West Lothian question?
This is from Tam Dalyell of the Labour (MP) for the Scottish constituency of West Lothian.
I have been thinking about this from an institutional standpoint.
It is a bit of a hard nut to crack.
If Northern Irish, Scottish and Welsh are denied votes on Parliamentary matters that effect only England
they lose leverage on votes that matter to all of Britain. Conversely if they are allowed to vote on them
their respective constituencies have more power than the English.
It seems to be a problem with two solutions both of them "unfair".
Cool eh?
I of course am an outsider seeking some insiders insight.
_________________
?We must not look at goblin men,
We must not buy their fruits:
Who knows upon what soil they fed
Their hungry thirsty roots??
http://jakobvirgil.blogspot.com/
So Parliament makes laws for the whole United Kingdom.
Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, have their own regional legislatures which rule those respective regions.
But there is no equivalent legislature for England by itsself, as distinct from the United Kingdom as a whole, so though Parlaiment can and does make laws that apply only to England (and not to those other places) the mp's from those other places still get to vote on even those laws?
I guess that would be a conundrum.
A Welsh MP could vote to ban gambling casinos for England, but then he conspire with his local legislature in Wales to allow casinos in just Wales. And since gambling would be banned in larger neighboring England that would create a nice bottleneck effect forcing English gamblers to go to litle wales to gamble - and enriching Wales's tourist industry at england's expense.
Really, we need a proper, federal UK model. It isn't fair that the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish receive far more UK subsidies from the English than the English receive themselves and that Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish MPs can vote on matters that only affect England when English MPs can't do the same with regards to many matters relating to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
An English Parliament separate from the Westminster Parliament?
Where would it meet?
_________________
?We must not look at goblin men,
We must not buy their fruits:
Who knows upon what soil they fed
Their hungry thirsty roots??
http://jakobvirgil.blogspot.com/
Maybe they could do something like the US "Black Caucus" -except the black caucus doesnt enact laws.
But mps from England in the existing westminster parlaiment could have a caucus at intervals ( that excludes mps from scotland etc) to decide whether X piece of legislation only effects England and give that issue special "english only status" that only they (mps from england) can vote on . And then subsequently - only they can vote on it.
That way the English mp's do double duty as UK reps and as england only reps.
Maybe.
But mps from England in the existing westminster parlaiment could have a caucus at intervals ( that excludes mps from scotland etc) to decide whether X piece of legislation only effects England and give that issue special "english only status" that only they (mps from england) can vote on . And then subsequently - only they can vote on it.
That way the English mp's do double duty as UK reps and as england only reps.
Maybe.
This robs the Scottish and the rest from vote trading.
_________________
?We must not look at goblin men,
We must not buy their fruits:
Who knows upon what soil they fed
Their hungry thirsty roots??
http://jakobvirgil.blogspot.com/
But mps from England in the existing westminster parlaiment could have a caucus at intervals ( that excludes mps from scotland etc) to decide whether X piece of legislation only effects England and give that issue special "english only status" that only they (mps from england) can vote on . And then subsequently - only they can vote on it.
That way the English mp's do double duty as UK reps and as england only reps.
Maybe.
This robs the Scottish and the rest from vote trading.
Also these english mp's could declare anything to have "english only status" even if it applied to the whole UK - and then they could procede to abuse the priviledge and make legislation that was oppressive the scots welsh and Northern Irish while shutting the reps from those regions out.
Naaa.
That wouldnt work.
