The SNP, along with various other parties and people insist the EU referendum should have only gone ahead with a four country lock. A way of saying that if Scotland voted to Remain whilst England, Wales and Northern Ireland had voted to Leave the will of the Scottish people should have decided the referendum.
Knowing support for the EU is higher (but only marginally) in Scotland than in the remainder of the UK, barring maybe Northern Ireland, this was a mischievous way for the SNP to attempt to ensure the UK remained in the EU whilst also attempting to drive a further wedge between Scotland and England.
What would this have meant in practice, though?
| Constituent Part | England (incl. Gib) | Scotland | Wales | Northern Ireland |
| Population (m) | 53.01 | 5.30 | 3.06 | 1.81 |
| Percentage | 83.90% | 8.40% | 4.80% | 2.90% |
| Total Votes Cast | 28,455,402 | 2,679,513 | 1,626,919 | 790,149 |
| Leave Vote (m) | 15,188,406 | 1,018,322 | 854,572 | 349,442 |
| Leave Vote (%) | 53.38% | 38.00% | 52.53% | 44.22% |
| Value of Vote under 4-Country Lock | 1.00 | 10.00 | 17.32 | 29.29 |
| No. Votes Needed to Result in 4-Country Lock for Leave | -960,704 | 321,436 | -41,112 | 45,633 |
The explicit suggestion from the SNP and others is that a vote in England is worth a tenth of that in Scotland. That a vote in Scotland is worth approximately half that of one in Wales. That a vote in Northern Ireland is worth thirty times as much as one cast in the UK. The value of a changed mind in Northern Ireland is 20x that of one in England. That of one in Scotland 3x as much as an English vote.
Far be it from me to suggest that the SNP enjoy stoking division in their quest to irritate the English into letting Scotland go into a world of 10% deficits, but the explicit suggestion of the SNP is that the votes of the English are worthless. That the votes of one Northern Irishman is worth a thirtieth of that of an Englishman. The SNP may not believe the UK should exist, they’re wrong. But the suggestion that a Scot is ten times as valuable as someone from Cornwall is insulting. Until the SNP can persuade Scotland to vote to leave the UK, the UK votes on a one man, one vote basis.
