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16 - On Scotland

from Part III - The Impact, 2016–2026

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 May 2026

Anthony Seldon
Affiliation:
Wellington College
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Summary

The story of Brexit in Scotland was about whether – and, if so, how – Scotland’s vote to Remain in the EU was to be acknowledged. In Albert Hirschman’s terminology, was it to be through the exercise of voice – a role for Scotland’s representatives in influencing the form of EU withdrawal and its domestic implications or through exit, by triggering a second independence referendum? In the end it was neither. The UK-wide majority to Leave the EU prevailed, with no concessions to the Scottish government’s preferred form of Brexit and no second independence referendum. This result exposed radically conflicting visions of the nature of the UK’s territorial constitution – a Union State based on Scottish popular sovereignty, or a Unitary State based on the sovereignty of the UK Parliament. A Brexit premised on the restoration of Parliamentary sovereignty and the desire to ‘take back control’ laid bare the subaltern nature of the Union-State account and the fragility of Scotland’s constitutional protections within the Union. Devolution in Scotland has been left diminished and the pathway towards independence mired in uncertainty.

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  • On Scotland
  • Edited by Anthony Seldon, Wellington College
  • Book: The Brexit Effect, 2016–2026
  • Online publication: 07 May 2026
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009749633.021
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  • On Scotland
  • Edited by Anthony Seldon, Wellington College
  • Book: The Brexit Effect, 2016–2026
  • Online publication: 07 May 2026
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009749633.021
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • On Scotland
  • Edited by Anthony Seldon, Wellington College
  • Book: The Brexit Effect, 2016–2026
  • Online publication: 07 May 2026
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009749633.021
Available formats
×