UK’s unity threatened by pact between Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

The leaders of Wales, Scotland and Ireland" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="1853" data-entity-type="location">Northern Ireland signed a pact on Monday that threatens to lead to the break-up of the United Kingdom.The first ministers of the three semi-autonomous regions of the UK told Prime Minister Andy Burnham and his government to prepare for constitutional change and that their future lies with the European Union.“For people watching across these islands – for people watching around the world – there could be no clearer sign that Westminster’s time is coming to an end,” they said in a memorandum of understanding, referring to parliament.The announcement came about 48 hours after US President Donald Trump waded into the waters of the politically contentious issue when he said he would “love to see” a reunified Ireland during a trip to visit his golf course hosting the Irish Open.It is the first time the leaders of all three countries are either from pro-independence parties, or pro-unification in the case of Ireland" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="1853" data-entity-type="location">Northern Ireland, which was partitioned and remained part of the United Kingdom when Ireland won independence from Britain over a century ago.Burnham’s spokesman brushed aside the threat and said the prime minister strongly believes in the union and was more focused on lowering the cost of living than dealing with constitutional debates.“The United Kingdom is at its best when people come together around our shared values and problem solving, rather than division,” Tom Wells said.