UK leaders ‘underestimating the struggle’ to preserve the Union after devolution – Blair

Former prime minister Tony Blair has repeated his warning that Brexit could lead to the break-up of the UK, and said more effort needs to be put into making the case for the Union.

In an interview with the Institute for Government think-tank to mark the 20th anniversary of the creation of the Scottish and Welsh parliaments, he said the UK’S leaders were “underestimating the struggle” to preserve the Union.

Mr Blair said he believed the introduction of English Votes for English Laws, which stops non-english MPS from voting on certain votes on devolved issues, was “dangerous”.

He said: “We didn’t look for enough ways, culturally and socially, of keeping the UK feeling we’re part of one nation.

“People used to think it was a bit trivial when I used to say we should put the football leagues together … I was very struck by the fact that once you did devolutionandthenyouseparated, even institutions like the BBC became separated in a very clear way.

“You just lost that sense of a common agenda that you are waking up to every day.”

He also criticised Brexiteer Conservatives “like the Boris Johnsons, the Reesmoggs, who say they’re vigorous Unionists but are actually really playing on English nationalism”.