Britain’s constitutional crisis moves from acute to severe

Dr Robert Saunders, Lecturer in Modern British History at Queen Mary University of London, argues that promises made in the final weeks of the campaign may result in a political hangover for David Cameron and his government. Britain's constitutional crisis has just moved from acute to severe. Last night's referendum vote closed the book (for the moment) on Scottish independence; but it has thrown the constitutional balance of the United Kingdom entirely out of kilter. A political earthquake is brewing, and the aftershocks will be felt for a generation. As Winston Churchill might have put it: 'the Battle for Scotland is over. I expect that the Battle for Britain is about to begin'. The origins of the present crisis lie in the final weeks of the campaign.