Expat Scots are following closely the twists and turns of the independence campaign from distant shores.

Here, they give Helen McArdle their thoughts on the debate.

Marjorie Hache, 29, half-French half-Scottish radio broadcaster in Paris - YES

"Westminster doesn't need the Scottish vote, it's atrocious. People here think it's a question of Scottish people and English people not liking each other, like Braveheart. I've tried to explain that it's about bad representation and they say 'well, we don't like the current government either.' They don't realise that it's not just the last five years - it's been going on for quite a while. People also tend to think that the UK is just different regions and you have to explain that, no, the UK is made up of several nations.

"David Bowie sending Kate Moss out at the Brit Awards was a bit lame. I made a comment about it on Facebook and people were like 'it's okay for you, you don't live here anymore', but I plan to come back one day. I don't think David Bowie does."

Susan Miller, 30, product developer for a global sports brand in Amsterdam - YES

"For me, it's about a lack of democracy. Regardless of what the four million voters in Scotland support, we get what the majority of people in England vote for. We've got a Tory government that is like an old pals' club from Eton which I don't think is very representative. The current system is quite elitist.

"Independence would also give Scotland a clearer identity of its own. In Holland most people don't know the difference between England and Scotland. England usually just means Britain."

Nick Mayes, 32, Asia-Pacific editor for a political risk consultancy in Singapore - YES

"They [the Chinese] are very suspicious of small, regional separatist movements anywhere in the world. I spoke to one Chinese guy who had spent a few days in Edinburgh and on the basis of that was very keen to tell me what a terrible idea it was for Scotland to become independent.

"My suspicion is that the Chinese are very hostile to it because it reflects on their own situation in places like Tibet and Taiwan. The (majority) Han Chinese are troubled by separatism; they have this idea of strength in unity.

"They're also just emerging into the world diplomatically and they don't want to be dealing with a more fragmented, more complex world - they're quite comfortable and familiar with the post-WW2 settlement."

Caroline Spinks, 44, educational psychologist in New Zealand - NO

"I do worry about a business exodus and the impact on Scotland's credit rating if it's a Yes vote, but I'm not part of those emotional debates going on in pubs and workplaces, and I haven't been exposed to all the media dialogue.

The ex-pat Scots I know in Wellington overwhelmingly favour Yes, and I've been surprised at how many of my friends at home support it.

"Would I be one of the uncertain ones if I was exposed to the full debate? I'm not sure. But my head is telling me at this point I would vote No, and it saddens me not to have a vote in something that's so important and so permanent."

Jayne Czarnocki, 31, press officer in Toronto - NO

"Montrealers are really interested in it, they know all about it, but in Toronto, honestly, nobody knows about it.

"Montrealers say they think the way the question has been posed in Scotland is really good. Apparently, their question was apparently three paragraphs long and everybody was confused because there were so many 'what if' clauses around it. So they think the simplicity of the question is really positive.

"I would vote 'No' though if I was still in Scotland. I just feel everyone is going to do the whole 'Braveheart' thing - thinking 'great, we're free from England' - without thinking about it seriously from an economic point of view.

"Scotland and Glasgow has such a booming financial services sector and that's where I worked before I left, so when I've read stuff about Standard Life drawing up evacuation plans in the event of a 'Yes' vote that makes me think it could be quite damaging. For graduates coming out of business schools, it could be worrying if there's even fewer jobs to go to than there are now."

Ross Wattie, 32, engineer for oil drilling company in Alaska - NO

"North Sea oil peaked in 1999. It's now less than half the production it was back then, so Yes campaigners are going to have to come up with a better plan than that.

"From a company operating point of view, the tax that we're subject to is already very high so there's actually not much room for us to be taxed any more.

"But I suppose it could be done, and it could be bad for the industry.

"It's the age old question: tax the companies more and there'll be less production; tax them less and you'll get more production. So which way do you actually get more revenue for the state?

"I don't disagree that Scotland could be a successful independent country, I just don't trust the people we've got to make it happen.

"Most of my American colleagues here don't think it's a good idea. One of the older men said if he had investments in Scotland he would be pulling them out.

"One of my American colleagues had an interesting perspective though. He said: 'Scotland can't make good decisions - look at what they did with Abdelbaset al Megrahi'."