Former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown has warned that unless the United Kingdom is fundamentally reformed, it could swiftly become a failed state because of rising concerns that the country is governed by a London-centric elite acting in its own interest.
Mr Brown noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has brought into sharp focus the “massive inequalities” between the different parts of the union that needs to be addressed, especially with people in some parts treated like “second class citizens.”
He also criticized the Scottish National Party’s push for a second referendum on Scottish independence, saying now is not the time for a “divisive” vote.
“I believe the choice is now between a reformed state and a failed state.
“I want a reformed state, not a failed state. There is dissatisfaction, not just in Scotland, but right round the regions and in Wales and Northern Ireland.
“It is indeed Scotland where dissatisfaction is so deep that it threatens the end of the United Kingdom.
“People don’t feel that over the virus, over the lockdown, over the quarantines, over the business support…people in the regions don’t feel they’re being properly consulted or listened to.
“There’s been very little coordination between the centre and the regions and the nations. I think people are pretty fed up. I think they feel that they’re treated in many ways as second class citizens and something has got to be done about it.”
Mr Brown, who was PM from 2007 to 2010, said “trust is breaking down in (current PM) Boris Johnson” and there should be a review of the UK’s constitutional settlement to see what is working and what is not.
He added that the goal should be to “repair relations between all the different parts of the United Kingdom and have a more inclusive United Kingdom in future”.
“‘Whoever in London thought of that?’ is a common refrain, reflecting the frustration of people in outlying communities who feel they are the forgotten men and women, virtually invisible to Whitehall,” Mr Brown said.
“There are massive inequalities between the regions – they’ve got to be addressed. The government admits it when they talk about levelling up. But that will need new powers of economic initiative – in Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle, Bristol and so on.
“I think we’ve got to consider this, as well as considering the future of Scotland and Wales.”
Urging the government to “rebuild the relationships between the centre and the outlying communities”, Mr Brown proposed replacing the UK Parliament’s unelected upper chamber, the House of Lords, with a “senate of the regions.”
“Battered by COVID-19, threatened by nationalism, and uncertain what the promise of a post-Brexit ‘Global Britain’ adds up to, the United Kingdom must urgently rediscover what holds it together and sort out what is driving us apart.
“We’ve got to show that what we provide as a United Kingdom is to the benefit of all parts of the United Kingdom and I don’t think the government is doing that at the moment.”
Brown’s comments came against the backdrop of rising political tensions in the UK, stirred by the challenges presented by Brexit and the struggle to contain COVID-19.
