Tuesday 25 August 2009

Welcome to Referendum 3!

This is a blog for supporters of a moratorium on Scottish devolution.

For years, Scotland prospered as an integral part of the Union, leading the world in the fields of medicine, engineering and blossoming more generally in the humanities during the Scottish Enlightenment. Recently, the malaise in Scottish culture and social life has become all to evident. It is our contention that whatever its imperfections, it is too easy to blame the Union. The sources of this malaise lie closer to home and are exacerbated by the parochial politics of Scottish separatism and devolution.

To this end, we will be campaigning for the abolition of the Scottish parliament and the replacement of the Scotland Office with a Scottish Legal Board and the greatly increased decentralisation of education such that autonomy is vested neither in Westminster, nor Holyrood, but the individual schools and teachers themselves.

Devolution in Scotland has been an expensive failure. Devolution across the UK would lead to this country's increasing powerlessness within an undemocratic and imperialistic EU. Regional assemblies are another layer of government in an already over-governed state. It is time the state did less and did it better, and that society once again found its voice.

Support for this position varies between 9% and 18% of the Scottish population, despite the fact that it has the backing of none of the major parties. With the case put articulately and consistently, we believe that support for this position will grow.