Suchergebnisse

The two years since the Scottish independence referendum have been a roller-coaster ride, with the SNP picking up close to a hundred thousand new members and triumphing in the 2015 General Election, taking all but three seats in Scotland; with David Cameron winning, against the collective wisdom of the pollsters, a Westminster majority, obliging him to call his promised EU referendum; with the SNP achieving an unprecedented third Holyrood term, but losing their absolute majority; with the Scottish Tories leapfrogging Scottish Labour into second place, usurping the role of 'official opposition' at Holyrood; with Jeremy Corbyn elected UK Labour leader – not once, but twice; and, to cap it all, the vote for Brexit on 23 June, its chaotic aftermath, and the reappearance of indyref2 at the top of the agenda.

The shock waves of the UK's EU referendum outcome reverberate in a Divided Kingdom, with huge implications for Scotland and Northern Ireland, and across Europe, where populists of all political shades take succour from the UK electorate's decision (51.9% for Leave, 48.1% Remain) to end the country's 43-year membership of the European project. The campaign was dominated by hyperbole and outright lies, with racist and xenophobic undertones, the result quite apparently unexpected, the aftermath chaotic, and it remains to be seen what the long-term impact on the UK-EU relationship, on the UK constitution, on 'Scotland's place in Europe', and on the future of the European Union will be.

The decisive No vote in the Scottish independence referendum on 18 September 2014 was not a vote for the constitutional status quo, although it confirmed that Scotland would remain part of the United Kingdom. The referendum outcome is likely to have far-reaching consequences for the power relations between London and Edinburgh and, perhaps more than expected, for the constitutional future of the entire UK. A tight timetable for the delivery of extra powers for the Scottish Parliament is in place, and the 'elephant in the room', the constitutional status and governance of England, is now firmly on the agenda. There is also pressure for decentralisation in Scotland itself. And the huge 'democratic awakening' which characterised this 'national conversation' about Scotland's future, with massive democratic participation and a record turnout, demands that these changes will have to be brought about in a participative way – and not 'top-down', as a Westminster or Holyrood 'stitch-up'.