Amid Controversy, David Cameron Plans New Powers for Scotland After Referendum

Paul Routledge writes, at the Mirror UK, "Cynical David Cameron plot behind pledge for new powers after Scottish referendum":

It woz Gordon wot won it, mobilising the hearts and minds of his fellow Scots to remain within the United Kingdom.

He halted the Nationalist juggernaut in its tracks when defeat for the Better Together campaign seemed all too possible. Thanks, Big Gordie.

Naturally, David Cameron couldn’t even bring himself to mention his predecessor’s role.

The contrast was too embarrassing Every time the Tory premier crossed the border, he lost votes.

And now he’s plotting to exploit the “No” vote to bring about eternal Tory rule in England by splitting off Scottish – mostly Labour - MPs at Westminster, handing the Conservative Party a virtually unassailable parliamentary majority.

That’s the cynical reality behind his Downing Street declaration to create a new constitutional settlement for the United Kingdom.

And that’s the challenge facing Ed Miliband as Labour’s conference delegates gather in Manchester: how to sustain and benefit from the astonishing democratic momentum set in motion by the independence referendum.

It’s impossible to know how many of the “Yes” votes were solely for divorce from the UK, and how many were against the Tories’ relentless austerity and job cuts.

Some unquestionably were a protest vote against the Coalition, in much the same way that votes for Ukip in England are a cry of defiance against the main political parties at Westminster.

In a general election, this protest will return to more normal political channels. But Ed Miliband can’t bank on it happening just like that.

In Glasgow particularly, Labour’s home ground, the 53% “Yes” for separation has to be turned into a “Yes” to getting the Tories out.

It will take a long time for Scotland to settle down. It was a different place before the referendum, and it’s even more different now.

Also from Anthony Seldon, at Telegraph UK, "Scottish referendum: Funding pledge to Scotland leaves David Cameron with the hangover from hell":

The pledge now leaves Mr Cameron with the hangover from hell. Many of his MPs have been vocal in their decrying of the pledge, and even Lord Barnett, now 90, has called his formula a “terrible mistake”, intended only as an interim measure in the run-up to planned political devolution in the late Seventies.

To some Conservative backbenchers, Mr Cameron was typically bounced into reactive decisions in promising too much to Scotland – a decision that has been called “reckless” by the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson. They believe that if the Prime Minister had fought a better campaign, he would never have had to make these concessions.

Significant doubts also remain over whether the proposals for further Scottish devolution will ever get through Parliament. Many voices on both Left and Right believe it is an error for such major constitutional change to be introduced with such haste. They favour the establishment of a constitutional convention to thrash out, once and for all, the appropriate powers to be granted to Scotland, as well as to England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It should also pronounce on the issue of devolution to the regions such as Cornwall, Yorkshire and the North West; and to London, which has a bigger population and a larger GDP than Scotland. The problem with such conventions is that they rarely secure agreement, and certainly not in the short-term framework that domestic politics is demanding.

And the New York Times, "A Kingdom Still Whole, but Far From United":

EDINBURGH — Scotland chose decisively against independence on Thursday, but it was not a vote for the status quo in Britain.

The debate over regional and national autonomy that was set off by the Scots has just begun, and it promises a constitutional shake-up in the United Kingdom, which remains intact but by no means fixed or unchallenged.

While the outcome of the vote was met with tremendous relief from Downing Street and Buckingham Palace to Brussels and Washington, Britain was also awakening to the realization on Friday that it had agreed to grant the Scots considerable new powers to run their own affairs. Prime Minister David Cameron now faces a broader debate over the centralization of power in London, uncertainty over Britain’s place in Europe, intense budget pressures, and fissures within his own Conservative Party as he heads toward a general election campaign in the spring.

More.