The United Kingdom has been hit hard in the era of the coronavirus. It has the highest mortality rate in Europe and the deepest recession in the G7. However, Britain’s problems do not end there.
Writes about this agency “Bloomberg”.
“The pandemic has driven an even greater wedge between independent Scots and the rest of the country,” the report says. Scotland’s response to the pandemic seemed like a height of competence compared to London’s crazy reversals. This only increased support for Scottish independence. “
If the situation develops in the same vein, Boris Johnson’s premiership will be remembered not by his secession from the European Union or even by his failed reaction to the coronavirus, but by the dismantling of the British Union, which has existed for centuries.
Following the 2014 referendum, the Scottish independence movement looked weakened. Then the idea of leaving the UK was not supported, but now polls show the opposite. The number of supporters of independence exceeds 55%. The popularity of the Scottish National Party is growing along with it.
Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon holds daily press conferences and seems far more competent than Boris Johnson. Sociological research shows that Sturgeon’s actions during a pandemic are considered very or fairly good by almost three-quarters of Scots. Johnson’s reaction was approved by only 20%.
Sturgeon now has the ability to criticize the British Parliament largely due to the fact that at the end of the last century, Scotland and Wales received their own legislatures.
“The pandemic has highlighted shortcomings in this relationship and the rupture of trust between Scotland and England over the years. Now Johnson will have to fix his union or lose it altogether. His best chance is to give the Scottish government even greater reins of government, not cut them. This will make it easier to find errors. But it can also become a slippery road to independence, ” the publication says.
If the Scottish National Party wins parliamentary elections next year, a referendum will become almost inevitable.
“It could be worse. If the UK leaves the EU without a trade deal in December, any trade problems that arise will be exploited by the Scottish National Party, as most Scots opposed Brexit, ” Bloomberg concludes.