No majority for YES - but victory in sight - world press view
September was the occasion of the fifth referendum in Scotland since the first parliamentary referendum (on the EEC) in 1975. With the election of a majority SNP Government in 2011, it was the first to put the question of Scottish independence before the voters. And it was the one which most engaged the electorate - 97% voter registration, 86% turnout - far in excess of any other electoral test.
With YES gaining 45% of the vote and thus losing out, it might be expected that that is that for the time being.
But the world's media has twigged that the real losers are the defenders of the present system of governing Scotland. Why? Because the late promises to Scottish voters which swung it their way are undeliverable. Independence looks more certain after the vote than before.
Here's some selections from the world's press in September.
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Memo to Miliband: Britain’s social order is bankrupt
"... the hollowed-out husk that is Scottish Labour linked arms with a Tory party consigned by Scots to fringe status, and cheered on corporate titans as they threatened to hit livelihoods or pull the plug on the economy."
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Salmond lost battle for Scotland but England risks losing the war
"David Cameron’s Conservatives have set about handing the leader of the Scottish National party the victory denied him by Scotland’s voters.
Now there is a rum thought: Mr Salmond lost the battle but the English may yet concede the war."
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Scientists Trace Extreme Heat in Australia to Climate Change
"Five groups of researchers, using distinct methods, analyzed the heat that baked Australia for much of 2013 and continued into 2014, briefly shutting down the Australian Open tennis tournament in January when the temperature climbed to 111 degrees Fahrenheit.
All five research groups came to the conclusion that last year’s heat waves could not have been as severe without the long-term climatic warming caused by human emissions."
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UKIP donor calls for English indyref to eject Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland from UK
and "... JPMorgan Mid Cap Investment Trust state: '... the ultimate political and economic consequences for all members of the UK may take some time to emerge.' "
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Scotland's denial an even bigger loss for England
Leading article published in Sydney highlights that the real losers in the Scottish referendum are south of the border where promises they made cannot be delivered.
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Despite defeat history may still point to Alex Salmond as the victor
"...the promise of enhanced powers for the Scottish Parliament and the likely emergence of a federalist UK constitution, means historians will eventually point to Mr Salmond as the real victor of 18 September 2014."
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