Scotland must gain control over its own seas to rid them of nuclear submarines and "unelected commissioners" taking their resources for the UK Treasury to "squander", First Minister Alex Salmond said.

Scotland is on the verge of a "second energy windfall" with renewables but this can only be harnessed "wisely" with independence, Mr Salmond said during a lecture in the Isle of Man this evening.

He added: "Scotland currently doesn't have control of the Crown Estate Commissioners who manage Scotland's seabed out to 12 nautical miles, and almost half of its foreshore.

"This prevents Scotland taking an integrated approach to how it manages its marine resources.

"The licences - and revenues - of much of our offshore energy are therefore in the hands of unelected commissioners, with revenues going to the UK Treasury.

"Transferring control of Scotland's seabed to Scotland is a key ingredient in delivering the full benefits of the offshore renewable energy revolution for Scotland, and ensuring that the benefits are shared widely across our communities.

"When offshore oil and gas was discovered in the 1960s, the Isle of Man government was able to negotiate a specific share of licence fees and royalties from the UK Government.

"For decades up to 1995, while Scotland got no access to its own oil revenues, the Isle of Man received a 0.1% share.

"Scotland has almost two-thirds of the European Union's oil production. But with no government of our own, and no control over territorial waters, we had no leverage.

"As a result, Scotland has watched as the UK Government has squandered four decades of oil and gas revenues.

"With independence, we can use the next four decades of revenues more wisely. We can also start to harness Scotland's second, renewable, energy windfall."

He said the Isle of Man is a good example of how a "small country" can retain its AAA credit rating within "a sterling zone".

He also attacked the Liberal Democrats' "meek" Trident nuclear weapons review, insisting that independence offers Scotland "the only alternative" to contributing billions of pounds towards "costly and unwanted weapons of mass destruction" during an era of austerity.

"A choice between the number of weapons of mass destruction is hardly an alternatives review," he said.

"Today's meek announcement from the Liberals confirms that all the anti-independence parties are hell-bent on committing to a multi-billion pound nuclear weapons system which is especially galling at a time of economic austerity.

"It is clear that the real choice, the real alternative, is the one supported by a majority in Scotland, that we should be free of nuclear weapons.

"Independence is now the only constitutional arrangement that will rid these costly and unwanted weapons of mass destruction from our shores, and allow Scotland to have a defence policy that meets our needs."