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Scotland: the Brown blueprint Scotland: the Brown blueprint
(about 17 hours later)
It was Alex Salmond who wanted to put enhanced devolution on the Scottish referendum ballot, and he may feel that it is an irony that he was blocked by the very unionist parties that are suddenly throwing their own versions of devo max into the independence debate. But on Monday, after weeks of no-lobby picking over SNP presumptions about a post-independence sterling union, two big beasts of the unionist jungle did exactly that.It was Alex Salmond who wanted to put enhanced devolution on the Scottish referendum ballot, and he may feel that it is an irony that he was blocked by the very unionist parties that are suddenly throwing their own versions of devo max into the independence debate. But on Monday, after weeks of no-lobby picking over SNP presumptions about a post-independence sterling union, two big beasts of the unionist jungle did exactly that.
Gordon Brown, whose voice has rarely pierced public consciousness since he left Downing Street, took to a Labour stage in Glasgow, and proposed that Westminster should cede several fiscal levers of power to Holyrood, as part of a wider, decentralising overhaul of the constitution. Some in England will dismiss the idea that Mr Brown has anything to teach anybody about sharing power, or indeed winning campaigns. But the caricature of the No 10 years, of a disliked, power-mad figure, was always too crude. His interest in constitutional questions has deep roots, and was a strong early theme of his premiership, before political infighting and economic catastrophe engulfed him. In Scotland, unlike England, Mr Brown was always respected and performed well in 2010: Labour held all its seats then, and he may well be listened to now. His arguments on Monday certainly merit that.Gordon Brown, whose voice has rarely pierced public consciousness since he left Downing Street, took to a Labour stage in Glasgow, and proposed that Westminster should cede several fiscal levers of power to Holyrood, as part of a wider, decentralising overhaul of the constitution. Some in England will dismiss the idea that Mr Brown has anything to teach anybody about sharing power, or indeed winning campaigns. But the caricature of the No 10 years, of a disliked, power-mad figure, was always too crude. His interest in constitutional questions has deep roots, and was a strong early theme of his premiership, before political infighting and economic catastrophe engulfed him. In Scotland, unlike England, Mr Brown was always respected and performed well in 2010: Labour held all its seats then, and he may well be listened to now. His arguments on Monday certainly merit that.
Scotland already runs most of its own services, but even after 2012's Scotland Act, Holyrood controls only a small slither of its own spending by the standards of devolved parliaments elsewhere in the world. Mr Brown wants to redress some of this imbalance. Sir Menzies Campbell, the second retired Scottish leader of a UK-wide party to enter the fray on Monday, agrees with Mr Brown on all this, as well as on the need to avoid a race to the bottom on corporate tax rates, as could happen if Scotland went it alone. He agrees, too, on the need to entrench devolution in a new constitutional settlement, which suggests scope for a cross-party reform agenda after a no verdict, although Sir Menzies's report went further than Mr Brown's words in one crucial respect. Scotland already runs most of its own services, but even after 2012's Scotland Act, Holyrood controls only a small sliver of its own spending by the standards of devolved parliaments elsewhere in the world. Mr Brown wants to redress some of this imbalance. Sir Menzies Campbell, the second retired Scottish leader of a UK-wide party to enter the fray on Monday, agrees with Mr Brown on all this, as well as on the need to avoid a race to the bottom on corporate tax rates, as could happen if Scotland went it alone. He agrees, too, on the need to entrench devolution in a new constitutional settlement, which suggests scope for a cross-party reform agenda after a no verdict, although Sir Menzies's report went further than Mr Brown's words in one crucial respect.
The phrase "home rule all round" has resonated with Liberals for over a century, and Sir Menzies hankers for a comprehensive federal solution, which would cover England too. As a Labour man, Mr Brown is wary of the implications for Westminster's arithmetic, and somewhat cagier here. The strict logic is on Sir Menzies's side, but Britain's asymmetric devolution is not unique. Structures for Catalonia and the Basque country likewise sacrifice a tidy constitutional organogram to political realities. How far the next steps in reforming the union will go remains a question for debate. But it was heartening to hear unionist voices explain how "no" can be the beginning, rather than the end of a conversation.The phrase "home rule all round" has resonated with Liberals for over a century, and Sir Menzies hankers for a comprehensive federal solution, which would cover England too. As a Labour man, Mr Brown is wary of the implications for Westminster's arithmetic, and somewhat cagier here. The strict logic is on Sir Menzies's side, but Britain's asymmetric devolution is not unique. Structures for Catalonia and the Basque country likewise sacrifice a tidy constitutional organogram to political realities. How far the next steps in reforming the union will go remains a question for debate. But it was heartening to hear unionist voices explain how "no" can be the beginning, rather than the end of a conversation.
• This article was amended on 11 March 2014. An earlier version said that Holyrood controls only a small slither, rather than sliver, of its own spending.