Now, obviously enough I agree with this statement in theory, but there are probably as many practical problems with localism as there are with supranationalism. Conservative eurosceptics have frequently observed that you cannot have a democratic European Union because there is no european demos - no trans-national political class which shares ideals and concerns. Similarly, there's not really a regional demos in most nation states.
One might reasonably observe that whenever localist policies are suggested or attempted to be implemented by the current government there is generally a national uproar about postcode lotteries. Everybody likes localism in theory but in practice it seems to generate an awful lot of complaints. I think that's probably a reflection of this. We have a English demos. There's a wide expectation that things will be broadly the same across England and indeed for the most part across the United Kingdom (at least, that's my explanation for English frustration at Scotland receiving extra funding through the Barnett formula).
Not that I think that's an insurmountable obstacle to the implementation of localist reforms, but it's something that has to be worked on.
no subject
One might reasonably observe that whenever localist policies are suggested or attempted to be implemented by the current government there is generally a national uproar about postcode lotteries. Everybody likes localism in theory but in practice it seems to generate an awful lot of complaints. I think that's probably a reflection of this. We have a English demos. There's a wide expectation that things will be broadly the same across England and indeed for the most part across the United Kingdom (at least, that's my explanation for English frustration at Scotland receiving extra funding through the Barnett formula).
Not that I think that's an insurmountable obstacle to the implementation of localist reforms, but it's something that has to be worked on.