The timescale for drawing up new powers for the Scottish parliament is a recipe for disaster, according to a north-east political expert.
Aberdeen University professor Michael Keating said at least a year was needed – not the scheduled four months.
He told MPs that a rushed job will result in making the situation worse and end up with something that is “just not going to work”.
In a last ditch effort to save the union during the referendum campaign the leaders of the three UK parties vowed to hand over more powers to the Scottish Parliament in the event of a No vote.
Within a week of the referendum Lord Smith had agreed to head up a commission to draw together a set of concrete proposals.
The timescale calls for all the political parties to make submissions by October 31, with a view to agreeing proposals by St Andrew’s Day, November 30, and draft legislation by Burns Night, January 25 next year.
Prof Keating, director of the Scottish Centre on Constitutional Change, told the Commons political and constitutional reform committee, sitting in Edinburgh yesterday, constitutional change never happens for “rational reasons”.
“Nevertheless, you can move too rapidly for short-term political considerations and end up making your problems worse because you create a system that is just not going to work,” he said.
“And when we can see that happening I think it is up to us to say ‘Hold on a minute, you are creating problems for yourself; that problem will not go away and allow you to move your agenda on – it will come back again very quickly’.
“I think that’s what will happen if we rush through this latest stage of Scottish devolution without proper consideration.”
North-east MSP Lewis Macdonald, standing in for Scottish Labour leader Johann Lamont, said the “number one priority” was that the timetable was met.
The Labour whip said there was no doubt about the commitment the party leaders gave to deliver to a set timetable but doubt was being cast on that commitment for political ends.
He warned: “There are those, sadly including the Scottish National Party, who find it useful from there own point of view to throw doubt on that commitment. I think that is unwise.”
Tory MP Christopher Chope said: “We’re heading for potentially a very bad botch job.”