CAPITAL IDEA # ONE


A letter to the Berwickshire puts a new angle on the 'Berwick should go back to Scotland issue:

- Regarding the recent news story about Berwick-upon-Tweed transferring to Scotland.
Another and possible more attractive proposition for a vote would be for Berwick, the city and the region to become an independent city state like for example San Marino, or even the Isle of Man.
Benefits would be control of tax and spend with innovative tax revenues from Casinos and other sources, the opportunity to hold Berwick Motor racing Grand Prix, both car and motorbike and the opportunity to have its own sporting teams in the Olympics, Commonwealth Games, European and World football - and become a tax haven.
What do others think

As it happens the Hutton Think Tank has been long pondering the future status of Berwick which of course did have an autonomous position in the UK up to the end of the 18th Century: 'Great Britain, Northern Ireland and Berwick-upon-Tweed' HTT is working on a proposal to establish a slighly expanded Berwick (Tweedmouth, Spittal, Paxton and Hutton Hill) to be a British Capital Territory rather like Canberra in Australia. It would be the seat of government-parliament to meet in the Maltings(?), with diplomatic missions, scaled down ministries (Berwick Caravan Park), including the Foreign Office (Paxton House) PM's Residence (The old Governors House, naturally), and a new Royal Residence for use by HM for the opening of parliament, diplomatic receptions etc.This could be built either on Hutton Hill or in Knowe's Close in Paxton. There are some practical problems to be overcome but local lairds are already being most generous with offers of land no longer needed for agricultural purposes.

Such a new capital would cut the ground (no pun intended) from SNP's pretensions for a separate independent Scotland and being as much in Scotand as in England (or rather as much not in England as not in Scotland)it would provide the country with a near, easily accessible seat of power and patronage. Joined up government indeed.

Any snags on post cards please to the usual HTT dead letter box on the upper Paxton Hutton Road.

(The image is of a possible Diplomatic Quarter in the future Berwick Capital Area)

Labels: Berwick upon Tweed, New Capital for UK

  ¶ 10:14 AM