Al-Fayed calls on Scots to make him their President

Mohammed Al-Fayed, owner of London department store Harrods, has called on Scots to “detach themselves from the English and their terrible politicians” and vote for independence, with him as their new President.

The eccentric Egyptian multi-millionaire not only wants Scots to back the SNP’s current proposals to return Scotland’s political autonomy, but also to ditch the royal family and appoint him as the newly formed republic’s president.

Speaking to the Sunday Times, the chairman of Fulham Football Club, who has been refused UK citizenship but has lived in England for thirty-three of the past thirty five years, said: “You Scots have been in a coma too long. It is time for you to waken up... whatever is needed for Scotland to regain its independence, I will provide it.”

Al-Fayed, who accused members of the British Royal Family of plotting the murder of his son Dodi Al-Fayed and Princess Diana, said an independent Scotland should “get rid of the royals” or “you will have no hope—you will be like Bangladesh”.

Inspired at the thought of a Scottish republic, the enigmatic businessman—reported to be worth as much as £650 million—then declared: “When you Scots regain your freedom I am ready to be your president.”

However, Dr Nicola McEwen, senior lecturer in politics and international relations at the University of Edinburgh, told The Journal that the prospect of anybody, let alone Al-Fayed, running for the Scottish presidency in the near future is almost unimaginable:

“SNP policy is to maintain some links with the rest of the UK after independence, including retaining the monarchy. So long as Scotland remained in the Commonwealth, with the Queen as Head of State, there would be no president.

“Independence would have to be negotiated with the UK government. The SNP hopes that relations with England after independence would be positive, given the many-shared interests Scotland and the rest of the UK would still have as residents of the same island.”

The SNP have reportedly knocked back approaches from Al-Fayed to meet with the SNP leader and Scotland’s First Minister, Alex Salmond. Al-Fayed himself claimed that he had “asked to meet [Salmond]" but the First Minster refused: "I wanted to give him some help and advice, but he didn’t want to know”.

An SNP spokesman confirmed to The Times that an approach about financial support had been rejected, but that “no disrespect was intended”.