NOW that the dust has settled on the Scottish devolution issue perhaps it is worth looking back to the events of 1699.

Scotland sought to widen its trading capabilities in the late 1600s by looking to open a trading post and colony on an isthmus near Panama. This became known as the Darien project, set up by one William Paterson (who founded the Bank of England). Paterson was responsible for hundreds of Scots putting large sums of money into the project.

Paterson and the English government were aware the project would fail from the onset and said nothing. When it became apparent to the Scots that Darien was a total failure the English government offered large sums of money in way of compensation to many of the landed Scots. They had to agree to a union with England which came into being in 1703.

Fast forward to 2014 and we see an ex-prime minister promising greater devolution powers if the Scots voted no to an independent Scotland.

The refusal to allow Scotland to use the pound and the misinformation on how an independent Scotland would survive all played a part in the no vote being successful.

Nothing has changed over the past 300 years.

David Rhodes, The Shrubberies, Cliffe