The people of Shetland would rather like to be independent. To be more precise they really don’t want to be part of an Independent Scotland and voted heavily to stay part of the UK. Might Dumfries & Galloway feel the same? They might well.
Are either of these parts of Scotland going to have the opportunity to make that choice? Absolutely no chance. The Scottish Government is never going to countenance losing its oil revenue - dwindling or not. The fact is that Scotland is an established geographical entity in political terms and it is not reasonable or practical for parts of it to make such different political choices.
The principle doesn't extend only to politics but covers business and economics too. Could Glasgow join the North American Free Trade area? No.
Could Glasgow and Edinburgh have different legal systems? Again, no.
The point is that each layer of political representation has a purpose and if those who are the people's servants (not our masters) wander above or below their level of competence things don’t work well. The UK Cabinet deciding a planning application for an extension to your granny's house in Ayr would be a bit silly. The Provost of Glasgow deciding whether to shoot down a Russian bomber which has strayed over Govan - rather unwise.
Each part of our governance structure needs to keep its nose out of what is not its responsibility and concentrate on what it is supposed to be doing. Instead of worrying about Russian bombers, Glasgow City Council needs to make sure it deals effectively with local roads, bin collections and other mundane things which are unglamorous but important to us. Attending to these basics also helps create the operating framework for businesses , which they need in order to get on and create the wealth, jobs and taxes we all want.
Broadly, local government does stick to its knitting but, my goodness, the same cannot be said for the Scottish Government. The defence of the UK and where our forces are based - in they wade although it’s none of their business. Brexit, a matter on which the UK as a whole has voted and should be dealt with at a UK level - constant back seat driving, legislative threats and moaning. Scottish independence: La Nicola will now apparently conclude towards the end of this year whether we should have another referendum on independence for Scotland. As well as the cynical timing - making a decision at the time Brexit negotiations are likely to be at their most difficult and unclear - this is simply not what the government of Scotland should be concentrating on. For business, the endless continuation of this “will we or won't we" push for another referendum creates uncertainty which undermines investment and costs jobs.
The Scottish Government does not have the mandate to ask for another referendum this side of the next Scottish Parliamentary elections. Pointing to some small print in their last manifesto - wedged in as a hypothetical possibility amongst more than 100 other promises and pledges - simply is not good enough.
The UK leaving the EU is a significant challenge for Scottish business - which is unhelpful but one we can overcome. What we do not need is another cloud of doubt over the framework within which business must work . Nor should our political servants in the Scottish Government focus on things which excite them but which are not their job. Run our hospitals well, fix our roads, restore our education system to the position it once had. Impress voters and business by what you can achieve in the areas you are supposed to be running and already have the power to influence. Get on with your actual job.
Pinstripe is a senior member of Scotland's financial services community.
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