Regular followers of this blog will remember that I posted my reaction to the Coalition's setting up of their "West Lothian Commission" (copy and paste this to your toolbar if the link doesn't work >>> http://robintilbrook.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/english-unrepresented-on-governments.html) and that I commented on it further in a BBC News interview (http://robintilbrook.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/my-news-interview-9312.html).
I can however now reveal that I have been invited to give oral evidence to the Commission - now named after its Chairman.
Here is the correspondence (in the usual email reverse order and made suitably anonymous) beginning from their initial call to the English Democrats:-
Dear Mr D.
Thank you for your email. I confirm that I shall attend on the 23rd April.
Yours sincerely
Robin Tilbrook,
Chairman,
The English Democrats
In a message dated 17/04/2012 11:48:02 GMT Daylight Time, secretariat writes:
Dear Mr Tilbrook
Thank you for your call just now and for confirming that you can make the 11.30 session on 23 April. I will send the confirmatory details to you later this week.
I can also confirm that your submission was received and that it will be passed to the Commissioners later today.
Yours sincerely
O. D.
The McKay commission Secretariat
17 March 2012
---- OriginalMessage ----
From: secretariat
To: RobinTilbrook
Sent: Mon, Apr 16, 2012, 05:56 PM
Subject: Re: Re: FOR REPLY PLEASE: Commission on the consequences of devolution for the Ho...
Dear Mr Tilbrook
Thank you for your response. Your submission will be passed on to the Commissioners today.
As stated in my telephone message just now, I can confirm that do indeed have a slot available at next week's evidence session. It will be from 11.30 or so onwards on Monday 23 April, will last for up to 45 minutes and will take place very close to Parliament itself. If you could please confirm your ability to attend this session I will send you a map later this week.
Yours sincerely
O. D.
The McKay Commission Secretariat
16 March 2012
---- OriginalMessage ----
From: RobinTilbrook
To: secretariat
Sent: Fri, Apr 13, 2012, 12:21 PM
Subject: Re: FOR REPLY PLEASE: Commission on the consequences of devolution for the Ho...
Dear Mr D.
Thank you for your email and telephone call. Yes I would be pleased to give oral evidence.
It is our view that the question that the Commission has been set up to examine is properly the “English Question”. Even in its original formulation the “West Lothian Question” is clearly about what the impact of devolution would be on England.
The English Democrats’ view is that the only coherent, fair and democratic resolution to the English Question is an English Parliament, First Minister and Government with at least the same powers as the Scottish ones, within a Federal UK. It is our view that if this is not offered soon the demand within England will move on to Independence; thus failure to address issues properly now will result in the end of the UK.
The suggestion that fairness for England or any useful amelioration of the current unfairness to England and to English National Interests can be achieved by merely tinkering with the internal procedures of the House of Commons is risible and does not even begin to address English nationalist aspersions. If Scotland deserved its own Parliament because, in Tony Blair’s words, “it is a proud and historic Nation”, then so does England.
Turning to the Coalition Government’s proposal to tinker with House of Commons procedure; the English Democrats say, inter alia, as follows:-
1. Their proposal only addresses the limited question of representation within the legislative process of the House of Commons and it fails totally to address the Executive side of the democratic deficit of the English question.
2.It will be almost impossible to sensibly differentiate ‘England only Bills’ for as long as the Barnet Formula means that any spending issues in an ‘England Bill’ means an impact on the budgets of the other Nations of the UK.
3. Whatever Body (e.g. the Speakership) is charged with determining an English Bill that Body will be politicised as that determination may be crucial to the government being able to legislate if there is no majority for its Bill amongst MPs representing English seats.
Yours faithfully
Robin Tilbrook,
Chairman,
The English Democrats
Dear Mr Tilbrook
I am writing further to our telephone call today. As mentioned, the Commission on the consequences of devolution for the House of Commons invites you to give written and oral evidence to the Commission, setting out your view on the issue.
The establishment of this Commission was announced through a Written Ministerial Statement in Parliament on 17 January 2012 (see the Commission’s website - http://tmc.independent.gov.uk/key-documents/written-ministerial-statement-17-january-2012/). A news release sent out following the first meeting of the Commission on 29 February (see http://tmc.independent.gov.uk/news/first-meeting-mckay-commission/) invited comments and submissions from those with an interest in the consequences of devolution for the House of Commons.
The Commission will meet in London on 23-24 April 2012, when evidence will be taken in a public session from relevant experts and interested groups.....
If you wish to accept the invitation to give oral evidence, it would be most helpful if you could let me know as soon as possible, please; and also if you would provide a written submission setting out your views. I would be grateful if the written submission could be provided to the Secretariat, if possible, by Tuesday 17 April 2012.
I would also be very grateful if you could let me know tomorrow Thursday 12 April if you intend to give oral evidence to the Commission.
If you have any questions, please contact me
Yours sincerely
O. D.
The McKay Commission Secretariat
11 April 2012
What do you think? Have you got any other points that you think that I should make?
Blimey Robin, looks like they're out to wear you down already with lack of focus on arrangements. How many times do they need telling?... Oh , Plenty -so you 'll just have to grit your teeth and keep repeating the Mantra. 'No taxation without representation'- look where it got America. Good luck with it all. I think the very fact you represent a political party and have, in particular, plans to move on the issue gives you immense stock against the enshrined powers that persist with imbalanced politics.
ReplyDeleteFrom West Lothian to McKay, what next the Och Kay commission.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, the framing is important, I'd ask why the question is posed from a Scottish point of view at all?
Another thing that bothers me is the Scottish seats that also have home MSP representation. I think this applies to arch - trougher and pugilist Eric Joyce. If there is indeed representation for these constituents at the Scottish parliament for the majority of their concerns, what on earth do these Westminster MPS do for their keep.
If they can only speak on legislation that is formed at Wesminster and affects Scotland it must be a small matter as sustantial powers have been devolved, have they not?
Ask if their terms and conditions ought to be diminished to reflect their 'diminished reponsibility'.
Parliament, by its insistence in ignoring the changes over the last two decades wrought by the devolution of government it has itself caused, and denying the rights of those not so included, risks not only the ending of the Union but also the loss of respect for itself and its pronouncements.
ReplyDeleteThis is the Parliament that prides itself on being the founder and guarantor of freedom and democracy but has failed to notice that more and more people are coming to believe of it the opposite.
This has happened because Parliament has insisted on confusing the private agendas of its members with the public agenda of the nation.
The American Declaration of Independence was drafted in the main by Englishmen (The Committee of Five” consisted of four Americans of English descent and one of Scottish) committed to achieving for the colonists that which they considered to be the historic rights of Englishmen (the 1689 English Declaration of Rights and the political philosophy of the Englishman John Locke). It included the following statement:
“— That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness”
Times may have changed but the human heart has not.
These words still have the power to impel political activity to make political change. If Parliament does not accede to the right of the people of England to have their own devolved parliament and government it is likely that these words will impel a change in Parliament to make it more suited to those reasonable aspirations to live in and be governed by a free and democratic State.
In its pride and arrogance parliament is rushing, lemming-like, down a slippery slope adding risk upon risk to a future already encumbered with enough risks. It must, for the sake of God and the nation, halt its current course and go back to the respect for the basic democratic right of a people to self-determination. A right they currently profess to, but only allow, if it enhances the private agendas of its members.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Declaration_of_Independence}
The demos in that democracy have to be overwhelmingly English too.
DeleteI've always been proud of the way that the United Kingdom bound together different classes of people throughout the modern period, culturally, legally, politically, and economically (at least comparing in a very good light with how things where done in continental Europe).
DeleteBut then we reached World War II and since then the establishment political classes have lost their minds and worse than this have developed a kind of "ancien regime" hatred towards their own people.
I have been trying to work out where this psychosis of hating once own race and culture comes from. I think we need a psychologist to help. Is it the reaction of the cowardly bully who achieves power. Are they, as I suspect, mostly psychopaths incapable of having empathy with or feeling towards anybody but themselves? These are probably the people who ran the empire and used everybody, indigenous English or colonials as a means of making money for themselves. Perhaps that does mean they are psychopaths. Still, pleased to see that you used the term "ancien regime" because they were swept away in the French Revolution. People now feel revolution of some sort here is inevitable. The foppish Louis's who sit in the Versailles that is Westminster may soon find their days are numbered. So Anders Breivik wanted to behead prime minister Gro Harlem-Bruntland. Have just read the comments on a DM article on Labour's multicutural revolution and many now want to string Tony Blair and many more up from the lamposts. Also, discovered the indigenous population of Britain is already down to 80%. Does that mean that England is even less. We must be closer to being a minority in our own country than I thought. It will soon be now or never.
DeleteI can answer this for you.
DeleteThe UK is controlled by bankers (all related to the Rothchilds) and their aim is one world government.
Just google 'money as debt' and watch the Youtube video and you see how they obtained power - by creating money from nothing. The borrower generates the money by agreeing to repay the debt plus interest, i.e. money that never existed.
We are now slaves to the debt monsters, and these bankers now control all government policy and the media.
We, the People, the People of England, demand to be heard. Our cry could be ‘No Legislation without Representation’. Can the present arrangements be legitimate? Does the present government have a true and clear mandate to govern England? Does England have dedicated government Institutions? Where also are our cultural institutions? The word ‘National’ in many of them means Britain. Change must come. We cannot compromise, we are disenfranchised. We will be invisible no longer.
ReplyDeleteLegislation is impossible without a source of taxation to fund the machine. We have to face the fact that withholding taxes is a legitimate way to oppose repression. We are not represented fairly so severe action must be taken. They will NEVER give up their protected position now -without a hard fight. We must take it to them. They will otherwise describe the arena that suits them most. What say you, Robin?
ReplyDeleteI think individuals have tried witholding tax for various reasons but it has not done them any good. Remember the little old lady who was jailed for not paying her council tax? It needs hundreds of thousands to do it before it will make any difference. The entire membership of the EDs is numbered in thousands not hundreds thereof. As for the catatonic English, they would not dare do such a thing - what would the neighbours think if it got in the local paper? I was seriously thinking today of not paying any more tax unless all foreign aid to India
Delete( is it not millions a day? ) is stopped. I do not see why I should pay to feed those Indians that their compatriots are quite happy to allow to starve to death. Nor do I want one penny of my money going towards a nuclear missle aimed at China. We know the money never reaches its intended target because it is creamed off by thousands of "Honest? Injuns". How bloody well dare Cameron do this?
OK - most tax is taken at source so the funding can never be usefully stopped. Maybe a legal challenge could be considered to whether this EU-banism of the system by creeping piecemeal dis-enfranchisememt is actually legal?
ReplyDeletePS: This could not include taking it to the EU courts, so job one is removal of their legal clamp on the UK- and thus a vote on EU membership. It's all in their 'Master Plan' when viewed like this- but must be rolled back.
We hear much from all parties in government that the government itself should reflect those it governs.
ReplyDeleteThe three major parties are quick to show how they address this with the gender and ethnicity counts amongst their candidates.
This must be a good thing but surely to then promote individuals who clearly do not reflect the society (Scots and Welsh MPs) they represent when making their decisions (passing English Laws) clearly goes totally against this 'inclusion agenda'.
Apologies for the anonymous tag.
Kevin Roddis
Yes, Kevin- 'Flavour of the month' must never be allowed to include much actual democracy. Only what the captive press have served up to distract and worry the punters that day on minority bandwagons.
Delete'Rights' and 'claims' have taken over any discussion of where all this mess is leading the country -as a whole. Piecemeal politics!
You can't blame slippery Dave and the two muppets really ( I think those two have just one brain cell between them, Mr Marxist and Mr Goody Goody )as they are just walking down the same primrose path together as the country sinks into the North Sea. They just pluck our the occasional weed while the English garden turns into a jungle. The bigger picture is decided in Brussels, Berlin or New York with the ultimate plan being to turn white countries into a borderless rainbow, another wonderland like South Africa, needs must a totalitarian superstate. They say the devil always overreaches himself and as with the communism they tried before it, their denial of human nature will be their undoing as evidenced in Norway and France today where Marine Le Pen is now in a position to do a half nelson on Sarkozy the poison dwarf and screw him into giving everything she wants before she tells her supporters to back him. If it came to a bare knuckle fight in the ring I know who my money would be on. Marine would trounce him. And how does Sarkozy end up with such a beautiful wife?
DeleteI find the whole question of the Scots staying in the Union vexing, I firmly believe that United we Stand, and lets face it in the good times people have very short memories however, perhps the vote should be do the English want the Scots in the Union...the reasons for letting them out to our advantage are endless.
ReplyDelete