Jeremy Paxman tells agents Scotland WILL leave the UK

Britain will stay within the European Union but Scotland will leave the UK, political broadcaster Jeremy Paxman told the Advantage Conference in Bodrum.

Paxman, who was this year’s keynote speaker, told delegates that he was disappointed in the outcome of this year’s Scottish referendum, in which Scots voted to stay part of the Union.

He said that, in his opinion, ‘sooner or later’ Scotland will leave the UK. “The only thing growing faster than support for the SNP is Type II diabetes,” said Paxman.

But he said this did not concern him, adding: “All political institutions are product of their time.”

Paxman said he doubted the veracity of the ‘No’ campaign slogan “Better Together”. “Better together for what?” he queried. At the moment, he said, there are 56 Scottish MPs in London with nothing to do.

He said that if Scotland left the Union, ‘it would oblige dozy old English to make decisions about their own future’.

Although the former Newsnight presenter said David Cameron would find it impossible to hold a referendum on Britain’s continued membership of the EU, Paxman said Britain wouldn’t vote to leave.

“People enjoy leading European lives and however wasteful the EU is, it is Europe.”

However, Paxman pointed out that Mystic Meg, the recently outsted Sun newspaper clairvoyant, probably had a better idea of what was going to happen in British politics than journalists like him.

He told delegates that broadcasters had in fact ‘been seriously discredited by taking seriously the opinion polls’ in this month’s General Election – despite the fact they also got the result of this year’s Scottish referendum wrong.

When asked by a delegate the best way to convince the Government to appoint a travel and tourism minister, Paxman said he was astonished there wasn’t one already.

“I am sure there will be a minister of state for travel and tourism,” said the University Challenge presenter, “I think you are rather ill-informed.”

Tracey Crouch, the MP for Chatham and Aylesford, was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for tourism and sport this month, replacing Helen Grant who stepped down before the General Election, but there is no separate minister for tourism and travel.

Paxman agreed that an industry that contributed billions to the economy should have a minister of state, but he said members must work with the trade association to get one appointed, because ‘without that unanimity, you are b*******”.

On a lighter note, when asked whether he planned to appear on Strictly Come Dancing or Big Brother now he’s no longer presenting newsnight, the broadcaster confirmed he had been asked but he ‘couldn’t think of anything worse’.