IN THE last decade, the union of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland has appeared at risk of rupturing – primarily due to the resurgence of the Scottish National Party (SNP). However, Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf’s unexpected resignation on Monday (Apr 29) suggests that the almost-two-decade era of SNP control is ebbing fast.

The SNP’s declining fortunes are significant not just because the party has controlled Edinburgh’s Holyrood Parliament since 2007. The nationalists fuelled the debate over Scottish independence, and came within a whisker of winning a referendum on the issue in 2014.

All of this matters to the wider world because Scottish independence would damage the UK and its standing on the world stage.