Scotland and the future of the Union after Brexit

In this panel, Professor Sir John Curtice, Reuben Duffy, Professor Nicola McEwan and Professor Aileen McHarg look at the state of Scottish devolution, exploring the impact of Brexit and the prospect of a second referendum on independence.

First, Professor McEwen explores the impact of Brexit on intergovernmental relations, highlighting the deterioration of relations between the UK and Scottish governments during the withdrawal process and in the context of the controversial UK Internal Market Act. She concludes that while new machinery to support intergovernmental relations is positive, this needs to be accompanied by a change in political culture to be made effective.

Second, Professor McHarg examines the legal issues around the prospect of a second referendum on Scottish independence, showing how the process has become stuck despite the Scottish National Party's commitment to legislating for a second referendum. She concludes that the solution to the legal problem of whether the Scottish government can call such a referendum is essentially political.

Third, Professor Curtice sets out how the attitudes of the Scottish public towards Scottish independence have shifted between 2014 and the present day. He shows that Brexit has had a significant impact on attitudes, shifting those who voted remain towards independence and those who voted for Brexit towards staying in the UK. He concludes that Scotland is now highly politically polarised along unionist-nationalist lines.

Finally, Reuben Duffy talks about Scotland's place in the world. He observes that Scotland has long had a distinct international role and that this has only developed further since devolution. He argues that Scotland should be formally accorded an autonomous foreign policy role, in line with sub-state actors in other union states, and that this should be accompanied by an improved framework of cooperation with the UK government.

The panel discussion was part of The Constitution Society's recent conference at the French Senate in Paris: 'France-United Kingdom: Two Constitutions After Brexit'.

Speaker 1: Nicola McEwen is Professor of Territorial Politics at Edinburgh University.

Speaker 2: Aileen McHarg is Professor of Public Law and Human Rights at Durham Law School.

Speaker 3: Sir John Curtice is Professor of Politics at Strathclyde University and a Senior Fellow at the National Centre for Social Research.

Speaker 4: Reuben Duffy was a Research Fellow at The Constitution Society between September 2021 and January 2022.