THIS week's launch of the Yes Scotland campaign is an important milestone in the independence debate.
Just over a year since the SNP's landslide win at Holyrood made a referendum certain, voters will finally see what the Yes campaign looks like.
Although modern politics means an element of showbiz is obligatory, Friday's launch should be about more than celebrities out front, it should offer real substance.
Voters remain hungry for detail, especially on the financial consequences of independence in a precarious global economy.
One thing we do know is that Yes Scotland will be a positive campaign, both in outlook and style. The SNP learned many years ago that positive messages are more likely to engage and persuade the electorate.
So expect an emphasis on the transformational and historic aspects of independence, and a ban on Braveheart-style anti-Englishness.
But what of the No campaign?
So far, opponents of independence have offered little but negativity, preferring to list the potential problems of independence, without articulating the upsides, now and in the long-term, of the Union.
But scare stories alone are no way rally supporters to a cause. Unless voters hear a detailed positive case for the Union, they may wonder if one exists. So Friday should be a milestone for both sides.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article