KENYON WRIGHT

Scotland can show the UK as a whole that our Parliament has worked well

Donald Dewar often reminded us that home rule was a process, not a settlement. On that long journey our distinctive identity was grounded in our history and expressed in the Scottish Parliament he did so much to create. That parliament aspired to be “different from the rituals of Westminster, more open, more participative, less needlessly confrontational”. It is “different” and its differences are relevant to the expectation of a parliament in London that could only work by cooperation of some kind. Scotland not only has experience over 12 years of both effective and stable coalition and minority governments; also, the electoral system and the fixed term were designed to make cooperative government normal.

Perhaps Scotland can calm some of the irrational fears and nostalgia for a system in terminal decline. For Westminster, cooperative government is a reluctant necessity; for Scotland cooperative government was a deliberate design. Our past experience has something to teach, but now something new and unforeseen has happened. The referendum has had consequences that go far beyond its result. We will never be the same again.

Scotland was caught up in an unprecedented explosion of commitment, energy and empowerment that resulted in the minor miracle of a turnout of more than 80 per cent. The nation was set alight. People who, in the past, saw no point in voting became intelligently involved in the debate about our future. Scotland has awakened and I do not believe it will go back to sleep. We must not lose the momentum of this national movement with its promise of a more engaged and participative society in our land.

The fact of that awakening has forced “the establishment” to reveal their institutionalised attitude to Scotland: a combination of condescension and apprehension. As so often, Margaret Thatcher expressed honestly what many prove they feel, when she told young Tories: “We English, who are a marvellous people, are really very generous to Scotland.”

The referendum experience seems to have signalled a sea change in Scottish political life. I hope that a strong Scottish presence in Westminster would not only hold the party leaders to the solemn vow and promise of “extensive new powers”, but also

‘‘ The Westminster systems are no longer fit for purpose, and in urgent need of reform, a process in which Scottish MPs could have a key role to play

demonstrate that Scotland’s way, though different, is no threat, and could be of real help, to the people of the rest of the UK.

The Westminster systems are no longer fit for purpose, and in urgent need of reform, a process in which Scottish MPs could have an important role to play. So does Scotland’s future include another referendum on independence? Nicola Sturgeon has, I believe rightly, made three things clear:

* The election for the Commons has nothing to do with independence and the SNP has a track record of effective and stable government within the present system.

* Any such proposal would have be in the manifesto for the 2016 election, and then approved by the people and the Scottish Parliament

* But this could not be simply a repeat of the last one. It could only happen if a new constitutional or political situation arises that threatens Scotland’s interests as a nation.

The most obvious possible example would be if the UK looked likely to leave the EU against Scotland’s will and interests. That would profoundly affect the wellbeing of the people and would certainly justify, indeed necessitate, a referendum in Scotland. I do not believe the people would calmly allow themselves to be dragged out of Europe.

Scotland can show the UK as a whole that our parliament has worked well; that the just and participatory democracy we seek to create is the best basis for prosperity; that Scotland offers close ties of friendship and partnership with the rest of the UK and Europe; and that our differences, however real and profound, are not a threat but a gift to a Union in desperate need of reform.

Let the last word go to David Cameron, spoken in the heat of the expenses scandal, and soon forgotten: “I believe there is only one way out of this national crisis we face. We need a massive sweeping radical redistribution of power. Through decentralisation, transparency and accountability we must take power away from the political elite and hand it to the man and woman in the street” Amen.

It would be ironic if his bitter opponents should end up making the words he has so clearly forgotten into a reality. Canon Kenyon Wright chaired the executive of the Scottish Constitutional Convention that laid the ground work for the Scottish Parliament. A longer version of this article can be read at www.heraldscotland.com