tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post7007524237994658015..comments2024-03-27T18:54:46.951+00:00Comments on Syniadau :: The Blog: Missing the bigger pictureSyniadauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13876017048168055247noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post-6442388071952956372012-01-25T14:51:07.346+00:002012-01-25T14:51:07.346+00:00RedGreenInBlue
I think that devo max is less like...RedGreenInBlue<br /><br />I think that devo max is less likely to appeal to Cameron and the Tory elite than Scottish independence. <br /><br />Devo max, imo, would have profound consequences for the UK constitution. <br /><br />It isn't easy to explain my reasoning, without a convoluted explanation.<br /><br />I believe granting such powers to Scotland would require a federal solution in the UK. That implies a written constitution in order to entrench (protect) the powers of the new federal parliaments (of England, Scotland, and probably, Wales). It would also involve the creation of a federal parliament for the UK to deal with federal issues such as defence and foreign affairs.<br /><br />I don't think a partially-written constitution would work because the UK’s amorphous unwritten constitution is pretty poorly defined. <br /><br />It would entail defining the relationship between legislature, executive, and judiciary, as well as the nature, powers, and role of the monarchy, together with church-state relations – the latter being particularly difficult considering the differences between Scotland, Wales and England. <br /><br />It would mean the end of the Westminster-style parliamentary system of government and abolition of the concept of the sovereignty of the Crown in parliament. With it would go the Lords, patronage, and in all likelihood, FPTP. In fact, just about everything the Tories hold dear.<br /><br />On the other hand, if Scotland left the Westminster system could carry on much as it is now, but with some 40 fewer Labour members, allowing the Tories to govern for many years, until an eventual political realignment took place in England.<br /><br />Wales would be an irrelevance to the Tories, much as now.<br /><br />However, it would pose a dilemma for Labour politicians in Wales, if they still had control of the Assembly, for they would be faced with Tory government in London for many years. I suspect they would demand (and get) significantly greater powers and eventually independence.<br /><br />Furthermore, a federal UK would not be likely to last very long because of the asymmetry between England and the other nations. Tensions would inevitably arise over defence and foreign affairs which would result in a break-up.<br /><br />So the unionists would have lost their precious Westminster set-up for nothing. <br /><br />It pretty much explains why the Tories are so against the Scots having a vote on devo max. <br /><br />Labour would not welcome the end of the cosy Westminster system either because it has served them well for a century, but they will lose more whatever the Scots decide. <br /><br />The unionists are stuck between a rock and a hard place. They have only a weak case for retention of the union, and have to resort to irrelevant petty constitutional and legal arguments, which will only irritate the Scots. The issue is a political not a legal one. If the Scots want to go they will – no Supreme Court can stop them.<br /><br />I predict that the UK, if it exists at all, will be very different in ten years’ time.<br /><br />D’yw Cameron ddim in ddwl, yn fy nhyb i, beth bynnag.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post-67195185785035833852012-01-25T13:21:47.064+00:002012-01-25T13:21:47.064+00:00Hi, long-time English reader of your blog here (do...Hi, long-time English reader of your blog here (don't think I've commented before?). <br /><br />Just from the exec summary of the IPPR, you'd think the logical course of action for David Cameron would be to *support* the inclusion of "devo-max" in the Scottish referendum. Not only a large proportion of Scots, but a large majority of the English (80%), would support it. <br /><br />By my calculation, even if every single respondent in the 20% of noes to devo-max in the IPPR report is from a current Tory voter, then even English Tory voters are evenly split between supporters and opponents of devo-max (an opinion poll in the Guardian a couple of days ago reported that the Tories - somehow - are on 40% at the moment). Given that there must be some noes against supporters of other parties, that means it's all but certain that even Tory voters as a whole support devo-max. <br /><br />So what's going on? So is Cameron crazy (sy'n ddigon posib!)? If not, who's leaning on him? Or what does he know that no-one else does?RedGreenInBluenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post-52927627507502386882012-01-25T12:07:33.633+00:002012-01-25T12:07:33.633+00:00Perhaps A Change of Personnel should read the actu...Perhaps A Change of Personnel should read the actual report before going off on one about hidden agendas etc? Just thinking like...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post-61407643495711530022012-01-24T22:12:17.940+00:002012-01-24T22:12:17.940+00:00It's the BBC's way of saying......'thi...It's the BBC's way of saying......'this has gone far enough'. It was intended all-right. It's usually all Scotland this or Scotland that except for this piece of Welsh devolution negative propaganda. Anyway, are we supposed to seek the blessing of the English?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post-59882467991125249242012-01-24T21:23:11.389+00:002012-01-24T21:23:11.389+00:00Good on you for flagging this up, im not surprised...Good on you for flagging this up, im not surprised at the one eyed reporting by the Welsh media its endemic.<br /><br />Has the story been picked up and reported in the Scottish and Northern Irish press anyone know?<br /><br />Worth saying the IPPR is a Labour funded think tank with links to former Cabinet members and James Purnell is its current Chair, they have recently become very interested in the whole UK constitutional debate so clearly have an agenda of their own to peddle with the survey.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post-71839397708952369762012-01-24T20:06:09.918+00:002012-01-24T20:06:09.918+00:00I don't give a monkeys what hey think to be ho...I don't give a monkeys what hey think to be honest.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post-22691146123239506072012-01-24T19:48:51.279+00:002012-01-24T19:48:51.279+00:00So the "Welsh perspective" is only to re...So the "Welsh perspective" is only to report on what the English think of devolution to Wales, Glyndo, but not report what they think of devolution to Scotland and NI?<br /><br />That's not perspective. To put things into perspective we need to see the whole forest, not just a few of the trees.MHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09329059309196746446noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post-58814885364893056562012-01-24T19:44:53.378+00:002012-01-24T19:44:53.378+00:00The naughty western mail and BBC subs were at it ...The naughty western mail and BBC subs were at it again. They could have written '69% of English people do not think that devolution has been harmful to the way they are governed'. That is the way they would report it if the story was about, say, independence.Siônnynhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00021974709953206048noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post-11577058351320604942012-01-24T19:28:54.283+00:002012-01-24T19:28:54.283+00:00Or perhaps it's just that far too many English...Or perhaps it's just that far too many English still subconsciously/consciously think that Wales is a 'region of England', and so the right to self-determination is entirely conditional on English approval, unlike the properly separate nations of Scotland and Northern Ireland?Neilynnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-985080357558043054.post-65977681311531605312012-01-24T19:15:52.980+00:002012-01-24T19:15:52.980+00:00Perhaps because they were writing to a Welsh audie...Perhaps because they were writing to a Welsh audience and assumed that they would be more interested in the Welsh perspective?Glyndonoreply@blogger.com