Breakup of UK Is on Table at High-Level Meeting at Cardiff

The leaders of Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales will gather Monday in the Welsh city of Cardiff to call for the effective breakup of the United Kingdom, creating a fresh headache for Britain’s prime minister, Andy Burnham, just hours after President Trump proposed an early reunification of Ireland.The devolution crisis is largely of Mr. Burnham’s own making, having been inspired by his own remark — later rolled back — that there could be a future referendum on Scottish independence if there appeared to be enough popular support.His government, meanwhile, is still grappling with its response to Mr. Trump’s comments during a two-day visit for a golf tournament in Ireland, in which he said Saturday he would “love to see” Northern Ireland — now part of the U.K. — reunited with the independent Republic of Ireland.At Cardiff, the meeting brings together Rhun ap Iorwerth of Wales, John Swinney of Scotland, and Michelle O’Neill of Northern Ireland. All three are participating in their capacities as leaders of the governing parties in their territories rather than as national leaders.The three are expected to sign a memorandum of understanding demanding the right to hold an independence referendum in each of their territories, which are already considered to be countries within the larger sovereign nation of the United Kingdom.“The agreement will seek to increase pressure on the UK Government to recognise the right of people in their respective nations to determine their constitutional futures,” says a report in the Welsh news site Nation Cymru.Speaking to the BBC on Sunday, Mr. ap Iorwerth said the three leaders would talk about their differences as well as what they have in common. “There’s also something that ties us together, isn’t there?” he said. “That pursuit of a different attitude from UK government.”Mr. Swinney, leader of the pro-independence Scottish National Party, went further, saying Sunday: “For the first time ever, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland are led by pro-independence first ministers. There could be no clearer sign that the status quo is not sustainable — and that Westminster must prepare for a post-UK future.“The momentum behind serious constitutional change is undeniable. Andy Burnham must now be facing up to the idea that he will go down in history as the final prime minister of the United Kingdom,” the Telegraph quoted him as saying.While all three parties rose to power by tapping into nationalist sentiment in their respective countries, successful independence drives would have major economic impacts. All three parties opposed Brexit, in which the U.K. left the European Union, and if granted independence, would likely seek re-entry to the European single market.Mr. Burnham’s government, meanwhile, has been struggling to explain away the prime minister’s remark on Wednesday, in which he said there could be a second independence referendum in Scotland if there was a “clear consensus” there in favor of breaking away. A 2014 referendum failed decisively by 55 percent to 45 percent.In a subsequent letter to Mr. Swinney quoted by the BBC, Mr. Burnham said his remark in Parliament had been intended to highlight ”that there is no consensus for an independence referendum in Scotland, and nor is there a clear basis to suggest that a majority of people in Northern Ireland presently wish to separate from the United Kingdom.”“As I made clear to you personally when we met recently in Glasgow, independence and a referendum are off limits, as it would take our focus away from growing the economy and helping families with the cost of living,” the letter said.The prime minister has also been struggling to dampen speculation about Irish reunification following Mr. Trump’s remark in which he said it was going to happen eventually and “might as well happen now while we’re talking about it.”Asked Saturday to respond, the prime minister’s office said Mr. Burnham stood by his comment earlier last week when he was asked in Parliament about the prospects for a vote on Irish reunification as allowed for under the 1998 Good Friday Agreement if clear majorities in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland favored it.“I am not aware that there is majority public support for another referendum, and until that changes, there will not be one,” Mr. Burnham responded.

Breakup of UK Is on Table at High-Level Meeting at Cardiff

Breakup of UK Is on Table at High-Level Meeting at Cardiff

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