Gordon Brown : The Federalist?

One of the strongest arguments the YES campaign in Scotland in the forthcoming Independence referendum is that Scotland is still ruled by the Conservatives in Westminster and that Scots have a different sense of Social Justice. 2The Common weal".


Now former PM Gordon Brown part time PM has come out of his long sulk in his Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath  constituency to claim that  further devolution would offer Scotland a “fairer deal” than independence,

The Scottish Parliament should be made irreversible, with “maximum devolution of powers in training, transport, health, the Crown Estates Commission and the running of elections

Mr Brown believes Scotland would be strengthened by proposed constitutional reforms to create a “union for social justice” in which the UK can pool and share resource

He said

: “I am of the view that the party that first created a powerful Scottish Parliament is best-placed to strengthen devolution and to create a stronger Scottish Parliament in a stronger UK.
“We can show how with our reforms, to be implemented by Labour administrations in Westminster and in Edinburgh, we can address some of the greatest social and economic challenges a future Scotland faces.”

SNP treasury spokesman Stewart Hosie said:

“Gordon Brown’s speech sounds as if he has no idea what is going on in the real world - the reality is that the welfare state is being dismantled by Westminster.
“George Osborne has announced £12 billion more welfare cuts, hitting the the most vulnerable people the hardest, and Labour are engaged in a Dutch auction with the Tories about who will cut the most.
“Scotland’s finances are stronger than the UK’s as a whole - we generate 9.9 per cent of UK tax revenues but get just 9.3 per cent of the spending, and therefore a smaller share of our national wealth is spent on welfare, which means that pensions and benefits are more affordable for Scotland.
“A majority of people in Scotland believe that decisions on tax and welfare should be taken in the Scottish Parliament, not Westminster - and the only way to achieve that is to vote Yes for an independent Scotland in September.”

What Brown seems to be saying is that Scots can have they cake an eat it . Indeed it comes so close tho federalism that you might as well call it that.


And where does this leave Wales there are perhaps some Nationalist who hope Scotland vote NO so that we in Wales are not left on our own against right wing English Tories out for revenge.

But Brown solution which would provoke a huge backlash amongst English MPs of any colour would leave Wales in the same position  anyway.

The late Gwyn Alf Williams  once said  something on the lines we have been around for a thousand years its time we were given the key of the Door.

It seems that if Scotland do not make the decision to leave the house entirely they will be given something like an Annex where they can live Independently within the main complex.

We in Wales however may have a key now but are still subject to parental curfews and threatened with confiscation.

But the answer is not to envy or begrudge Scotland it is to act on our own  stop having commissions who propose greater devolution (and are then ignored). and campaign for Independence now.

After the birth of the Irish Free State  Plaid  newspaper produced this cartoon

It translates as "After you with the Scissors"  Hopefully after Scotland Votes this autumn we ccan say "After you with the delivery van"