[Editor’s Note: This is the fourth entry in our symposium on Sunday’s independence vote in Catalonia. We are grateful to our convener, Professor Zoran Oklopcic, for assembling an outstanding group of scholars to bring our readers helpful context and analysis during this important moment for the region. The introduction to our symposium is available here.] —Stephen Tierney, Professor of
UK Learns Brexit is Easier Said Than Done
[This post was first published on the website of the Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale. It is republished here with permission of the author.] —David R. Cameron, Professor of Political Science, Director of the Program on European Union Studies, Yale University When Prime Minister Theresa May took over
The Top Constitutional Events Of 2014
2014 was a landmark year for governments around the world. Here are some of the most important constitutional events of the past twelve months, brought to you by the Comparative Constitutions Project and Constitute. Jan|Feb|Mar|May|Jun|Sept|Oct|Nov|Dec January: Egypt Holds Constitutional Referendum On January 24, 2014, poll results showed that Egyptian voters approved
Scottish independence and the European Union (I·CON 12, Issue 3: Editorial)
—J. H. H. Weiler, Editorial Director, I·CON; President and Secretary General, European University Institute The following Editorial was written before the voting in Scotland took place. It expresses a negative view regarding the prospects of Scottish independence written from both a Euro-prudential perspective and a more general normative one. There is no place for gloating. The
‘And the Winner is… the Referendum’: Scottish Independence and the Deliberative Participation of Citizens
—Stephen Tierney, University of Edinburgh* Only 45% of Scots said yes to independent statehood, but a massive majority said yes to direct democracy. The turnout of 84.65% was the highest for any UK electoral event since the introduction of universal suffrage, significantly trumping the 65.1% who voted in the 2010 UK general election and the
If Scotland Had Voted Yes…
—Nick Barber, Trinity College, Oxford [Cross-posted from UK Con Law Blog] This is a copy of a blog post that was, in the event, not needed. My colleagues have told me that my writing has a calming, if not soporific, quality, and I thought that I should use this skill to good effect by preparing
The Scottish Constitution After Independence
—Stephen Tierney, Edinburgh School of Law [Cross-posted from UK Con Law Blog] According to the Scottish Government White Paper issued this week, Scotland’s Future, an independent Scotland will have a new written constitution (this repeats the commitment contained in the Scottish Government’s earlier White Paper of March). The intention is to replace Westminster parliamentary supremacy
