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By Ned Simons - 11th February 2011
Iain Paisley has warned the Conservative Party not to bow to fears of English separatism.
The North Antrim MP said any imposition of "English votes for English laws" out of a fear the English are becoming "bad unionists" would create a two tier House of Commons and risk the break up of the United Kingdom.
"I appeal to my Conservative friends…they should recognise they should not play party politics with constitution of this nation," he said.
"We will have a House of little Englanders," he said. "That does not serve this nation."
"You have a responsibility to lead the people of England into believing passionately in the union as I do.
"You only do that by not encouraging this view that we need another Parliament for the English only."
Paisley was speaking in the Commons as MPs debated a private members Bill tabled by Tory MP Harriet Baldwin
The West Worcestershire MP's Bill was intended as a small step towards solving to so-called "West Lothian question" – the problem of Scottish MPs being allowed to vote on issues that only affect England.
She said her Legislation (Territorial Extent) Bill would allow only English MPs to amend bills which only affected England, but all MPs from would be able to vote at second and third reading.
But Paisley said it represented the start of a "slippery slope to disengagement" of the United Kingdom's separate nations.
Conservative Jacob Rees-Mogg that any attack on the union was most likely to come from English nationalists "fed up with the way they are treated" rather than from any Scottish independence movement.
And he warned that any "English votes for English laws" plan was unsatisfactory as it would
He advocated what he called the "best form of British fudge" with Labour MPs, when in government, be "enormously responsible" about what legislation they passed that affected only England.
Article Comments
We will take no lessons from Paisley, thank you very much.
The English have been very loyal to the Union, which has, in return, treated our nation and our citizens like sh*t in return.
I hope the British continue to treat my nation the same way they are doing at the moment and aboslutely REFUSE us an English Parliament, so that every single English man and woman will get more and more angry and eventually rise up against the parasites that feed off us for their own convenience.
A Civil War is well overdue IMHO. But its the only way to clear out scum and bottom feeders that seek to deny England the right to equal democracy. Bring it on. They really are begging for it.
Helen
11th Feb 2011 at 3:06 pm
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