Nicola Sturgeon: SNP MPs will vote on English-only matters

[-:Undertaker:-]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukne...y-matters.html

Nicola Sturgeon: SNP MPs will vote on English-only matters

First Minister says Nationalists will drop self-denying ordinance not to vote on matters that do not affect constituencies because they are devolved to Scottish Parliament as a new poll predicts her party will win 55 seats.

Nicola Sturgeon has been accused of “complete twaddle” and attempting to destroy the Union after announcing SNP MPs will start voting on English-only matters after the general election.

The Scottish First Minister told Nick Robinson, the BBC’s political editor, that the Nationalists will drop their self-denying ordinance not to vote on matters that do not affect their constituencies because they are devolved to the Scottish Parliament.

She justified the move on the grounds that a cut in spending on the English NHS, which she claimed was being privatised by the Tories, would have a “direct impact” on Scottish health spending thanks to the Barnett formula.

Her intervention came as an Ipsos MORI opinion poll for STV put support for the SNP in Scotland at 52 per cent compared to Labour’s 24 per cent.

This would give the Nationalists 55 seats at Westminster, compared to their current total of six, and see Scottish Labour’s total drop from the 41 it won in 2010 to just four. The Tories and Liberal Democrats would lose all their seats north of the Border.

Anna Soubry, a Tory MP said Ms Sturgeon was talking “twaddle” and putting the Union at risk but Labour’s Sadiq Khan insisted the announcement would not increase the clamour for English votes for English laws.

However, it came the day after George Osborne said it would be “unfair” on the English for a future Government to be “beholden” to the votes of Scottish Nationalist MPs.

Ms Sturgeon’s announcement potentially gives SNP MPs more bargaining power in a hung parliament as they would previously have been unable to prop up a minority Labour government on devolved issues such as health and education.

They will also be able to start voting on rates and bands for stamp duty and income tax in England despite both levies becoming devolved to Holyrood over the next few years.

The people to blame are the Labour crackpots who brought devolution in in the first place.

There's a simple constitutional solution though rather than fannying about with a federal English parliament, powers to the regions and all of that un-English twaddle and it's been done before with Ireland and Northern Ireland: when Ireland was granted Home Rule with a House of Commons (and one in the north) the number of MPs in Westminster allocated to Ireland was substantially reduced as it was deemed that Irish MPs, although still a part of the Union, shouldn't have such a substantial say on UK-wide legislation when many lesser powers had been switched to Dublin and Belfast.

Slash the number of Scottish MPs in Westminster. It's simple.

Thoughts?

[Chippiewill]

Misleading title, she's stated that it would directly impact on Scottish health spending. Therefore by voting in 'english only' matters they're benefiting their constituencies - which is their job.

[GommeInc]

This entire scenario is being misinterpreted. Of course the Scottish should vote on matters that arguably only involve the English, as they involve the Union as a whole.

I think Westminster is a bit of a joke at the moment. There is move for reform which seems incredibly important at the moment. But then again, what do you expect from lazy British politicians?