Family guise

“Foreign-ness” is a concept which many in this island still have irrational problems with and incomprehensibly continue to see as a barrier. It has to be said, and said finally, this is the weakest of arguments.

It is often asserted that Scottish independence would forcibly “split” families. But familial ties are hugely strong: they transcend all normal international borders and even survive some of the most exceptional ones, such as the Berlin Wall.

How many families in England and Scotland do not already have relatives in other parts of the UK, beyond weekly visiting distance? And further, how many families do not also keep in really close touch with their relatives in far-flung parts of the former British Empire, Europe and indeed other foreign countries?

A person’s citizenship (wrongly referred to in the UK as “nationality”), while an important designation in easing internal and international administration, is in itself a technicality.

Members of a family holding future Scottish or UK passports will not suddenly find they areunable to speak to, or visit, each other! Australia is a very distant, and essentially “foreign”, country, yet families regularly chat and visit across those thousands of miles.

Communication and family ties overcome borders, distance and cultural differences with ease. Even wars are frequently incapable of breaking them.

Michael F Troon

Crawford Avenue

Gauldry, Fife