It seemed like a poisoned chalice when Lord Smith of Kelvin was handed the task of chairing a crossparty commission to advise on devolving further powers to Scotland after September’s referendum.
But the ball is in Westminster’s court. If it does not keep to the timetable and deliver by January 25 next year the general election is going to look very difficult for some parties, particularly Scottish Labour and the Liberal Democrats. And it’s quite possible that the Scottish National Party (SNP) and the Greens will take their bat and ball home, and walk away from the Smith agreement. Even on the day that the commission proposals were announced, SNP leader and Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said at Holyrood that the new powers were less than what was promised.