Nicola Sturgeon, the leader of the SNP, has successfully prevented MPs elected in England from debating and voting on a piece of legislation that only applies to England and is devolved in Scotland.
The SNP announced before the election that they would lift their self-imposed ban on voting on legislation that only applies to England and today the managed to stop the debate on amending the ban on hunting with dogs in England by threatening to join forces with Labour and Tory rebels to vote it down.
Fox hunting is a devolved matter and the Scottish government introduced a ban on hunting with dogs before the British government introduced it in England. The Scots elected Members of the Scottish Parliament to legislate on hunting, their British MPs have no mandate to legislate on hunting in England and more than we in England can give our British MPs a mandate to legislate on schools or hospitals in Scotland.
Sturgeon said they made the decision to interfere in the English hunting ban legislation “in solidarity” with English people who were opposed to fox hunting. It wasn’t in solidarity at all – Sturgeon doesn’t give two shits about the English – it was a political statement to show Cameron that the SNP are prepared to do anything, no matter how dishonourable or undemocratic, to undermine the Conservative government.
Cameron says that they’re now going to wait until they pass their English Votes on English Laws measures – something they kicked into the long grass after the last election and again this month – before they bring it before parliament again. Except English Votes on English Laws isn’t really English votes on English laws, it’s English pauses for English clauses and any amended hunting legislation will still need to be voted on by all British MPs, including SNP MPs.
Do we really need an English Parliament if the most important issue for English nationalists is ending the ban on foxhunting? Other countries would laugh at our priorities!
The ban on fox hunting isn’t an important issue for me, the principal behind the SNP’s interference in the vote is. The hunting ban is an emotive issue hough and you have to remember that 400,000 people marched on London to protest against it back in the day – that’s many times more than the unions and far left can muster for their anti-government rallies. But regardless of the importance or contentiousness of the matter being debated and voted on, only MPs that have a mandate should be involved.
The substantive issue is not fox hunting but the ability of unaccountable British MPs representing Scotch constituencies to pervert democracy in England.
That notwithstanding, what other countries laugh at about us is of no consequence to us.
I agree that it’s inappropriate for Scottish MPs particularly those of the SNP to interfere in English affairs. They seem to believe in a very one-way independence
Many of those marchers were effectively dragooned into marching by their rural employers, who never hesitate to remind their employees where their best interests lie.
The whole debate is misleading, all this will give is an alleged English veto over laws that apply to England only, however the “UK Parliament”, will then be allowed to vote, and the “veto” will be over ruled. It’s all re arranging deck chairs.
Lets just all go ahead and start electing our own English parliament, the British bigots can take their lunacy and stick it. As if the country of England has to listen to any rubbish coming from that mongrel British parliament, or those whining wallies in Scotland.