Covid-19 is weakening the union

One of the biggest scandals during this pandemic has been the scale of misinformation that has spread across the UK over lockdown restrictions in different parts of the country. Amplified by

unclear media reports and statements issued by Downing Street, this widespread confusion has endangered lives for weeks. But as Boris Johnson announced England’s path out of lockdown last

week, things started to become clear.

The approach of governments in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland were strikingly more cautious than the measures the Prime Minister announced. Even the government’s scientific advisors

think Boris Johnson’s government is lifting the lockdown too soon — with the ‘R’ rate still wavering close to 1 across the country, while doubts remain over whether Downing Street’s five

tests for easing restrictions have been met. Above all, it is evident that the so-called “four nation” approach to dealing with the pandemic is now in tatters.

As people flocked to beaches across England this weekend, I am sure that millions of others across the UK looked on in amazement. I, for one, have never been so relieved to be Welsh. The

ultra-cautious yet authoritative approach from Mark Drakeford, the first minister, has put a spotlight on a country that has long been in the shadow of its neighbours. Now, the difference

between the two countries is stark. “For Wales, See England,” need not apply to this current crisis.

All four governments of this country— as well as the UK Labour Party — should never have assumed that a unified, UK-wide response to the pandemic was ever possible (and the right thing to

do). As New Zealand’s successful management of Covid-19 has shown, despite being a global crisis it is a virus that must be contained within a defined set of borders. And because of the

nature of devolution, it is only right that the decisions made across all four nations of the country are made within the context of the defined political and geographical entities of the

UK.

The Prime Minister has only his advisers to blame for the widespread lack of trust in the government’s response. The disgraceful Cummings episode has influenced devolved governments’ view of

his response to Covid-19 and played a part in their decision to distance themselves from England. The collapse of the “four nation approach is a good thing, certainly for us in Wales.

If Boris Johnson spoke for the whole of the UK, his decision to ease lockdown would have brought people flooding into Welsh coastal towns that have so far avoided the worst of the crisis.

This would bring with it the prospect of a second wave of Covid-19.

Aside from the public health risks that the breakdown in trust in the UK government has caused, it is also worth remembering that our Union is now more fragile than ever before. Forget

Brexit: this crisis has the potential to bring about the destruction of the United Kingdom as we know it. In spite of what this virus has done to bring us all together — especially

appreciating the work of our NHS and other key workers — it has also shown people, certainly in Wales, that they can run their own affairs without the guidance of London. Unionists should

not be surprised if calls for independence continue to grow in the next decade.

For the first time in twenty years, then, the UK government has realised that it’s not the only administration that governs in these four nations. The nature of the crisis and recent events

have exposed how, especially in terms of public health measures, governments in Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast can capably make their own decisions and not always follow London’s lead. So,

the next time you hear the Prime Minister say we’re all in it together, remember that he is only speaking for the English. And if recent events are anything to go by, he may find that he

speaks for very few of them too.

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