to miss the "Birth of a Nation" and "The Enlightenment" areas.