Yes for our children. Yes to end poverty. Yes for a fairer, more equal and socially-just Scotland. Yes to rid ourselves of the Tories. And of course the old favourite: yes for our freedom.

If you asked any nationalist politician or activist what a yes vote in September’s referendum on Scottish independence means, one, if not all, of the above are likely to feature in their reply.

On Tuesday’s ‘big debate’ between Alex Salmond, the leader of the Scottish Nationalist Party, and Alistair Darling, the former Labour chancellor and leader of Better Together, Mr Salmond relayed all of these reasons to try and win over undecided voters.

But like so many of his claims and assertions, I do not believe they worked. Nor do I believe they will win over the hearts and minds of the undecided.

The yes camp have framed their current campaign for separation around these core issues, naively believing that by exploiting the current political climate they will convince enough Scots that breaking up Britain will guarantee them a more prosperous future.

However, what they fail to realise is they are not campaigning to win an election. In their tax-funded white paper, which reads as a manifesto for government promising X, asserting Y and claiming they will deliver Z better than their political opponents, they have fundamentally failed their more basic challenge: to present a clear and concise explanation as to how we would establish a new Scottish state. What the nationalists must understand is that in the current climate it is political change that is required, not constitutional upheaval.

And this is the real question we are being asked to answer in September.

Do we believe we should create a new Scottish state and break our ties with the institutions of governance we have helped create, fund and develop as part of the United Kingdom?

It is not a question of achieving our freedom from ‘Westminster’, the home of the democratically elected British government.

Scotland is already an independent nation. Just as England, Wales and Northern Ireland are equally independent nations.

As a proud Scot, not once have felt I do not live in a free Scotland.

I am from the generation of devolution; the generation that has grown up with a prime minister of Great Britain and a first minister of Scotland. The generation that has benefited from a devolved Scottish parliament backed up with the strength and security of the United Kingdom. The generation that benefited immensely by the national minimum wage introduced at UK level by Scottish born prime minister Tony Blair. And the generation whose health has benefited from a Scottish parliament leading the UK by banning smoking in public places.

And this is the point – we, as Scots, are a free and independent nation of peoples within the United Kingdom.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain is quite literally the United Kingdoms of Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

For over 300 years, these four proud and distinctly different nations have flourished independently and collectively as part of the United Kingdom. All four countries are nations without states working together to deliver better for all parts of the UK. And therefore, it should come as no surprise that the assets of the British state, including the BBC, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Ministry of Defence, the Bank of England and yes the pound sterling, belong to Britain. They do not belong to the individual nations or their people.

The state of Great Britain has enabled all parts of these islands to grow and achieve more together than we could ever have achieved apart. However, there is so much more we must and can do.

I want to create a fairer, more equal society; however, I do not believe creating borders is the way to do that.

I want to live in a country where my children will have a better future. A country based on the principles of equality and of fairness in which every man, woman and child, rich and poor, contributes to building a better society. However, I want that for Britain.

I do not hold the selfish view that I should only care about the poverty of those who I happen to share the same postcode with. I want to eradicate poverty in Britain just as much as I want to rid it from Europe, America, Asia and Africa. Poverty will not be solved by erecting borders.

And it is based on these internationalist and socialist beliefs, that I unequivocally do not believe voting yes in September is a patriotic or wise choice for Scots. Just as I do not believe it will deliver a better Scotland.

Scots do not need to tick a box to realise our freedoms because we are already free. We do not need to vote yes to gain our independence because we are already independent citizens of a free Scotland working within a united kingdom of nations.

Alex Salmond claims a yes vote will show the world Scotland is a confident country. And of course he is entitled to that view.

But how can turning your back on 300 years of our history, on the things our forefathers have achieved by working together and by destroying the dual identity the majority of Scots share, demonstrate our confidence as a modern nation of people?

By voting no, all patriotic Scots can show the world we already are a confident nation. Voting no in September is voting for a better future: one based on working together to achieve a better Britain. A future which aims to rid Scotland of narrow-minded nationalism in favour of liberty, togetherness and strengthened ties with our friends, family and allies in the UK, Europe and across the world. A strengthened Scottish parliament within a strong and prosperous United Kingdom is the best choice for our future.

I will proudly cast my no vote in September alongside my fellow Scots who are proud of our nation’s past and passionate about our future within the United Kingdom.

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Taylor James Scott

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Photo: Brent MacAloney