Heavens, can't politicians waffle? Here's Nick Clegg during a BBC question and answer session:Q: Do you support the establishment of an English Parliament, or at least sessions of the English Parliament to sit at Westminster without MPs from the other British nations. If not - please explain what you mean by federalism. Doug , Edinburgh
A: There is a real anomaly in the way Scottish MPs vote on English matters - but it is only one of countless anomalies in our electoral system, and they all need to be addressed together as part of a new constitutional settlement. Focusing on the West Lothian issue alone just plays into the hands of people who want to break up the United Kingdom.
The real English Question is in a sense the same as the Scottish Question or the Welsh Question - it’s about breaking down an overbearing, over-controlling central state and returning power to local communities and to individuals. I don’t think that English people primarily see this as a question of exact symmetry - the question is one of democratic control. The answer isn’t to try and divide MPs into sheep and goats and risk creating problems whereby one party is in government, but doesn’t have a majority for English affairs. We need to move beyond this sterile debate and look to devolve power within England, and continue the push for a whole new constitutional settlement. Remember - every decision not taken in Whitehall is a decision where the West Lothian Question doesn’t apply.
Mr Clegg basically wants England broken up into regions and abolished. He is not interested in noting the results of recent polls, including one on the BBC itself, which indicate that around 61 to 67 per cent of the English want a national parliament. He is happy to put words into the mouths of the English electorate and ride roughshod over them.
That's a slightly rough but absolutely accurate translation of Mr Clegg's reams of waffle.
Nick Clegg is more twisted than a Rubik's Cube.
ReplyDeleteWe repeat it until we're blue in the face - all decisions on internal government in England must be taken by a national English parliament, not a non-representative UK parliament. To say that England alone is not allowed national representation in the UK is simply undemocratic.
The likes of Nick Clegg don't want to give democracy to England because they're comfortably on the gravy train in the first class compartment, quaffing back whatever they can lay their hands on.