DIY - not just about putting up shelves

Michael Knowles, chairman of the English Constitutional Convention, gave a speech at the convention launch. The content of that speech is available to read here. His point about the relative silence of MPs on the issue of political representation of the English is a good one:

Why should people as unknown as us, village hampdens, have to take it [the issue of an English parliament] on? There are 550 English MPs in the UK Parliament all of whom must be aware of the injustice and disadvantages to England I have listed. What are they MPs for English constituencies for unless to stand up for the welfare and the rights of the English people? They must know that Scotland has acquired unique advantages from Devolution 1998 denied to Wales and to England. Yet they do nothing. This island is a political union of three nations, and the basis of the union must be political and constitutional equality. Yet these 550 MPs are strangely silent.

It bugs me too, as I said earlier:

But, and this is the dirt of the matter, why do we not hear English MPs pressing the issue? Why do we not even hear them talking about an English parliament? They sit in English seats, put there by English voters and they are fully aware that, for instance, Scottish MPs are voting on English only issues whereas they themselves cannot vote on Scottish only issues.

Why are they not spitting teeth?

My guess is that they are either hoping to avoid mainstreaming the issue by pretending that it does not exist or, instead, don't give a flying hoot. Either way chaps, one day there are going to be a number of new, shiny seats available to sit on in a new parliament building somewhere in the middle of England. If you want to displace a peasant by sitting in one yourselves you'd better start talking fast.

Posted by John at October 22, 2004 09:06 AM | TrackBack