Scotland seeks its own ccTld

THE Scottish National party is to take its campaign for independence into cyberspace by seeking to change the endings of all websites based in the country, from “.co.uk” to “.sco”.

Alex Salmond, the first minister, is to lodge a formal request with the American-based Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which is responsible for allocating all internet domain names.

Christine Grahame, a Nationalist MSP who has been leading a campaign for Scotland to get its own identity on the worldwide web, said the move was essential.

“It is clear that Scotland’s confidence is growing as we move along the path of setting our own policy agenda and our own priorities in a distinct way, free from political and civil service interference originating from London.

“The introduction of the .sco suffix on all official e-mail addresses and websites would enhance the positive Scottish brand at official level.

“Scotland is already well respected internationally and this change would reinforce the distinctiveness of government in Scotland, and help improve further our external relations and national image.”