The Case for English Devolution

I raised this issue in company a few months back. The discussion was brief as it was clear that the idea was seen as rather eccentric, even coming from me. Devolution for every other national part of the United Kingdom is now seen as common place, but for England, it is seen by many who live there as somewhat comic. This all comes back to the ‘West Lothian Question’. Why should Scottish and Welsh MPs be allowed to vote on issues which are already dealt with within their devolved powers for their own national area. In other words, why should they votes on matters which apply only to England? Its no longer any of their business. I suspect its all to do with the distribution of MPs from across the borders. If that’s the case then it looks like vote rigging.

As a starting point why not replicate a bundle of devolved powers for England, the English Assembly could see Parliament at Westminster revert to an English Parliament for such measures. There would have to be some adjustments with regard to the Cabinet for English matters, whilst non-devolved powers (these still vary as between Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) could be dealt with by the Westminster Parliament acting as the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Foreign policy and defence would be the principle among these. For the English regions the Regional Assemblies, (whatever they do) could be scrapped, and the role of Local Government revised to give it more local meaning.

Surely to stake a claim for English Devolution is not eccentric? To have the British Cabinet heavily influenced by non-English MP’s and a second chamber that is neither one thing nor the other, is far dafter. The problem with ‘Englishness’, whatever that is, is that the ‘English’, whoever they are, are too embarrassed to discuss such matters. This of course, is very English.

Dacier