A Unionist's Plea

The Union. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Ah, The Union.

The Black Watch, Ypres, The Boere War, The 1832 Reform Act. Victoria. The Union. One can only romanticize and marvel at the tests and achievements of one of the most curious marriages in history: England and Scotland.
 
Yet, a few hundred years after The Union was formed, people have the audacity to doubt whether it has the longevity to see out another decade. But with calls for a Scottish independence referendum earlier this month, it seems they should. At present, Scotland and England appear to be sharing the same house, but sleeping in separate beds. To quote Scottish comedian Billy Connolly, is it perhaps time to consider "D-I-V-O-R-C-E"?

Through devolution, the newly elected Labour government of Tony Blair had hoped that the pesky secessionist Scottish National Party would be consigned to the dustbin of political history.They were wrong. In fact, if not for the greatest economic crisis in living memory, the most significant issue in British politics would likely be the future of the Union.

Labour continues to roll out the old "Better Together Than Apart" platitudes, whilst the Conservatives, who originally opposed devolution, lament the fact that Scottish Members of Parliament can vote on English matters, yet English MPs "have no say in the same matters in Scotland." Of course, it's unfair and the consequence of an amateurish attempt to resolve Britain's perennial constitutional questions.

Some Conservatives have even uttered the dreaded 'r' word--referendum--hoping that a rejection of secession would nip the entire movement in the bud. Inevitably, both accuse the other of falling short in their efforts to halt the Scottish march towards independence in its tracks. And Conservative MPs, obviously not helping matters, have noted that they would be in government if Scotland was given a severance check and sent on its way home.

As a supporter of the Union I find it striking that for an issue of such importance, neither of the main political parties has a real, tangible solution to reinvigorate it. It's hard to say whether the SNP prosper because of their electoral appeal, or because of the shear inability of Labour and the Conservatives to deal with the issue head on. But history may well be on their side.

Given our relative wealth and prosperity as a Union, it may perplex a number of external observers to hear of the current constitutional malaise in Britain. Talk of Texas seceding from the United States, in comparison, is usually met with a sarcastic roll of the eyes and a shake of the head. Unfortunately the prospect of the United Kingdom breaking up in the next decade is very real. Whilst public support for Scottish independence varies, psephologists have indicated that if a Conservative government is returned in Westminster next year--a highly likely event--this may well provoke a wave of support for secession north of the border. 

For those political parties that have signaled their support for preserving the Union, time is clearly of the essence. For a start, stop all the romantic guff from yesteryear and contemplate the most simple yet vital of questions: Why do we actually need it and what purpose does it serve?
 
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