Scots in Parliament
From David Shiels Sir: Boris Johnson (Diary, 9 April) and Charles Moore (The Spectator’s Notes, 2 April) are correct to continue to draw attention to the problems created by the government’s reckless disregard for the implications of its constitutional reforms. There would indeed be much understandable resentment in England if, after the election, a government reliant on Scottish backbenchers were to decide policy on English matters. But the alternative — to insist that only English MPs could vote on English matters — would create resentment in the rest of the United Kingdom, as we in the ‘Celtic fringe’ would not welcome the English hijacking our national Parliament in order to avoid the necessity of setting up their own. It would also be inconsistent: the ‘internal’ matters of Northern Ireland have for many years been decided by English, Scottish and Welsh MPs (voting on Orders in Council, no less).
Johnson’s strategy might be acceptable, however, if it was decided that Ulster MPs alone would vote on matters relating to Northern Ireland. This might indeed be the answer to many of Northern Ireland’s problems. The democratic deficit would be ended without having to enter into a devolution settlement with all the further concessions to Sinn Fein that it would entail. It might even ensure that the government could not whimsically abolish our grammar schools or impose unpopular water taxes.
David Shiels
Omagh, Northern Ireland
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