Scottish Government New Bonds
By borrowing from the financial markets, the Scottish government seeks to reduce its financial obligations to the UK government. Soon, the Scottish government will issue its own bonds. As outlined in the Scottish Government announcement, it is the first step for Scotland to demonstrate to international markets that it is a stable destination for more foreign investment. I first wrote about this in 2023. You can read the post here. I covered the options that the government was ignoring, as well as the overall danger and weakness of borrowing in a currency you don’t issue. The decision to issue bonds [...]
Private sector debt in Scotland
Private sector debt in Scotland - the real ticking time bomb You can be sure of one thing. If politicians and mainstream economists are not talking about something, it must be important. We live in an era of misdirection. Ample headlines and column inches are dedicated to the national debt. Nothing is written about private sector debt. Thankfully, both Professor Richard Murphy and Professor Steve Keen have been keeping this topic bubbling over for the last while (for Steve Keen, it has pretty much been his life's work). The same can not be said of the economic mainstream. The mainstream [...]
The EU’s SGP in an independent Scotland
Adopting the EU's SGP in an independent Scotland will undermine economic resilience. Discussion paper: Undermining Economic Resilience - The Economic Impact of Adopting the European Union’s Stability and Growth Pact in an Independent Scotland. Dr Dirk Ehnts and William Thomson. The paper is written with a specific period in mind: the decade after a vote for Scotland to become independent. We believe this transition period has been overlooked in Scottish government papers, including the most recent ‘A fresh start with independence’, which was published in October 2025, a month after this paper was released. The initial frameworks Scotland adopts — [...]
Scottish Currency Project. The Transition to a Scottish Currency
Over the coming months, Scotonomics will consult with monetary operations academics and finance professionals to build the knowledge base on a transition to a Scottish Currency after independence. We will also refer to and cite the extensive literature on currency creation, currency operations, transitioning to a new currency, and establishing a new currency. We are fortunate that the literature is vast. We will also consult with the Scottish Currency Group and their new initiatives of a Monetary Research Institute and the commissioning of an academic, Dr Thibault Laurentjoye, Author of “Currency Options For An Independent Wales”, to look at “Options [...]
Scotland’s exports are stuck
Food and drink exports have increased by 7% in the last decade. But look behind that figure and you see a very different story about Scotland's exports. A 'story' emerged at the end of May about Scotland's food and drink exports. The Herald picked up on the story, but I couldn’t see it anywhere else (apart from various threads, etc, on X). I assume it was a story released by the SNP. The headline was that Scotland's exports in food and drink were six times those of England per capita. Here's an image from an MSP's page on Facebook: [...]
Understanding Scotland Economy Tracker Response from Scotonomics
Understanding Scotland Economy Tracker - The underlying story of Scotland’s economy is a lack of government spending For the last four years The Understanding Scotland Economy tracker has been tracking the general public’s views on the economy. See the latest report here. Every quarter we get a feel for economic sentiment from a cross section of over 2000 Scots. I attended the releasee of the report in Edinburgh on the 27th May. The survey is wide ranging - designed to be top level for others to look into the details - and provides a good ‘vibe’ of what is going [...]
A Government Job Guarantee in a Wellbeing Economy
A Government Job Guarantee must be a central economic policy in a wellbeing economy and should be central to the next independence campaign. William Thomson's introduction to a Government Job Guarantee. Although the Job Guarantee is a macroeconomic policy designed to stabilise the economy, it has other appealing features. A job guarantee is a priority if we are to tackle the multiple crises we face today. These include inequality, the continual blight of poverty, and the ecological damage we have wrought on the earth. The job guarantee scheme embeds the government as the employer of last resort. The government [...]
Greece shows the importance of Scotland issuing its own currency
The experience of Greece provides an another example of the importance of Scotland issuing its own currency One of the scare stories we hear about Scottish independence is that Greece's economic and social troubles in the early 2010s should be taken as warning for an independent Scotland. The truth is that Greece's story strongly points us in one direction, away from using Sterling and taking advantage of the significant control offered by issuing your own currency. An institutional approach It is exceptionally important that we learn the right lessons as we plan for Scotland to become independent again. It is [...]
Scotland’s Fight Against UK Fiscal Austerity
The Scottish Government call it 'Social Security'. It is 'Welfare' in Westminster. Clear Blue Water: Scotland's Fight Against UK Fiscal Austerity It’s rare indeed to be able to match the words of a politician with their actions. The proposed 2025/26 Scottish budget listed eradicating child poverty as one of its four priorities. In a budget speech earlier this month, John Swinney went further, “Eradicating child poverty is my top priority because I do not wish to condemn any young Scot to a life of disadvantage simply because of where they were born.” Turning words into action, the Scottish Government will [...]
30 things you know when you understand MMT
What is modern monetary theory is a question that requires a deep understanding and analysis of a school of thought. Modern Monetary Theory suffers from straw man syndrome. For some, it is much easier to construct a straw man version than to try to understand MMT. Below, I explode that strawman with 30 things you know when you understand MMT. What is Modern Monetary Theory? Straw man. Noun. An intentionally misrepresented proposition that is set up because it is easier to defeat than an opponent's real argument. Every idea, concept, or school of thought can be boiled down to its [...]