41%

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An exclusive TNS System Three poll has found that 41% of Scots want the SNP government to negotiate an independence settlement, compared to 40% who are opposed to breaking up the UK.

The seminar will see the First Minister try to persuade a European audience of the benefits of Scotland being a full member state of the EU.

First minister Alex Salmond said: "The poll is further and dramatic evidence that as the SNP delivers good government in the devolved areas, so support for Scotland to be governed equally well in all areas with independence is surging.

And the poll clearly indicates that Westminster attempts to bully Scotland and the Scottish government are also boosting support for equality for Scotland, and a parliament with full powers.

"People want a government that will speak up for Scotland - not shut up for London. It is a tremendous boost for the SNP in the run up to our conference next week - it will have our opponents choking on their cornflakes."

We need a Welsh Government that will speak up for Wales - not shut up for London.

NO REAL DEMOCRATIC LEGITIMACY

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A RISING Conservative star has claimed a Tory victory at the next election would be the "biggest threat to the Union since Bonnie Prince Charlie".

Leslie Clark said he fears his party winning the next general election as he believes it will make Scottish independence inevitable.

The President of the University of Aberdeen Conservative and Unionist Association also claimed that disgruntled southern voters are looking for their own version of William Wallace to "free the oppressed English nation" from Gordon Brown and the Scots.

"When the proponents of devolution argued that the Tories had no moral mandate running Scotland in the early 1990s when they only had 11 seats, just imagine what it will be like once the Tories win at Westminster with barely any Scottish representation!

"Alex Salmond will claim that they have no real democratic legitimacy to run Scotland. We could then see a seismic shift in public opinion."

"We should not frighten or bribe Scotland into maintaining the Union. We should not treat the electorate as children.

"Scotland and England would survive perfectly well apart – not that I advocate that policy.

It can be argued that a Tory Government in Westminster would not have the democratic legitimacy to run Wales either.

Wales's Legal Services Ombudsman

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Publishing the Bill, the Minister said: "This Bill will bring about important changes in the law governing the legal professions. It provides for enhanced oversight through the full independent review of the operation of the legal profession complaints systems by way of a Legal Services Ombudsman. The Ombudsman will ensure real improvements in the quality control of the delivery of legal services and the manner in which the public perceives such control to exist.

The Government is anxious that regulation of the legal professions is improved and strengthened. The enactment of this Bill, in addition to the existing forms of oversight, will ensure that the highest of standards are maintained in the legal professions. As the Bill progresses through the Oireachtas I will consider any practical amendment to the Bill that complements the overarching purpose of this piece of legislation; the improved regulation of the legal professions."

As Welsh Law develops we will need our own Legal Services Ombudsman too.

SELF-GOVERNMENT

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ALEX Salmond yesterday invoked the words of Thomas Jefferson when he told a US audience that Scotland had the right to self-governance.

In a Scotland Week speech at the University of Virginia, the First Minister used the founding father's work to promote a referendum on independence for Scotland.

In his second keynote speech of the week he said: "Scotland, sooner rather than later, is entitled to have the right to choose our constitutional future.

"That is a guiding principle for the debate on Scotland's future – a national conversation involving all the people of Scotland.

"And it is the words of Thomas Jefferson that will inspire us: 'We are a people capable of self-government, and worthy of it'."

The Welsh people are capable of self-government too.

EQUALITY DEFENCE

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The Government today presented the new long-term plan for the Armed Forces: A Defence for the protection of Norway’s security, interests and values.

The system of compulsory military service will be carried forward and strengthened: The system of universal military service is itself a key factor in maintaining the Norwegian people’s deep-rooted support for the Armed Forces. The number of conscripts undergoing a period of initial military service will remain stable at the current level. The content will be strengthened and the period of initial service will be extended to 12 months for all.

The Government is bringing in mandatory screening sessions for women, based on the positive results experienced with the scheme for voluntary sessions. This will ensure that all young women in a particular age group will have access to information about the life offered by the armed services. This in turn will help to strengthen the recruiting of women to the services. At the same time the sessions themselves will be improved by dividing them into two parts with the first part devoted to exploring the individual’s own interests and aspirations. This will enhance the quality of the sessions while at the same time making it easier for contact to be made with those who are the most motivated and best suited to service in the Armed Forces.

“The UN and NATO are the bedrock on which Norway’s security policy is based. We will continue to make substantial contributions to international operations,” says Defence Minister Anne-Grete Strøm-Erichsen in conclusion.

The future of Wales's defence?