Russell Cheyne / Reuters
Queen Elizabeth II has thrown her royal weight into the fray surrounding the Scottish independence referendum. “I hope people will think very carefully about the future,” the queen warned, while speaking to a public well-wisher on Sunday who joked about not bringing up the referendum. Officially, Elizabeth is not supposed to be publicly involved with the independence referendum and has dismissed any rumors that she is worried about the outcome. “Any suggestion that the queen would wish to influence the outcome of the current referendum campaign is categorically wrong. Her Majesty is simply of the view this is a matter for the people of Scotland,” said a statement issued last week by Buckingham Palace. The referendum vote is set to take place Thursday.