If Scotland only gets as far as another metaphorical Derby next week, this conversation is worth checking against delivery. About here, John Redwood (who is like Hain a former Secretary of State for Wales) tells Hain he cannot object to his proposal for an English parliament because, erm, he’s Welsh (I think he means a Welsh MP).
As Jenny notes in her first blog for Slugger, the Scottish bid for an exit from the Union is as much a disgruntlement with the democratic institutions as with a broader rise in nationalist feeling.
Indeed the democratic plumbing has not been working in England for some time. As the Local Government Association notes:
‘New powers being offered to Scotland in the event of a no vote must be given to every local area in England and Wales. The appetite for devolution does not stop at the border and the rest of the UK will not be content to settle for the status quo.
‘Local areas across the country need to be set free from the grip of Whitehall and allowed to raise and spend money in a way which will best serve the people who live there, from equipping them with the skills for work to being able build the homes people need.’
In many European countries, the principle of subsidiarity which reserves powers to the lowest possible levels have been eviscerated in both the UK and Ireland over the last forty years. Lack of agency and interference from the centre is one reason people are turning their backs…
Mick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty
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