Is anyone surprised? "Devolution timetable 'unrealistic'"

[d000hg]

I wouldn't bet on it. Call Me Dave will promise it to try and avoid votes going to UKIP then will drag his feet if he gets back in.

An EU referendum is Dave's main vote-winner and differentiation from the other main parties. Not doing it would mean a total smashing at the following GE if not triggering a vote of no confidence.

[TykeMerc]

What does it matter if it takes an additional 6 months to do properly?

It's been 300 years. What's another few months?

It matters because expectations were set. They said things in an official and public manner, people expect them to deliver to the timetable no matter how absurd that timetable is.

Personally I'm not a big supporter of loads of devolution, it just leads to extra cost, but apparently it's happening.

[tomtomagain]

Surely it matters more than it's done right rather than to some arbitrary date set in the heat of a referendum campaign? What does it matter if it takes an additional 6 months to do properly?

It's been 300 years. What's another few months?

[Batcher]

You got your promised referendum. We'll get ours, unlike the promises about devolution which were made on the spur of the moment this has been planned in advance.

I wouldn't bet on it. Call Me Dave will promise it to try and avoid votes going to UKIP then will drag his feet if he gets back in.

[Zero Liability]

Don't worry, Gordon Brown will see to it, he's not got gold to sell off or pensions to raid, so he has nothing but free time.

[TykeMerc]

I was more surprised that the timetable was publicly set in what was obviously a rush, I would have thought that these "leaders" would have been wound back in a bit by their officials.

As a PM I've seen these type of bold offers made by salesmen mentality people when in truth anyone with a clue knows that the offer is unrealistic or if delivered it will be a total bodge job just to appear to have succeeded.

[d000hg]

This should come as a warning to all those members of the English electorate hooked on the promise of an EU referendum.

You got your promised referendum. We'll get ours, unlike the promises about devolution which were made on the spur of the moment this has been planned in advance.

[Zero Liability]

England is as keen on devolution as Scotland at this point, so they put it off at their peril.

[Batcher]

No, not surprised at all.

That's why I'm looking forward to the GE in May.

[BrilloPad]

By god man, does heritage mean nothing to you?

And there we see the issues of the UK in a nutshell. Looking back and not forward. Sure we won a couple of wars a long while ago. Does us no good in the international markets.

Rule 1 - never ever trust a politician.

[scooterscot]

FFS. you don't even live there.

By god man, does heritage mean nothing to you?

[Paddy]

FFS. you don't even live there.

[scooterscot]

First 'call me Dave' hooks the Scottish electorate on a promise he can't deliver, then employees a fall guy.

This should come as a warning to all those members of the English electorate hooked on the promise of an EU referendum.


BBC News - Smith Commission timetable 'unrealistic'

Smith Commission timetable 'unrealistic'

16 October 2014 Last updated at 21:13 GMT
scottish parliament
The commission tasked with brokering a deal on Scottish devolution faces an "unrealistic" timetable, academics and MPs have warned.

The Smith Commission on Scottish devolution was set up by the prime minister in the wake of last month's independence referendum.

But a House of Commons committee was told the commission was potentially heading for a "botch job".

And it was claimed a sustainable solution was unlikely to be found.

The five Scottish Parliament parties have already submitted their proposals for further devolution to the Smith Commission, which aims to agree a way forward by the end of November, before the UK government puts forward draft legislative proposals in January 2015, with a bill to be brought forward after the 2015 UK election.

Devolution vow
The pre-referendum pledge of further devolved powers to Scotland has also led to a row between the Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats over the issue of whether or not Scottish MPs should continue to be allowed to vote on English-only issues in the House of Commons.

Earlier on Thursday, Lord Smith - who is chairing the cross-party devolution commission - told the BBC that he did not believe the deadlines which had been set meant he was attempting to tackle "mission impossible".

But speaking at a meeting of the Commons Political and Constitutional Reform Committee, Tory MP Christopher Chope questioned whether people should rely on the "so-called" devolution vow made by the leader of the three main UK parties shortly before the referendum.

Mr Chope said the vow was given without the UK parliament's consent and had been dismissed as "salesman's puff" by nationalists.

Lord Smith on leading a commission on devolution:: 'I don't see it as mission impossible at all'

Graham Allan, convener of the committee, warned there was a "feeling arising" in some quarters that the Smith Commission should be suspended.

Prof Michael Keating, director of the Scottish Centre on Constitutional Change, told the committee: "Frankly, I think the timetable that we have been given to do this is not realistic."

He added: "I'm not talking about stringing this out indefinitely and having endless discussion, but at least a year seems to be a reasonable time to put together something that will work and get the technical details right so that it won't unravel and have to be turned to again."

Mr Chope asked: "Do you think that there is any chance of that finding favour with the powers that be, rather than this mad rush into a rush job?"

Prof Nicola McEwen, associate director at the Scottish Centre on Constitutional Change, replied: "No, we are in a political context where there is an election round the corner and these create imperatives which mean, I think, that the timetable is not about to be changed.

"I suspect that means whatever comes out is probably not going to be sustainable and we will be back here within a few years talking about either fixing that or 'what next?'."

'Too rapidly'
She continued: "This is not even a convention or a commission where you have got experts and representatives in a room trying to think through and reflect on the issues.

"It's not that at all, it's trying to find agreement between political parties and that is probably the last way I would recommend to nurture consent to an agreement from among the public."

Mr Chope said: "We're heading for potentially a very bad botch job."

Mr Keating said constitutional change "never happens for rational reasons", but he added: "Nevertheless, you can move too rapidly for short-term political considerations and end up making your problem worse because you have created a system that just is not going to work.

"And when we can see that happening I think it is up to us to say 'Hold on a minute, you are creating problems for yourself; that problem will not go away and allow you to move your agenda on - it will come back again very quickly.'

"And I think that's what will happen if we rush through this latest stage of Scottish devolution without proper consideration."