Edinburgh Lectures

Globalisation and Nationalism: The New Deal?

Globalisation is not the issue. A single-market, plus the hugely enhanced communications, is removing the old constraints on scale; no longer is bigger self-evidently better, as all comparative studies of post-1989 global development have revealed. Rather than suppressing nationality-politics, globalisation has liberated national diversity. An increase in the number of nation-states is therefore likely, accompanied by a decrease in their scale.

Scotland’s return to statehood may therefore be seen as a typical and positive contribution to new times. Nationalism is changing its meaning, in globalising conditions.

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