The crisp, indeed spanking, pace with which the new Labour government in Britain has set about initiating its reform programme since it was elected a mere two weeks ago is amply maintained by the publication yesterday of legislation providing for referendums on the devolution of power to Scotland and Wales.
This fulfills its campaign undertakings in a highly significant domain, in which, because of Labour's huge majority, it no longer needs to worry about becoming bogged down in long parliamentary engagements. As a result, the suggested timetable for Scottish and Welsh assemblies looks forward to elections in two years time and a functioning executive shortly thereafter. Politically, it looks most unlikely from this vantage point that this could be reversed by a returning Conservative government; yesterday there appeared to be more worries among Lab our whips that the project would be threatened by dissident Labour MPs than by dogmatic unionist Tories whose party failed to win any seats in Scotland or Wales.
The Conservative argument against devolution hinges on the proposition that it would not be able to contain consequential demands for more and more autonomy. This would culminate in a movement towards independence and therefore the breakup of the United Kingdom. Such a dynamic could still come to pass if devolution is mishandled as it is being introduced and implemented. But it must be said that the decision to hold referendums, including on the question on tax varying powers in Scotland, provides a constitutional safeguard against any such pressures. It may well be, in the fullness of time, that Labour will be able to say its devolution initiative has saved rather than destroyed the UK. In that case it would be the culmination of a long historical process which began with the Home Rule crisis in Ireland in the 1880s.
Ireland is still highly engaged in this debate. Partition and devolution of power to the Stormont assembly gave unionism a built in majority in Northern Ireland that still makes nationalists there deeply suspicious. By the same token the unionist parties are anxious to investigate what are the implications of devolved administrations elsewhere in the UK for the North. Once again it can be said that Ireland has been both a laboratory for UK constitutional changes and yet demonstrably a different polity.
The indications so far are that the many changes in Britain's constitutional arrangements will be handled coherently and consistently. This gives real grounds for optimism that the cycles of political change and reform in Britain and Ireland can run harmoniously in coming years.