Frank Field, the SNP and the BNP....

What a tangled web we weave, Mr Field's article in the Telegraph surmises that the SNP will play the English question to their own ends up north and the BNP will pick it up (rather than the Tories) down south.

Personally I'm not keen for the question of proper representative Englsih democracy to be argued for by the BNP - it really is time for the Tories to do this as Labour won't and the Lib Dems may not have any clout anyway.

The article is here:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2008/06/01/do0104.xml

Stephen.

English Parliament? 404 error....

Very amusing, Google search on English Parliament and one of the links you'll find is:

http://www.english-parliament.co.uk/

Click on it, looks like a 404 error page but worth a careful read.

Thanks to whoever put this page up, a very dry wit indeed.

Stephen

CEP - Surrey County Show

Despite the forecast for typical Bank Holiday weather, the CEP stand will be out at the Surrey County Show on Monday 26th May in Guildford.

Show details are here:

http://www.surreycountyshow.co.uk/

The reaction of people to the CEP presence at the show has changed markedly over the last few years, many more people now actively seek us out to tell us they are fed up with the way England is disadvantaged within the UK.

Hopefully see you there.

Stephen

Salmond's strategy unveiled

In view of the increasingly likely prospect of a Conservative government in 2010, the SNP look to play-off Scotland against Tory policies as leverage to their Independence referendum.

There is more here in the Sunday Herald:

http://www.sundayherald.com/news/heraldnews/display.var.2295788.0.salmond_promises_to_fight_a_future_tory_government.php

As for us English, none of the major parties give England's unequal position in the union much importance. Bet this will change though, when a future Tory government has to face up to the SNP?

Stephen.

Ho hum, another wrong answer to the English question?

Is proposed by Phillip Johnson in the Daily Telegraph. When you read it though, it is just another parliamentary procedural muddle that would still allow Scotland's MPs at Wesminster to vote on issues affecting England only. Remember top-up fees that discriminate against English students anyone?

Rather than addressing the issue - democratic equality for England - Philip addresses a secondary issue, the union, well that is the wrong way round in my view.

You can read more here:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2008/04/21/do2104.xml

There is a lively comments section to which I've added my tuppenny worth demanding an English parliament - good enough for Kosovo but not good enough for England?

Preserving an English identity

As St Georges day approaches, it is good to see the importance of preserving our unique identity in a globalised world being discussed - at least in some of the less PC media.

Paul Kingsnorth makes the case for the link between our local landscapes and our idenity in this article in The Daily Telegraph here:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml?xml=/portal/2008/04/19/ftengland19.xml

Though I fear his list of reasons why our identity is being lost does not mention the main culprits - the EU and our political classes who do their bidding in imposing the Europe of the Regions - but a step in the right direction anyway.

Gordon Brown promotes English Regions (again)

Apparently Gordon Brown is planning a campaign to save the union - he must like flogging dead horses, naturally this is bad news for England:

From The Sunday TimesMarch 30, 2008

Gordon Brown to launch Save the Union campaign

Britain's prime minister is preparing to marshall the great and good to fight the threat of Scottish independence

Jason Allardyce and Jonathan Oliver

GORDON Brown is to launch an unprecedented “Save the Union” campaign because he fears the march of Scottish nationalism is becoming unstoppable.

The prime minister told a strategy meeting of ministers at Downing Street that the United Kingdom could only be held together if pro-Union business leaders, academics and civic bodies acted now.

He also proposes to create a network of London-style mayors in English regions to appease mounting resentment against devolution south of the border.

So Gordon thinks that what we really, really need in England, to counter "mounting resentment" about devolution is more Mayors in the "English regions"?

No thanks Gordon, what we really, really need is democratic parity with Scotland and Wales - that means an English parliament where England's MPs can make English laws without influence from Scottish and Welsh MPs who are not elected by English voters. This is called democratic accountability - and we don't have it here in England.

Mayors in the regions do not address England's "mounting resentment" - and can't while England is ruled according to unelected MP's whims and the Barnett formula's inequitable distribution of England's taxes.

The article is here:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article3647158.ece

There is a comments page that makes interesting reading - you know what to do.

Stephen.