Deliver us from Evil: For thine is the kingdom, Conservatives tread a dangerous road by creating two classes of MPs in the House of Commons, legal challenges may follow, but worst in my opinion is the backdoor carve up that democracy is the right of current Government to manage, democracy belongs to everyone

Dear All

Deliver us from Evel!

Only this type of Evel has stupidity written all over it, do you think that there should be two classes of MP at Westminster?

Regardless of your position or opposition to some of the dross that Scotland has sent to Westminster, do you equality of position in the House is important.

I do!

I do not support Evel in any shape or form because at its heart the measure is discriminatory by design. People in England have been whipped up by politicians who claim that Scotland gets more free things than they so.

This is a false argument because there are two administrations making different spending choices, and that is the key, different spending choices. A Scottish MP like an English MP cannot vote on Scottish health matters, in that respect both are equally disadvantaged, so why should one set of MPs be further punished by removal of voting rights?

Years ago, I sat in a history class at Glasgow University were the tutor told a story that a Scot in England was legally entitled to the same rights as someone from England. So, controversial moves to limit voting rights of Scottish MPs are as far as I am concerned legally wrong and the idea is morally bankrupt.

Do you know the answer to the West Lothian question?

Ignore it!

Yes, that is it in a nutshell, ignore it, David Cameron if he pushes Evel through is actually not solving problems but creating more and giving the SNP an excuse to further play grievance politics in Westminster. A Westminster committee also warns the plans will become embroiled in “legal challenges”, and those challenges will go all the way to the UK Supreme Court.

I would expect a ruling which doesn’t favour Evel, this purely cannot be a matter for the House of Commons procedure committee because the ramifications I feel go beyond a mere technical issue of the House.

Labour MP Ian Murray speaking against Evel said the proposals will weaken our democracy, weaken Scotland’s voice, and that is exactly what it will do, and how it will be seen. It isn’t enough that justice is done, it must be seen to be done, we all know that quote or should do, where’s the justice here?

It doesn’t exist, if a governing party tries to gerrymander the House of Common voting at any stage, it creates a constitutional crisis. The Act of Union of 1707 brought Scottish MPs in Westminster, therefore should there be a referendum on the Act of Union in Scotland to see Scotland will ratify the proposed changes?

This is a contract at it heart, if the contract is broken, then as Lord Denning, the former Master of the Rolls would say, no contract exists.

Former Prime minister Gordon Brown has previously said the change could hasten the break-up of the UK, he agrees with me that this nonsense will create two classes of MP, and will proved oxygen for the SNP to call for another independence vote.

Although the SNP will use any excuse, why provide them with a genuine grievance because the Conservatives felt threatened and in a moment of blind panic came up with a knee jerk because some of their back benchers got the wind put up them by fear of losing their seats.

If the Conservatives bring in Evel, it is entirely possible and highly probable that the Labour Party will remove the legislation when they regain control of Westminster and form a government.

Ping pong politics don’t work, and it is doubtful any opposition party will sign up to this madness, and that it what it is, sheer madness. If we accept lower status MPs are acceptable in a democracy, why stop at just Scottish MPs?

We were told specifically, we are better together, that there is equality and there are pooling and sharing of resources, this was the pitch to Scottish voters in the referendum of 2014.

You may remember when the SNP were clapping in the House of Commons; Speaker John Bercow said something along the lines of:

‘the convention of not clapping in this house is long established and I would appreciate if members would respect the convention, they will get their speaking rights from this chair, that they can be assured.’

Speaking rights are meaningless unless they also include full voting rights, if John Bercow and his officials go along with this by having an introduction of a new parliamentary stage for laws that do not affect other parts of the UK, it will be a measure too far.

Fake Scot Angus Robertson for the Nationalists said:

“The Tories have got themselves into a first-class muddle and are trying to force this through, with too many flaws, too quickly”.

This is from the warmer who claimed Scotland could have a navy the size of the Norwegian version, when asked what that comprised didn’t know how many ships the Norwegians actually had, but he did look at their website.

Einstein I think not, Einstein’s cleaner….. perhaps with references!

Procedure committee chairman Charles Walker warned could prompt legal disputes; you may remember before the break up of the last Parliament he gave a speech on a disgraceful underhanded move by William Hague, ‘I rather be known as an honest fool Mr. Speaker’ said Charles Walker.

Mr Walker said:

“Legal challenges to the decisions of the Speaker and to the procedures of the House, though unlikely to succeed, cannot be ruled out. It is important that legislation be drafted as clearly as possible to meet the tests for certifying England-only legislation.”

This episode in my mind shows the dangers of the tyranny of a majority which doesn’t act in good faith, a key requirement of a democracy.

What next, voting rights removed from committees, where does the thin edge of the wedge actually end?

Although there is some amusement value to this botched measure, it is equally a disaster for England in that now all parliamentarians aren’t allowed to play a full and equal role in the House of Commons.

It seems a high price to pay in a democracy just to stick to a load of knuckle dragging gits from the SNP is it not?

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University