This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/jun/13/hillary-clinton-britain-scotland-independence-referendum

The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
Hillary Clinton: I would hate Britain to lose Scotland Hillary Clinton: I would hate Britain to lose Scotland
(35 minutes later)
Hillary Clinton has become the latest powerful figure to intervene on the independence debate, saying she would hate Britain to lose Scotland. Hillary Clinton has become the latest significant international figure to offer an opinion on the Scottish independence debate, saying that a yes vote would be "a loss for both sides".
The former US secretary of state said she believed a yes vote would be a loss for both sides and she hoped that did not happen. The former US secretary of state, who is expected to run for president in 2016, told BBC2's Newsnight: "I would hate to have you lose Scotland. I hope that it doesn't happen but I don't have a vote in Scotland. But I would hope it doesn't happen."
Clinton, who is on a tour to promote her memoir, Hard Choices, and is widely believed to be preparing for a presidential run in 2016, also indicated she was keen for Britain to remain part of the European Union. But, as with Barack Obama's unexpected intervention last week when he told a press conference in Brussels that the United States had a deep interest in ensuring the UK remained "strong, robust and united", campaigners from both sides of the referendum debate are remaining cautious about the impact of such remarks on Scottish voters.
"I would hate to have you lose Scotland," she told BBC2's Newsnight. "I hope that it doesn't happen but I don't have a vote in Scotland. But I would hope it doesn't happen. Clinton, who is on a tour to promote her memoir, Hard Choices, echoed Obama when she said that the special relationship between Britain and the US was "worth everything to me and to our country. I do think we see the world very similarly."
"I would think it would be a loss for both sides but, again, I don't have a vote." Like Obama, she also suggested that she wanted Britain to remain part of the European Union. Asked if Britain's standing would be enhanced or diminished in the US if it left the EU, she replied: "Oh, boy you are asking me to cross into dangerous waters, which I will not do."
Clinton insisted the "special relationship" between Britain and the US was "worth everything to me and to our country. I do think we see the world very similarly." She then added: "Europe needs Britain, in my opinion. I think Britain brings a perspective and an experience that is very important to Europe, especially post-economic crisis. So, Britain will have to decide if they agree with that."
Asked if Britain's standing would be enhanced or diminished in the US if it left the EU, she replied: "Oh, boy you are asking me to cross into dangerous waters, which I will not do." The pro-UK Better Together campaign immediately welcomed Clinton's support, saying: "Like President Obama, [Hillary Clinton] understands that the UK is at its strongest when it works together."
She added: "Europe needs Britain, in my opinion. I think Britain brings a perspective and an experience that is very important to Europe, especially post-economic crisis. So, Britain will have to decide if they agree with that." Reacting to the comments on Friday morning, Scotland's first minister Alex Salmond pointed out that Scotland is "not a property to be lost but a nation about to take a precious and consensual and democratic decision". He insisted: "An independent Scotland will be a friend and ally to our neighbours in the rest of the UK as well as to our friends in the United States of America."
Alex Salmond said Clinton was entitled to her views, adding that, "as she rightly points out, the referendum is a matter for the people of Scotland". But Clinton's intervention once again raises the question of how much the opinions of international politicians or celebrities such as JK Rowling, who earlier this week donated £1m to Better Together, will affect the decision-making of ordinary voters on 18 September. Polling evidence suggests that more than 90% of voters believe they are not influenced by celebrity endorsements.
The Scottish first minister added: "Mrs Clinton's observations are quite interesting in that she infers Britain will 'lose Scotland' after a yes vote. This reflects reports that David Cameron has said he doesn't want to 'lose' Scotland, likening it to George III losing the United States. Pauline McNeill, former Labour MSP and chair of the Middle East and North Africa Forum in Scotland, believes that Clinton's remarks will have "negligible" impact on Scottish voters. "With the president's intervention, there was an Obama factor, because he is seen as a progressive president. But this will reaffirm the view of people on the no side that the special relationship is important."
"But, unlike that period in American history - when independence was only gained through conflict - we are deeply fortunate in that we have the opportunity to secure our nation's independence in a profoundly democratic way, as president Obama and John Kerry, Mrs Clinton's successor as Secretary of State, have acknowledged." On Thursday the Guardian revealed that Britain is stepping up its collaboration with the US over the design of nuclear warheads, raising new questions about the independence of the UK deterrent.
Salmond continued: "In any case, Scotland is not a property to be lost but a nation about to take a precious and consensual and democratic decision. McNeill believes that voters who remain undecided are struggling with "a quagmire of information" about the impact of independence on the economy. "They'll think: 'What does Hillary Clinton know about my worries about what's going to happen to my pension, my job?' What it does show people is the extent of international interest in this referendum. Scotland really is on the world stage now."
"An independent Scotland will be a friend and ally to our neighbours in the rest of the UK as well as to our friends in the United States of America." Shadow foreign secretary, Douglas Alexander, suggests that Clinton's remarks will have a particular impact on women voters who, according to polls, are less likely to be in favour of independence and more likely still to be undecided.
Clinton's intervention on the Scottish referendum debate comes just one week after Barack Obama said he believed that the UK appeared to have "worked pretty well". "Women will be key to the referendum decision on 18 September and this week we have seen perhaps the most globally admired female leader and the most globally successful female writer both agree that we're better together," he said.
A Better Together spokesman said: "Hillary Clinton is a figure who is respected right across the world. Like President Obama, she understands that the UK is at its strongest when it works together. She has said 'no thanks' to [Scottish National party leader] Alex Salmond's attempts to divide the people of Britain. We are grateful for her support." Natalie McGarry, co-founder on Women for Independence, doubts that women will be swayed by this latest intervention. "The reason so many women are undecided is because they are still weighing up the arguments," she says. "To suggest that an almost off-the-cuff remark would outweigh those serious considerations is a bit insulting."
"Celebrities give a shot in the arm to campaigners," she adds, "but I'd be disappointed if people voted on that basis. Perhaps JK Rowling will have more impact because she wrote a longer and considered piece. But I was surprised by Clinton's tone, talking about 'losing Scotland' as though the country were a chattel."
Susan Stewart, former director of communications at Yes Scotland and Scotland's first diplomat to the United States from 2001-05, notes that international interest in the independence referendum is likely to increase significantly, with an influx of foreign media into the country for July's Commonwealth Games. "I should imagine other heads of state will come out or be cornered into making comments, and both sides will jump on this and try to make political capital out of it."
However, as with Obama, she does not believe that Clinton's intervention will have a significant impact on Scottish voters.