The lottery of power

This looks set to be a curious election campaign for the very different focus of parties and issues depending whether you are north or south of the border.

Yet in both cases, because of the likelihood of no party having a majority, a large proportion of the campaigning to date has been more about keeping one party or other out of power, rather than what sort of vision for the future we might want to buy into. Rather different from the independence referendum, in other words, and we should not be surprised if a much larger proportion of the electorate is insufficiently enthused to turn out.

Regarding Scotland's future, there has been a degree of, to my mind, artificial debate around the future of the Scottish Parliament and whether it can be in some way entrenched in Westminster legislation. Yes, Westminster could repeal the Scotland Acts, just as it could repeal any attempt to protect them from a future House of Commons majority. But you might as well argue that it could abolish, say, the NHS or the state pension, as all are equally beyond the realm of practical politics.

What would be more to the point would be to address the question of how the United Kingdom, if it is to remain such, can function when one or more parts of it have extensive devolved powers of their own, yet MPs from those parts claim more or less unrestricted voting rights in relation to matters that do not directly concern their home nation or region at all. The resulting tensions, latent in any devolution of powers that is not common to all parts, could become a real threat, whether or not intended, to the Union, particularly if we end up with a large contingent of Scottish MPs determined to put Scottish ahead of UK interests.

Turning to matters more domestic to the Journal (but not wholly unrelated), I recommend that this month in particular you check our online content as well as what is in the magazine. We were only able to interview Robert Chote, chairman of the Office for Budget Responsibility, in time to include the report in this way, yet it includes some valuable insights into issues central to the election. And there are topical articles on the social worker contempt of court case, the proposed compulsory purchase reforms, and equal pay, among others, all of which arrived just in time for the same treatment. Happy reading.