I write in response to W. W. Wood's letter published on the 22nd inst., in which he argues for a no vote in the upcoming referendum. While his stance would be understandable if the allegations he makes in the letter were true, he has been taken in by fearmongering and misunderstandings about what the referendum will do.
Voting yes on the referendum will not install a separate Ministry but only a department inside the existing Ministry dedicated to Scottish affairs. Decisions made far from Scotland unduly affect her; London takes the decisions about all matters from the first day of our schools to the last day of our lives. And without sufficient representation for Scotland the neglect of Scotland that has characterised our long relationship with the Ministry in London will continue. It was no Scottish Ministry that put Azkaban and the Dementors off our shores.
Mr Wood also alleges that Scotland holds some share in the crimes of the Thicknesse Ministry. It's true that some old Scottish names fought on the wrong side at the Battle of Hogwarts, but many fought on the right side: Macmillan, McGonagall, and Wood itself, to name three. The Scottish clans have a long history of living peaceably with our neighbours; look at the case of Angus Buchanan for an example of how we all get on in Scotland.
A Scottish Office in the Ministry will help support Scottish business and the Scottish economy, and ensure that decisions taken in London hear the voices of Scottish wizards and witches. It will promote Scottish culture and Scottish values, and enrich Wizarding Britain all the more for bringing diversity to the tables of the Ministry and to the Wizengamot. The Scottish Office is not to be feared, but to be welcomed, and on that note I encourage all Scottish readers to vote AYE on the referendum.