Hoots Mons, Old Chap

You have to imagine the following being said in an English public school accent by some toff: "Hoots mons, chappies and och aye the noo, old boy!" That's pretty much the level of David Cameron's attempts to woo the Scots into staying in the Union. "Look at me, och aye, I'm Scottish - I'm wearing tartan underpants, old fruit. You can trust me!" he might as well have said., as he tries to convince them that he isn't anti-Scottish. It simply confirms, to me at least, that the man is utterly incompetent. If he really wants to head off Scottish independence, then the way to do it isn't by risking alienating the Scottish people by being seen to threaten and bully its government. Because that's what all this posturing from Cameron over the fact that it is Westminster, not Holyrood which has the power to schedule a referendum looks like. It comes over as a direct challenge to the (limited) sovereignty of the Scottish parliament.

Don't get me wrong, I'm no particular fan of Alex Salmond and the SNP and wouldn't like to see the break up of the United Kingdom. However, I also believe that you can't deny people the right of self-determination: if the Scots want independence, then we would be wrong to try and stop them. But the reality is that there isn't a majority for independence in Scotland right now, and it is highly unlikely that there would be in 2014, (when the SNP wants to hold a referendum), either. That said, one thing which could mobilise opinion in its favour is some English toff of a Prime Minister appearing to bully the legitimately-elected Scottish government. Of course, what Cameron is really afraid of isn't Scottish independence, but the more likely prospect of a referendum returning support for what's been termed 'devolution max', under which the Scottish parliament would assume more or less full powers for Scottish domestic policy, leaving things like defence and foreign policy to Westminster. This would create a powerful, democratically elected body within the Union, which could conceivably challenge Westminster on some issues and act as a focus of opposition to an unpopular Westminster government. The fact is that Westminster jealously guards its powers and resents potential rivals - just look at the way Thatcher emasculated local government in the 1980s. Which is why, dismayingly, we've had a parade of prominent politicians from across the spectrum broadly supporting Cameron. Personally, I feel that 'devolution max' is concept well worth exploring. I'm in favour of anything that increases democratic representation for people. As their proposed constitutional reforms show, (fewer MPs, bigger constituencies), this government most certainly isn't.