When Alex Salmond and Nigel Farage look at each other, what do they see? Opposites? That’s certainly what their supporters claim. Mr Farage’s anti-Europeanism is decried as right-wing by the supporters of Scottish independence. Mr Farage, for his part, sees the Yes campaigners as vandals wanting to break up a valuable union.
Farage is shorthand here for those in the UK, including around a third of Tories. who want separation from the EU — or Brexit as it’s known. Salmond is a figurehead for those in Scotland who want separation from the UK — or Sexit as it isn’t known, but should be. And for those who want neither, it is increasingly hard not to see the similarities.
The kernel of both groups’ arguments consists