ONE of England’s leading political academics, who is also a former Labour minister, John Denham, has said that England is at the centre of tensions within the Union.
Denham, 67, is the director of the Centre for English Identity and Politics at Southampton University. A Labour MP for 23 years, he was a Cabinet minister under former prime minister Gordon Brown, before stepping down at the 2015 election.
In a new academic report, entitled Brexit and Beyond, Denham argues that the politics of England and the Union have transformed.
Produced by the UK in a Changing Europe think tank, the report contains the views of 45 leading international academics on a myriad of Brexit-related subjects including the future of the Union.
Denham wrote: “English policy and law remain a Union responsibility yet no defined machinery of English Government has developed. A limited Commons procedure for ‘English Votes for English Laws’ (EVEL), introduced after the Scottish referendum, has not given England the ‘voice’ promised by David Cameron nor a legislative programme.
“England remains the most centralised nation in Europe.
“As the prime source of both Brexit and an Anglo-centric British Unionism, England is at the centre of tensions within the Union. The Conservative government is pursuing an assertive Unionism but it is not clear how successful this will be. The centralisation of powers returning from Brussels, and Whitehall control of the shared Prosperity Fund replacing previously devolved investment funds is provoking resentment in the devolved administrations.
“Keir Starmer’s move to establish a UK wide constitutional commission, and his earlier if ill-defined advocacy of a federal Union of nations and regions reflects the view of other Unionists that relations within the Union need to be reset.
“Nonetheless, the politics of England and the Union have been transformed. Voters identifying as ‘more English than British’ provided much of the UKIP support that led to the promise of an EU referendum and were the decisive Leave votes (other identity groups splitting equally or for Remain).
Denham says that Boris Johnson’s English majority in the 2019 “Get Brexit Done” election was largely amongst the same voters: “In a Union in which different parties now contest and win each nation, England’s politics are now distinct.”
He adds: “The electorate is fragmented, and with the major parties poorly aligned with voters’ values, English politics are likely to remain unstable and unpredictable.
“If a General Election produced a UK majority government or coalition without an English majority, the clash with EVEL would raise questions of legitimacy that would provoke a wider constitutional debate.
“In such debate, an English desire for a national governance that is more democratic but also decentralised may come to the fore, while the rest of the Union will want English politicians’ claims to act as the Union constrained.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel