Sir: The dangers (and, one may add, ineffi- ciency) of
absolute rule by the executive, to which you draw attenlion, are only too evident (21 June). And it has become clear that it is not only the liberty of the citizen that is thus placed in jeopardy, but also the unity of the kingdom. For with representatives elected to the legisla- tive body on a population basis it is inevitable that the less populous parts of the country, namely Wales and Scotland, should be out- numbered by those of England, and the absence of check op the executive naturally means that Fnglish interests dominate. We are all now familiar with the resulting discontent.,..
Whether the remedy is the simple device of a written constitution, as you seem to suggest, is doubtful. Unbridled power is checked not by documents, but by effective institutions. This, of course, does not mean the impotent second chamber the present all-party committee has in mind, and which you rightly dismiss as 'useful paid hacks.' It suggests rather a senate which will act as a watchdog over the rights of all the component peoples of this country, and so both protect the citizen and remove the need for the Scottish and Welsh nationalist mosements. The present situation, with the executive discredited and the Lords powerless, presents an historic opportunity to move in this direction. If, on the other hand, matters continue as they are, the people will seek other means of protection; the distrust of politicians is a straw in the wind. In particular, as we have been made aware, there seems every likelihood that before too long Scotland will dissolve the union, to the rest of the kingdom's loss as much as to hers.
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