Pro-independence · Honest · Fully sourced
Scotland can thrive as an independent country.
The case for independence, the challenges it would bring, and the plans to meet them. Every claim is linked to a public source.
Why Scotland can thrive
All topics →- The evidence
Countries like Scotland
Ten comparable independent European countries are wealthier, fairer and more productive than the UK.
- Resources
Energy and natural resources
A record 38.5 TWh of renewable electricity in 2025, and Scotland is a net exporter of power.
- Europe
Back into the EU
Re-joining the EU single market, staying in the Common Travel Area, and the border with England.
- Money
Public finances
What the figures show, the deficit challenge, and how an independent Scotland would manage its budget.
- Money
Currency, mortgages and savings
Keeping the pound at first, a Scottish Central Bank, and the conditions for a Scottish pound.
- Everyday life
The NHS, benefits and pensions
A protected NHS, Scotland's own benefits agency, and the pension questions still to be answered.
Every claim sourced
If we can't link to a public source we have checked, we leave it out. Official figures are stated as facts, and plans are credited to whoever made them.
The challenges included
Independence would bring real challenges. Every topic sets them out, alongside the plans to meet them.
Corrections in public
Spotted an error? Email corrections [at] whynotscotland.scot. Every change is logged with its date.
How independence could happen: the legal route, the 2014 precedent and the steps that would follow
Document libraryAll 14 Building a New Scotland papers, the UK Government's 2014 analysis, court rulings and official statistics
Sources
- SPICe, “The results are in”, 9 May 2026.
- Institute for Government, Scottish independence explainer, updated 29 May 2026.
- Find Out Now, Polling in Scotland for The National (fieldwork 4–10 August 2026).
- Survation, Scotland data tables, commissioned by Fore Energy Ltd (fieldwork 9–14 October 2026).
- "Independence trigger already met", Gilruth says, PA, 14 September 2026.
- Scottish Parliament, Official Report, 22 September 2026; The Highland Times, Holyrood Backs Scotland's Right to Decide its Own Future, 23 September 2026.
- Labour Party, Andy Burnham's speech to Labour Party Conference 2026, 29 September 2026; STV News, report on the exchange, 29 September 2026.
- Norstat, Political polling tables, September 2026 (fieldwork 15–18 September 2026, commissioned by Believe in Scotland).
- Press Association, reported by SNP to launch "biggest independence campaign" since 2014 referendum, 14 October 2026; ITV News, PM offers Scotland more powers in bid to move past "old politics of conflict", 16 October 2026.
- YouGov, Scotland political snapshot, October 2026 (fieldwork 29 September – 5 October 2026).