Jun 09
Towards a federal Britain?
Conservative blogger Iain Dale and Labour blogger Paul Linford agree on their reactions to a leaked report on the future of British politics, although rather predictably they put a different spin on who’s to blame. Interestingly just as there’s a growing confluence in favour among many who only have to express opinions on an English Parliament, there seems to be an equally firm all-party resistance amongst those who would have to devise how to make it work.
It’s very easy to feel both the simple logic of equality and the emotional pull of an English Parliament. Gordon Brown’s slogan might be “British jobs for British people” but his party at Westminster looks more like “English votes for Scottish people”. To be honest, I’m one of those who feels the pull of a Federal Britain. I can‘t help but think, however, that the amount of time and work that would be involved in unpicking and reshaping the constitution might be disproportionate to the benefits to be gained. I suspect a program of moderately simple measures like English votes, coupled with a rebalancing of the bias that gives Scotland an undue proportion of public money, might in the end be a better place to start. Creeping federalism may in the end be a more easily achievable answer than a major constitutional settlement. (Slow creep is producing a relatively painless disestablishment, after all.) I’m open to be persuaded otherwise, however.
June 10th, 2008 at 12:11 pm
The first thing they must do in the interim is to regognize England as a nation and has a culture in her own right.. I’m tired of poiticians talking about britain and totally blanking England. Cameron’s plan is a fudge and English Nationalists will not be placated with what the tories have offered. There are many lettrs on this issue at pens dipped in vitriol.
June 10th, 2008 at 1:27 pm
Full federalism would require a written constitution, so it can only creep so far.
June 10th, 2008 at 5:31 pm
I’m really surprised at the recent crowing for the “English national culture” to be restored.
Isn’t it plainly obvious, to anyone, that the culture of “Britain” has always, -always- been about England. That “Britain” was just a brand designed to placate the Welsh and particularly the Scots - the honorary English?
The English culture and identity has never been in danger, after all Great Brtiain is just a result of said identity.