:00:00. > :00:23.is still too close to call. Now on BBC News, Reporters. Welcome to the
:00:24. > :00:29.special edition of Reporters, I am Lucy Hocking 's, in Edinburgh. As
:00:30. > :00:31.Scotland prepares to vote in a historic referendum about whether to
:00:32. > :00:37.break away from the UK, we have a special series of reports for you
:00:38. > :00:42.from our global network correspondence on the challenges
:00:43. > :00:49.which lie ahead. Coming up: a thirst for change. Alan Little reports from
:00:50. > :00:57.a place is famous for its single malt whiskey on how both sides of
:00:58. > :01:01.the debate are keen for reform. Yes, there has been national flag waving.
:01:02. > :01:05.extraordinary and energetic debate which has energised
:01:06. > :01:09.part of the country. David Grossman canvasses
:01:10. > :01:14.border on how Scotland's neighbours see the debate. If we were a
:01:15. > :01:19.separate, foreign country, different states, with that bother you? They
:01:20. > :01:22.would just do what they want to do anyway, wouldn't they? We report on
:01:23. > :01:31.how the yes and no campaigns are trying to woo the nation's biggest
:01:32. > :01:37.ethnic minority. Everyone will have their own opinion. The story of
:01:38. > :01:43.Scotland's historic failure to build its own empire 300 years ago in
:01:44. > :01:48.Paraguay. And the old alliance, Hugh Schofield investigates how Scottish
:01:49. > :01:54.ties with France mean more than just a love of haggis. There is clearly
:01:55. > :01:59.deep sympathy for the Scots, not just here but right across France.
:02:00. > :02:06.To be or not to be independent, that is the Scottish question. And soon
:02:07. > :02:10.the 5 million people in Scotland will vote in a historic referendum
:02:11. > :02:15.to decide whether to break away from the UK and become and an independent
:02:16. > :02:19.nation. It is a deceptively simple question which has been so divisive,
:02:20. > :02:24.of course, dividing not only the nation but splitting family and
:02:25. > :02:28.friends. Our correspondent went to an island famous for its single malt
:02:29. > :02:37.whiskeys, where there is a thirst for change. Just 90,000 people live
:02:38. > :02:42.in Bute, but it has a coastline longer than that of France. There
:02:43. > :02:46.are so few people in Scotland that it has a population density just 1/7
:02:47. > :02:49.that of England and Wales. Pro`independence campaigner say that
:02:50. > :02:55.makes it a different kind of country with different political challenges
:02:56. > :02:59.and needs. The hotelier David Graham leaves his guests in no doubt about
:03:00. > :03:03.his allegiance. For him independent is about making government more
:03:04. > :03:10.accountable. We still feel distant from Westminster. Westminster still
:03:11. > :03:14.control a lot of the key levers which could make such a difference
:03:15. > :03:18.to Scotland as an independent country. I personally feel that the
:03:19. > :03:25.politicians closer to home can be more answerable to the demands of
:03:26. > :03:29.the people. The independence debate reaches into every community. The
:03:30. > :03:38.level of engagement is unprecedented. The annual Isla
:03:39. > :03:43.agricultural show brings the area together. Mines are being made up in
:03:44. > :03:48.places like this in lengthy conversations with friends and
:03:49. > :03:54.neighbours. I can just see chaos. What is the point of saying you want
:03:55. > :03:59.to be separate, but meantime all we get is a list of the things that we
:04:00. > :04:04.don't want to lose? It must be nice to be either one or the other and so
:04:05. > :04:08.choose what you want to do. I keep getting pulled back and forth. I
:04:09. > :04:14.think it is great. I think it is that we will be able to take this
:04:15. > :04:20.step won't be easy, it will probably be
:04:21. > :04:27.very hard and Neither side now is backing the
:04:28. > :04:34.status passionate no campaigners, like the
:04:35. > :04:35.local postmaster, also want change. Centralisation to a centre of zest
:04:36. > :04:41.technocracy in Edinburgh has not helped us on the islands. The best
:04:42. > :04:44.way to achieve devolution is not just devolution to Edinburgh, but
:04:45. > :04:49.from Edinburgh, more local devolution, and the National 's have
:04:50. > :04:54.a terrible track record on this. In a place like this you see something
:04:55. > :04:57.very important about the nature of this whole debate. It is not just
:04:58. > :05:01.about the national about power, about where it should
:05:02. > :05:05.properly centre more accountable to people
:05:06. > :05:10.who been national flag waving, but this
:05:11. > :05:17.is also people in every part of the country,
:05:18. > :05:21.and groups of friends, about the nature of democracy
:05:22. > :05:29.itself, and how to make it that. pace of that debate has now
:05:30. > :05:33.accelerated fast. Both sides now say they want change, and the decision,
:05:34. > :05:40.changed in or out of the UK, is now just days away. But what about those
:05:41. > :05:44.people across the border in England, who care passionately about the
:05:45. > :05:49.independence debate here but don't get to vote. Our correspondent has
:05:50. > :05:55.been to a town on the border between England and Scotland to find out
:05:56. > :05:58.more. Obviously the debate about Scottish independence is mainly
:05:59. > :06:03.focused on the people who live behind me, in Scotland. But what of
:06:04. > :06:09.the other participants in this 300 `year`old marriage? What does it
:06:10. > :06:20.mean for the people who lived over their? `` live over there? For 200
:06:21. > :06:26.years the people in this community have witnessed a changing world and
:06:27. > :06:32.the changing UK. For the entirety of this campaign there has been an
:06:33. > :06:37.border that voters here don't need to really
:06:38. > :06:42.is going on over there. After all, the polls suggest that independence
:06:43. > :06:47.defeated. Now however some polls suggest a different picture. So what
:06:48. > :06:50.do voters over here think now. Barry and Nancy Smith are on
:06:51. > :06:55.Staffordshire. Changing polls worry them. We go to Scotland quite
:06:56. > :07:01.regularly, I think this is the third or fourth time in the last few
:07:02. > :07:07.years. We love going north of the border. But it doesn't feel like we
:07:08. > :07:10.are going abroad. Maybe in future it will do. As an English person I am
:07:11. > :07:12.sort of feeling that we are the British Isles, and we are better
:07:13. > :07:18.together. We are better together than going our separate
:07:19. > :07:22.ways, a thick we can be stronger and are stronger together. Most people
:07:23. > :07:28.who live here identify themselves first of all as Berrickers, as
:07:29. > :07:33.opposed to Scottish or English. Things would change, but perhaps not
:07:34. > :07:38.culturally, I think there would still be cross`border link ``
:07:39. > :07:42.Berwickers. Berlot might depend exactly what Scottish independence
:07:43. > :07:50.looks like. Walking through Berwick, you get a sense of a town
:07:51. > :07:56.which looks in both directions. What would it mean for you as a West
:07:57. > :08:06.Highland terrier, do you think? Anything in particular? WOOF! If
:08:07. > :08:10.Scotland were another country, a separate foreign country, a
:08:11. > :08:16.different state, would that bother you? No. They were just do what they
:08:17. > :08:21.want to do anyway. This bridge spans written's life is a great power.
:08:22. > :08:25.Opened just after the Battle of Waterloo, it stood throughout the
:08:26. > :08:30.golden age of British identity. It may begin an era ratcheted by border
:08:31. > :08:38.posts, the union gone, the chain broken. 3% of people in Scotland
:08:39. > :08:46.identify as Asian, making them the largest ethnic group. Our
:08:47. > :08:56.correspondent went to a Sikh temple in Glasgow. The women here are
:08:57. > :09:03.preparing over 2000 chapati, with help or hindrance from me. This is a
:09:04. > :09:06.place of prayer, not politics. But still the referendum comes up in
:09:07. > :09:16.conversation. Everyone is different. Everyone has their own
:09:17. > :09:21.opinion. I am told that for all the Sikhs, very serious in India
:09:22. > :09:26.influences their vote. There were separate states, and we lost the
:09:27. > :09:31.lot. This might have negative connotations for them in terms of
:09:32. > :09:36.their voting. Do they want a separate or stay as one United
:09:37. > :09:44.Kingdom? There are others who see a new future in an independent
:09:45. > :09:50.Scotland. Chandeep Singh is from an independent family. It is about
:09:51. > :09:55.smashing the grass ceiling `` glass ceiling at every level. They use the
:09:56. > :09:58.language which is all about trying to put Scotland on the world stage.
:09:59. > :10:06.And I think that is kind of way I see a lot of what I am trying to
:10:07. > :10:12.achieve. In the streets of this town, it seemed yet Scotland have
:10:13. > :10:21.been making their presence felt. This woman from Muslim Friends of
:10:22. > :10:25.Labour was voting no but has changed her mind. She says business voters
:10:26. > :10:30.in particular are listening. If we are independent we have the ability
:10:31. > :10:33.to say what taxes we want, and we can
:10:34. > :10:37.effectively, aiding small businesses, predominantly the
:10:38. > :10:43.Scottish Asian community what this. The idea of a shared history
:10:44. > :10:47.resonates with the Asian vote. They see the UK as a place where they
:10:48. > :10:51.have been given opportunities. My father talks a lot about what it was
:10:52. > :10:56.like when he the opportunity to give his daughter
:10:57. > :11:02.'s education. representation of that opportunity.
:11:03. > :11:03.Evra has their own reasons for voting yes or no. The Asian
:11:04. > :11:20.population has `` is no The implications of this referendum
:11:21. > :11:24.are being watched all around the world, even in Quebec which has had
:11:25. > :11:32.two referendum campaigns themselves in which both times they decided to
:11:33. > :11:42.stay with in Canada. Nick Bryant has been to Quebec City. A parade
:11:43. > :11:53.through the streets retelling the story of the settlement of what was
:11:54. > :11:57.then called New France. The province has retained its brand of foam
:11:58. > :12:03.character although it never achieved independence. The festival organiser
:12:04. > :12:11.explains the dilemma. He sees himself as a Quebec residents burst
:12:12. > :12:17.and a Canadian second `` resident first. Will be still have the
:12:18. > :12:24.Canadian dollar? Will be still trade with our neighbours? Will it be that
:12:25. > :12:27.easy to trade with the other Canadian provinces? How would the
:12:28. > :12:33.other Americans consider us? Those are big concerns for parts of the
:12:34. > :12:42.population. In a decades long struggle, Divac has dealt with
:12:43. > :12:47.losing two referendums, in one case coming within 1% of separation. The
:12:48. > :12:54.lesson for Scotland is that independence is a multiphase
:12:55. > :13:00.affair. It is unbelievable. They just got a new parliament in 1997
:13:01. > :13:06.and now they are having a referendum to be a free country. If it won't
:13:07. > :13:17.work this time, it's Mike's next time. `` it might. Quebec has
:13:18. > :13:24.achieved a great deal of autonomy but for Scotland, the separatist
:13:25. > :13:32.spirit has been dampened. The last referendum was almost 20 years ago
:13:33. > :13:39.in Quebec but the wish for separation hasn't run away. In
:13:40. > :13:45.Canada, Baycol at never ending referendum `` they call it. For all
:13:46. > :13:50.of Quebec's distinctive culture, there is no appetite for a third
:13:51. > :14:02.referendum. Many feel that the culture of this province has not yet
:14:03. > :14:08.reached its pinnacle. It is widely acknowledged that Scotland became
:14:09. > :14:11.much more keen to join England years ago after the catastrophic failure
:14:12. > :14:17.of their own attempts to build an empire. This scheme was to take over
:14:18. > :14:22.part as Paraguay known as Darien. It almost bankrupted Scotland and led
:14:23. > :14:36.to the phrase, if you can't beat them, join them. This attempt at
:14:37. > :14:42.settling brought ruin to the Scots. The Anglo Scottish union that is now
:14:43. > :14:51.being challenged has its origins here in Darien in Panama. When a
:14:52. > :14:55.nation rethinks its future as Scotland now does, it also
:14:56. > :15:00.re`examines its past. Scotland is rethinking the lessons of what is
:15:01. > :15:04.still known as the Darien Disaster. Documents tell the story of an
:15:05. > :15:10.attempt by Scottish merchants to found a trading colony which they
:15:11. > :15:17.were going to call Caledonia and its capital city New Edinburgh. Here is
:15:18. > :15:22.the Constitution of Caledonia in America. Here is how they wanted
:15:23. > :15:27.their economy to be run. Everything from judiciary to have disputes
:15:28. > :15:34.would be settled. Not just a new colony but a new country. All of
:15:35. > :15:42.these things about beginning. How do you begin a country? It was
:15:43. > :15:45.fantastically ambitious. Very. There would be two major expeditions to
:15:46. > :15:52.Panama carrying 3000 settlers between them. The first embarked in
:15:53. > :16:04.a mood of national euphoria. They set sail on the 14th of July 1698.
:16:05. > :16:09.The Hull City came down to see the colonists depart `` entire city.
:16:10. > :16:15.This was an adventure that everyone wanted to be part of. The colonists
:16:16. > :16:21.bought themselves the luckiest Scotsman alive. They had no idea
:16:22. > :16:34.that they were sailing into personal and national catastrophe. There it
:16:35. > :16:41.is. Scottish harbour and when the hole in his came here after four
:16:42. > :16:48.grueling months at sea, they found themselves surrounded by fertile
:16:49. > :16:55.land not occupied by any European party and they thought this would
:16:56. > :17:01.have had great implications. What they didn't know is that it rains
:17:02. > :17:17.here for most of the year and that nothing ever dries out. It was the
:17:18. > :17:22.amazing fertility of this place that brought the Scots here in the first
:17:23. > :17:33.place. One of the colonisers wrote that the back `` asked breaking work
:17:34. > :17:39.of breaking down the jungle was futile as it grew back after only a
:17:40. > :17:41.month. They had to fight against disease like malaria and yellow
:17:42. > :17:48.fever. Somewhere in this tangle is Scottish cemetery with hundreds of
:17:49. > :17:54.graves. No one has ever found it stop nine months after the first
:17:55. > :18:01.fleet set sail, two thirds of the colonists were dead. We went to the
:18:02. > :18:07.place they named New Edinburgh. It is still named that on some maps.
:18:08. > :18:15.Nothing survives of that capital city. Descendents of the Indians
:18:16. > :18:20.that they try to defend and no one more. It was the goal of the English
:18:21. > :18:26.that was to cause lasting bitterness in Scotland. In London, the king
:18:27. > :18:36.ordered colonies not to trade with Caledonia. To deny all assistance to
:18:37. > :18:38.the colonists. He was placed in a difficult position because English
:18:39. > :18:48.trading interests were very much against the Scottish competition.
:18:49. > :18:53.The realities were that he was going to side where the power and money
:18:54. > :18:58.was. Orders were sent to English plantations saying that they were
:18:59. > :19:02.not allowed to supply the Scots with extra provisions. They were trying
:19:03. > :19:09.to starve them out. Scotland's Imperial ambitions in Canada were
:19:10. > :19:20.defeated by disease and starvation `` Panama. Under the treaty with
:19:21. > :19:26.England, England agreed to pay a sum of money to the investors which was
:19:27. > :19:36.known as the equivalent of the price of Scotland. The referendum debate
:19:37. > :19:44.has been closely followed by Britain's European allies and no
:19:45. > :19:50.country more so than France. They have a union that goes back to the
:19:51. > :19:58.13th century. How has that shaped French attitudes Scottish
:19:59. > :20:03.independence? What are Scottish pipe band 's doing parading in July
:20:04. > :20:10.through and after central Frenchtown? They have annual
:20:11. > :20:19.festivities to mark the old alliance in this small town. Warriors from
:20:20. > :20:26.one Scottish family fought alongside the French against the English and
:20:27. > :20:32.were rewarded with lordships and a chateau which stayed Scottish were
:20:33. > :20:36.nearly 400 years. Enthusiasm for things Caledonia and here extends to
:20:37. > :20:44.the culinary. This is French haggis. The bond is felt. It is a
:20:45. > :20:53.question of blood. They bled for us and French people bled for
:20:54. > :20:58.Scotland. What else? Whether it is the old alliance and their common
:20:59. > :21:02.antipathy towards the English or whether it is just that both
:21:03. > :21:07.countries like to share a drink, there is clearly deep sympathy for
:21:08. > :21:12.the Scots, not just in here that right across France. We carried out
:21:13. > :21:18.an impromptu poll with the audience about Scottish independence and the
:21:19. > :21:23.result was clear enough. The old alliance has left its traces. The
:21:24. > :21:30.French instinctively like the Scots but Scottish independence? It is not
:21:31. > :21:35.really their fight. That is all from this special edition of Reporters
:21:36. > :21:53.with just days to go until Scotland decides. Goodbye for now.
:21:54. > :21:59.Mixed fortunes up and down the UK as we look ahead through the coming
:22:00. > :22:03.week. There will