Panorama - shhh, don't mention the English...

Many who watched the Panorama programme, True Brits, this week, may have been struck by the disparity of the treatment of Scotland and England. In Edinburgh the presenter proclaimed that Scotland had once been an independent country with its own parliament - yet no mention was made of the fact that England had once been an independent country, with its own parliament. Although Scottish devolution was discussed as a possible, though unintended, driver for the dissolution of the UK no mention was made that the current unequal devolution settlement will only further the alienation of England's people - who are always second best within the UK while subject to the whim of a UK parliament full of MPs not elected in England. It is about time the BBC actually addressed the democratic deficit in England - they didn't hesitate to talk up Kosovan independence recently, why not democracy for England too?

A long time coming....

But now the mainstream media are predicting both the end of the union and of the Labour party.

In both cases this is being blamed on the flawed devolution that was forced through by NuLabour in Scotland and Wales. At the time, Nu Labour claimed that devolution would kill nationalism and separitism stone-dead in Scotland. The Tories, who argued that unequal devolution would fuel Scottish separitism and revive English nationalism, were dismissed as right wing nutters by the BBC and Guardian front. As for the other media, I recall Minette Marin writing an article in The Times about how benign a constitutional reform devolution had been, I emailed her at he time saying that, far from being benign, Scottish devolution would revive the SNP as the opposition to Labour in Scotland - and it did, now the SNP are in power.

The whole sorry devolution mess left England ruled by a Labour party with Scottish interests at heart and England's role being the cashpoint for the whole UK, but without any democratic body solely representing England's people.

In the Sunday Times, Simon Jenkins reads the Glasgow East election result as the end of the union:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/simon_jenkins/article4407171.ece

And in the Daily Telegraph, Iain Martin sees the end of the union and the Labour party in a double whammy from the SNP, in Scotland, and the revitalised Tories in England.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2008/07/30/do3001.xml

At some point the Tories will have to grasp that they will never be able to rule in Scotland again, as the SNP are the party of choice for voters abandoning Labour in Scotland. In the event of a Tory UK government in 2010 (or before 2010?) The SNP will then play the foreign-rule from England card on every issue. When the Tories do get it, perhaps we'll finally see some recognition that England needs it's own parliament and that then, and only then, will some post-devolution UK federal settlement be possible.

In the meantime I can't see how Labour can get out of the mess of their own making - unequal devolution will be on Labour's headstone.

Labour's fortunes depend on the union.

That's the argument in The Guardian today. Not surprisngly, The Guardian's writer is more concerned about the fate of 39 Labour MPs who are sent to Westminster by Scottish voters than the need for some proper democracy in England - though the position of England as Europe's only country without it's own parliament these days is recognised.

Tristram Hunt's CIF article is here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/jul/23/glasgoweast.labour

Being CIF you can add your own comment to the debate.

PS, sorry for not posting for so long - been busy at this making a living thing.

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.