Tim Ripley: Cameron’s pre-emptive strike aims to torpedo plan for ‘joint armed forces’

THE war of words between Edinburgh and London over Prime Minister David Cameron’s bid to control the timing and wording of a referendum on independence brings to the fore the complex issue of future cross-border defence arrangements.

An important side-effect of Mr Cameron’s pre-emptive strike would be to torpedo the SNP’s proposal to allow Scotland to establish “joint armed forces” with the rump UK’s military.

By making the argument an all-or-nothing division between the status quo and total independence, Mr Cameron is clearly trying to undermine some of the “nuanced messages” the SNP has been developing to show how Scotland could establish a new defence relationship with London.

By limiting the question on the ballot paper to a simple Yes or No to independence, Mr Cameron is trying to remove the option of allowing the Edinburgh devolved administration to have de facto financial independence with the UK. This is the so-called “third question”. Under this constitutional arrangement, the UK armed forces would remain largely unchanged under the control of the London government and the defence issue would be largely neutralised.

However, in a straight Yes or No framed ballot, the issue of defence will be high on the agenda and the SNP would have to flesh out in greater detail their idea of a joint Scottish-UK military structure.

Over the next four years the Ministry of Defence will be finalising plans for the next generation of Royal Navy frigates and Mr Cameron will undoubtedly be dropping big hints that they will not be built in an independent Scotland.

• Tim Ripley is a defence analyst.