As we inch towards tomorrow's White Paper on Independence, those self-same unionist parties should send a clear and unambiguous message back to Mr Salmond. It should read: "Save your breath, Alex. We're not prepared to work with you for as long as you bang on about a referendum on independence."
And that means that they should resist the SNP leader's siren call to include options for more powers for the Scottish Parliament, as well as full independence, in any referendum...
As well as the Lib Dems resisting the bait, so too should the Tories, some of whom have flirted with the idea of extra powers, especially in the area of fiscal powers. That sort of dangerous constitutional tinkering should be put well and truly back in its box.
So, rather like the Scottish Labour Party, Mr Cochrane appears to wish for a ditch in which to defend the status quo. (Or perhaps, by abolishing devolution altogether, he would prefer the status quo ante.)
But what if the Scottish people are not averse to further constitutional tinkering? Is it better for the unionist parties to claim that they know what is good for Scotland, to insist that all is for the best with the present devolutionary settlement and to deny the people a choice? Or to engage wholeheartedly in a debate about where we go from here?
I can see various difficulties with extending the powers of the Scottish Parliament but refusing to talk about the subject (or putting it back in the box) is a counsel of despair. It also makes the First Minister look like a model of reasonableness.
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