Ɖ Gardịn vy on ɖ fyćr v ɖ yńn: Britn fesz brecup
(Transcription of a Guardian editorial of 29 December 2020)
Ɖ comḅneśn v Boris Jonsn, Covid n Brexit z crietñ a consttyśnl craś ɖt z wêtñ t hapn in 2021
29 Dsmbr 2020
Ɖ Covid yir hz intnṣfaid ptnṣ́li trminl strenz wɖn ɖ YC’z for-neśn yńn. Ẃn Boris Jonsn bgan t grapl wɖ ɖ sirịsnis v ɖ ǎtbrec, ɖ impact on ɖ yńn wz probbli lo on hiz list v cnsrnz. Bt, az 2021 becnz, Mr Jonsn’z aproć t Covid hz bcm a caṭlist v ɖ poṣbl brecup v ɖ Ynîtd Cñdm. Covid’z most lastñ p’liticl leġsi in ɖz îḷndz me b ɖt, in its aftrmaʈ, ɖ YC wl no longr xist.
Ẃn ɖ pandemic bgan, Mr Jonsn sīmd t asym ɖt h wz actñ fr ɖ hol v ɖ YC. H graɉli dscuvrd ɖt, az far az Covid wz cnsrnd, ɖs wz untru. In practis, h wz ɖ prîm̦inistr onli v Ñgḷnd. Hlʈpoḷsi hd bn dvolvd sins 1919 in Scotḷnd, n hz bn undr ɖ cntrol v dvolvd admiṇstreśnz in Scotḷnd, Wêlz n Norɖn Îrḷnd sins Toni Bler’z ira. N sins ol ʈri dvolvd neśnz n most Ñgliś sitiz wr léd bî non-Cnsrvtiv poḷtiśnz wɖ ɖer ǒn vyz v hǎ t dīl wɖ Covid in ɖer eriaz, n wɖ no luv fr Mr Jonsn’z poḷtics in most cesz, c’roṇvîṛs dsiźn-mcñ hz strugld t rīć a cnsnss, t ɖ jenṛl detrimnt.
Mr Jonsn berz hevi rsponsbiḷti fr ɖs. Bt a secnd rīzn wz ɖt Scotḷnd’z naśṇlist guvnmnt, ẃć wonts t brec p ɖ YC, briłntli sizd an oṗtyṇti t emf̣sîz its cntrol v Covid poḷsi. Ɖ Scotiś Naśnl parti frst ministr, Nic̣la Strjn, bgan reğlr Covid brīfñz on 20 Marć. Ś hz sins dn mor ɖn 150 v ɖm. Hr brīfñz hv mostli bn modlz v facćl akṛsi, snṣbl advîs n cōśn. Ɖ contrast wɖ Mr Jonsn’z inṭmitnt n smtmz hîṗbolic n err-strùn brīfñz hz bn in evri we t Mz Strjn’z p’liticl advantij. Last munʈ, an Ipsos Mori poul faund ɖt Mz Strjn hd a net apruvlretñ v plus 61 amñ Scots fr hr hanḍlñ v ɖ pandemic, ẃl Mr Jonsn hd a net retñ v mîṇs 43. Ɖr hz bn mjoṛtis’port in Scotḷnd fr brecñ awe fṛm ɖ YC in 17 s’xesiv opińnpoulz.
Dstñtiv paɖz
Ɖ comḅneśn v Mz Strjn’z hî profîl n ɖ riaḷtiz v hlʈpoḷsi dīṿluśn hz hd consiqnsz in Wêlz n Norɖn Îrḷnd, n īvn at Ñgliś locl levl tù. Marc Drecf̣d hz nt atmtd t eḿlet hiz Scotiś cǎnṭpart’s dêli cntrol v ɖ mīdịmesij. Bt ɖ Wlś frst ministr hz olso foloud hiz ǒn dstñtiv paʈ, tecñ sm radicli difṛnt n mor cōśs dsiźnz, n aqîrñ in ɖ cors v ɖ pandemic a hayr public profîl, in n ǎtsd Wêlz, ɖn hiz prīdisesrz. Norɖn Îrḷnd’z pǎrśẹrñ mīnz its frst ministr, Arlīn Fostr v ɖ Deṃcratic Yńnist parti, hz t śer a platform wɖ hr oponnt, Sinn Féin’z Miśél O’Nīl, n z ɖrfr unebl t aćiv a similr asndnsi. Nvɖles, Norɖn Îrḷnd, lîc Wêlz n Scotḷnd, hz at tîmz vri pubḷcli dvrjd fṛm Ñgliś meźrz. Mr Jonsn’z lezi libterịnizm n śemfl lêtnis t act hv fy ecoz ǎtsd Ñgḷnd.
Covid cd nǎ b ɖ strw ɖt brecs ɖ yńn’z bac, ispeṣ́li in Scotḷnd. Bt Covid poḷsi z nt ɖ mn rīzn ẃ ɖ fyćr v ɖ yńn z nǎ so unsrtn. Mni uɖr factrz lî bhnd ɖs crîsis. Ɖ most importnt z simpli ɖ sstend asndnsi v ɖ SNP in Scotḷnd. F ɖ parti winz a forʈ s’xesiv Holirūd vicṭri in Me n clemz a mandet fr a ny indipndnsref̣rendm, it wd snd ɖ yńn’z streslevl intu ɖ criticl zon. F Scotḷnd ivnć̣li brouc awe, ɖr wd b mejr consiqnsz in Norɖn Îrḷnd, n fr ɖ rleśnśp btwn Wêlz n Ñgḷnd.
Brexit hz pleid a piṿtl rǒl in crietñ ɖs voḷtîl mix. Ɖ vot in 2016 t līv ɖ Yṛpiyn Yńn wz an Ñgliś n Wlś vot. Nɖr Scotḷnd nr Norɖn Îrḷnd votd t līv. Scotḷnd, in ptiklr, votd dsîsivli t rmen. Yt aftr 2016, nɖr T’rīza Me nr Mr Jonsn peid inuf atnśn t īzñ ɖ pen fr Scotḷnd. YC brincmnśp in ɖs yir’z tredtōcs wɖ ɖ YY hz md an olrdi larj gap btwn ɖ YC n Scotḷnd īvn wîdr. Ɖ YY27’z yṇti jrñ ɖ tōcs cntrastd wɖ ɖ UK4’z intrnl disyṇti. Brexit’s impact in Norɖn Îrḷnd hz olso bn pṛfǎnd, rzultñ in a dīpnd clos ic̣nomic rleśnśp wɖ ɖ Îriś Rpublic, n ɖus ɖ YY sngl marcit, ẃl Mz Fostr n Mz O’Nīl pl in opozñ d’rex́nz ovr ɖ linc wɖ Britn.
Sntṛlist yńnizm
Ẃn Mr Jonsn bcem prîm̦inistr in 2019, h gev himslf ɖ tîtl v “ministr fr ɖ yńn”. Ɖr hz bn ziro evidns in hiz hanḍlñ v Brexit ɖt h tecs ɖs t mīn ɖ adopśn v a mor imołnt aproć. Instd, Mr Jonsn’z yńnizm hz pruvd mor sntṛlist n les pragmatic ɖn ɖ yńnizm v hiz tū Tori prīdisesrz, Devid Camṛn n Msz Me. T Mr Jonsn, ɖ Brexit slogn v “tec bac cntrol” trnzlets intu a project ɖt emz t rībild a Wsminstr-sntrd YC sovṛnti, nt, az Cir Starmr advcetd last wīc, a poḷsi v pśñ mor pǎrz ǎt n dǎn fṛm Wsminstr t ɖ YC neśnz or t Ñgliś rījnz n sitiz.
Mr Jonsn’z aproć z crietñ a craś wêtñ t hapn. H md hiz riyl vyz startlñli clir ẃn h tld a prîṿt mītñ v ɖ “blu wōl” Cnsrvtiv MPz in Nvmbr ɖt dīṿluśn hd bn “a dzastr norʈ v ɖ bordr” n ɖt ɖ 1997 dīṿluśnsetlmnt wz Toni Bler’z “bigist mstec”. Cmñ six munʈs bfr sć importnt Holirūd ilex́nz, ɖs wz an insnjri ʈñ t se, az wel az a slf-inflictd wūnd fr ɖ Tōriz n a Crisṃs gift t ɖ SNP. Mr Jonsn’z coments abt a dīṿluśn dzastr canot b laft awe az an idịsncratic Jonsońn axidnt. Ɖ coments xprest ẃt h riyli ʈncs.
Ɖ rli munʈs v 2021 wl cntiny t b doṃnetd bî Covid. Bt ɖ iminnt xistnśl crîsis fr ɖ yńn śd nt b oṿlct. Mr Jonsn apirz confidnt ɖt h cn s’xesf̣li rfyz t oʈ̇rîz a secnd ref̣rendm in ɖ fes v a dmand fr wn fṛm Mz Strjn. Bt ɖr me nt b az mć aṗtît fr undeṃcratic objṛsi az h s’pozz.
F Mr Jonsn wz a difṛnt cnd v poḷtiśn, h wd lisn t ẃt Mr Starmr sd last wīc abt rnywñ ɖ yńn, or ẃt Gordn Brǎn hz bn seyñ abt rībildñ cnsnt ʈru sitiznz’ asmbliz wɖ a wîd rīmit t riimajin Britn’z consttyśnl arenjmnts. A lot v poḷtiśnz fṛm ol partiz, includñ ɖ Cnsrvtivz, r opn t ɖs. Ɖ big qsćn z ẃɖr ɖ votrz v Scotḷnd r opn t it tù. Bt ɖr z litl tîm left. Ɖ ćans v rform me hv sêld wɖ Brexit. Ɖ tasc v of̣rñ Scots an oltrṇtiv yńn ɖt ɖe cn b’liv in nxt Me z olrdi dǎn t ɖ wîr.
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