Are the days of the United Kingdom coming to an end?

[Xray]

The election result in London means that large sections of the public will have a governent they did not vote for. The Tories are basically an English Nationalist party. With the availabilty of local parliaments now an option is there any future for a UK lead by the Tories?

The exclusion of vast numbers of people votes because of the crazy voting system has also done huge damage to the credibility of the system.

What do any of the component parts of the UK have to gain from the Union? I include England in that question as it funds much of the rest of the regions.

[Captain Con O'Sullivan]

Scotland could be interesting as the Tories only have one MP there so the Scots would have a point in saying the Tories have no mandate to govern there.

I think they revived a bit in Wales with 8 seats so far. Its a weird situation anyway with a semi-demi half Home Rule but without any financial control beyond what they are granted by Westminster.

The again the West Lothian question has been haunting British politics for a while now what with Scots getting a say in English parliamentary affairs but the English having to deal with Holyrood on matters other than financial.

Bizarre.

[Xray]

Scotland could be interesting as the Tories only have one MP there so the Scots would have a point in saying the Tories have no mandate to govern there.

I think they revived a bit in Wales with 8 seats so far. Its a weird situation anyway with a semi-demi half Home Rule but without any financial control beyond what they are granted by Westminster.

The again the West Lothian question has been haunting British politics for a while now what with Scots getting a say in English parliamentary affairs but the English having to deal with Holyrood on matters other than financial.

Bizarre.

One more than they have in Ireland.

[Xray]

I would have thought that when the deficit is so large now might be a good time to walk if you are Scotish. I cant see Unionists being too impressed with mass cuts in the public sector in NI either.

[Captain Con O'Sullivan]

One more than they have in Ireland.

Depends how one views certain TD's... Alan Shatter appears to discovered he is an Israeli, Martin Mansergh obviously sees himself as one of our 'betters' wherever that came from and of course Michael Woods and Dermo Ahern by all accounts have their arses owned by the Vatican.

There are fewer Irish people in the Dail and Senate than you'd imagine...

[Sidewinder]

The UK is coming to an end yes, but with the caveat that UK time is similar to geological time. It might be bloody obvious where the country is going, but they'll make damn sure they take a loooooooooong time to get there.

The Whitehall mandarins think in terms of decades and centuries, not months or a couple of years like most politicians, and if they think they can slow down the pace of change to a glacial pace in order to "manage" it better, then that's exactly what they'll do.

So the UK is over, finished, kaput, yes. But the actual formal dissolution process could take another 100 years. Because that's the way they do things.

[Captain Con O'Sullivan]

True Sidewinder. I had a chat with a lady who has just been elected as an MP some time back and asked her whether she thought that the real national policy was 'managed decline' and she thought for a bit and nodded.

The one thing British politicians can never mention is the decline in British influence in the world.

The only time you'll ever see an admission from them that all is not well in that regard is when they exhort people to 'put the 'Great' back in 'Great Britain'. A meaningless phrase of course but it plays well in the Shires and among the Blue Rinse brigade who interpret that as 'giving the wogs a jolly good bashing and letting them know who's in charge'.

Seriously;0

[C. Flower]

Depends how one views certain TD's... Alan Shatter appears to discovered he is an Israeli, Martin Mansergh obviously sees himself as one of our 'betters' wherever that came from and of course Michael Woods and Dermo Ahern by all accounts have their arses owned by the Vatican.

There are fewer Irish people in the Dail and Senate than you'd imagine...

We've had a few owned by Brussels too.

[Tony1975]

We've had a few owned by Brussels too.

I think that would be pretty much all of them.

[Xray]

The UK is coming to an end yes, but with the caveat that UK time is similar to geological time. It might be bloody obvious where the country is going, but they'll make damn sure they take a loooooooooong time to get there.

The Whitehall mandarins think in terms of decades and centuries, not months or a couple of years like most politicians, and if they think they can slow down the pace of change to a glacial pace in order to "manage" it better, then that's exactly what they'll do.

So the UK is over, finished, kaput, yes. But the actual formal dissolution process could take another 100 years. Because that's the way they do things.

Even in countries that change in geological time you sometimes have a volcano go off under the glacier. I think I can hear the sound of running water here, I cant see the politcal or economic basis for a total political union between Scotland and England anymore. They will still be some mechanism for being "British" but the days of London running Scotland are over. I am unsure where NI stands in all of this, if Scotland or England go it alone it will make for interesting times.

Your average Tory must love the idea of getting rid of Scotland and NI. They think they will have more money, less trouble and almost permanent power in England. There is little incentive left for the Labour in Scotland or Wales to stay as Unionists either, it if only undermining their local power. And that not even considering the SNP et al. A friendly divorce suits all concerned, what anyone is Ireland thinks will be an after thought.

[Xray]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politi...nd/8666711.stm

[Xray]

It makes political sense for the Tories to end the Union, they will rule England then. Who is left that really wants to sustain the Union?

[Iolo]

It makes political sense for the Tories to end the Union, they will rule England then. Who is left that really wants to sustain the Union?

It doesn't matter - inertia, ideology, whatever kept even shambles like the Turkish Empire going for ages, and it took the First War to see off the Austro-Hungarian and Russian ones. 'Always keep a-hold of nurse/For fear for finding something worse!' People don't (mostly) think much, you know. The Irish were the people to bully in this crap set-up, so they needed to get out: for most it is just like the weather. It is like trying to herd drunken cats, shifting it!

[C. Flower]

I think you are all wrong about the British. They'll cling on like grim death to every remaining shard.

Look at Rockall.