SECOND TAKE
THE GUARDIAN: London will be Britain’s new Brussels after Brexit
New internal market rules will need to cover the whole four-nation union
One of Boris Johnson’s first acts on becoming prime minister was to make himself “minister for the union”. The symbolic title is meant to signify commitment to strengthening ties between the four nations of the UK. That is a tacit acknowledgment that the Conservative leader is easily cast as a prime minister for England only (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/13/boris-johnson-prime-minister-england-coronavirus), and that his Brexit plans put the union in jeopardy.
The threat is most potent in Scotland, where a majority voted remain and first minister Nicola Sturgeon is deft in tapping the frustration of people who do not vote Tory and feel over-ruled. Holyrood elections next May look likely to perpetuate the dominance of the Scottish National party and award Sturgeon another term. Nationalists would demand a second independence referendum (https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/feb/04/scottish-independence-survey-shows-brexit-has-put-union-at-risk). Johnson ...
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