Scots have ‘nothing to prove’ on independence

SCOTS do not need to “prove things to ourselves” by backing independence, nor feel “insecure” about the country’s identity as part of the United Kingdom, Scottish Secretary Michael Moore said last night.

In a speech marking St 
Andrew’s Day later this week, Mr Moore claimed that Scotland’s sense of itself had “flourished, not withered” within the UK over the past three centuries, saying most people in Scotland now considered themselves to be “Scottish first and British second”.

If Scotland did back independence, however, it would lose “something important”. The Union was not something that should be “worn lightly, then discarded casually,” he said.

However, the SNP last night said Mr Moore’s arguments were misplaced, insisting independence would allow political control to pass to Edinburgh, while still allowing people to “feel British” if they wanted.

Addressing an audience in Whitehall, Mr Moore said: “Most of us north of the Border say that we are Scottish first and British second.”