tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post7273961104698954024..comments2024-03-17T00:10:44.022+00:00Comments on From Arse To Elbow: A More Perfect UnionDavid Timoneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03568348438980023320noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-73541825914363182282014-09-24T14:27:53.272+01:002014-09-24T14:27:53.272+01:00Guthrie,
I was referring to the use of the word ...Guthrie, <br /><br />I was referring to the use of the word "fairness" by Tory MPs in the context of "English votes for English laws", not in its more general use, which I have no issue with. My point is that they are unable to explain what this supposed lack of fairness is, which reduces them to petulance and vapid sloganising. <br /><br />This inability reflects two problems. First, English MPs are the dominant bloc at Westminster, so categorising MPs by the four nations makes them look like a playground bully moaning that everyone else isn't donating him enough sweets. <br /><br />Second, their objective is clearly selfish and short-term (hence the charge of narcissism), being focused on party advantage rather than principle. If they really cared about "fairness", they would extend their concern to both Greater London and the City. I've not heard any of them suggesting that Mark Field be disqualified from voting on issues devolved to the City of London, nor that the future Member for Uxbridge be disqualified from voting on transport policy outside the capital.David Timoneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03568348438980023320noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-77199173255162845912014-09-24T12:38:19.143+01:002014-09-24T12:38:19.143+01:00Actually, from my own experience, I would say that...Actually, from my own experience, I would say that the de-industrialisation exports our more ambitious and money chasing folk, leaving the more home based, less money oriented people to vote yes. Of course increased levels of immigration from England also help tilt the balance, because they are hardly going to vote yes either. <br /><br /><br />Anonymous at 21:00 - the Tory bastards could rename themselves the freedome and ponies for all party, but their actions would show them up pretty clearly. <br /><br />As for the language of fairness being that of a petulant narcissist, I think you're being stupid there - the language of fairness appeals to a great many people, even including myself. So calling much of the electorate petulant narcissists hardly does a good job of winning them over to your side. <br /><br />guthrienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-65616301581997261042014-09-24T11:18:38.039+01:002014-09-24T11:18:38.039+01:00You've probably answered your own question, bu...You've probably answered your own question, but an alternative might be the United Konfederacy, which would simplify the transition and be popular wi da yoof.David Timoneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03568348438980023320noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-15916158050709205002014-09-24T08:34:33.033+01:002014-09-24T08:34:33.033+01:00Sorry to be pedantic, but if we abolished the mona...Sorry to be pedantic, but if we abolished the monarchy we wouldn't be the "UK" any more. What official name would you suggest for a republic of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?George Cartyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12170378024031141482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-70658325507261380302014-09-23T21:00:29.863+01:002014-09-23T21:00:29.863+01:00Many thanks for taking the time to provide this fu...Many thanks for taking the time to provide this further information.<br /><br />I take your point about how little meaning there is left in the term "social democratic". A Tory fight back in Scotland could start if they renamed themselves the Conservative Social Democratic and Unionist Party.<br /><br />There is plenty of food for thought in your list, I recognize some of the suggestions from earlier posts in the blog. <br /><br />What has surprised me about the referendum is it looks like the UK establishment can shrug it off by giving some more powers to Holyrood and doing something about English votes. Obviously they got a No vote, but it must have been a much more difficult exercise than they had initially thought. For me the difference between this referendum and a general election is the challenge to the whole system that this referendum provided. A general election only offers a chance to replace one ruling party with another that doesn’t do much different. <br /><br />Perhaps there will be slow burn effects. It seems giving the vote to 16 and 17 year olds may now become mainstream. <br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-2592620225416904812014-09-23T17:15:07.648+01:002014-09-23T17:15:07.648+01:00I'm conscious that my final paragraph in the c...I'm conscious that my final paragraph in the comment above might appear a bit thin as a programme of constitutional reform, so here's a shopping list:<br /><br />1) Abolition of the monarchy -- Specifically the abolition of royal prerogative, which allows the executive to bypass Parliament in key areas, and orders in council.<br /><br />2) Abolition of the City of London Corporation -- Incorporation of all local government functions into the Greater London Authority. Sequestration of all assets and cash by the UK Exchequer.<br /><br />3) Reform of British Overseas Territories -- They either harmonise their tax regime with that of the UK, or they become independent. In other words, they stop being tax havens.<br /><br />4) Full incorporation of Crown Dependencies (Channels Islands, Isle of Man) into the UK -- In other words, they stop being tax havens. They can stay as separate local authorities if they wish.<br /><br />5) Abolition of the House of Lords -- I don't believe we need a second chamber, even in the case of regional devolution.<br /><br />6) Reinstatement of the metropolitan county councils and GLC (i.e. upgrade the GLA).<br /><br />7) Abolition of "local enterprise partnerships" and other non-democratic regional quangos, and devolution of economic powers to local authorities.<br /><br />8) Creation of a national investment bank with a remit to direct capital to productive investments across the UK -- This isn't really a constitutional reform, however I think we should treat it as such in order to make the point that the bank will have a decades-long brief to redress the imbalance of capital formation across the country. The bank should be overseen by Parliament, not the executive (i.e. ministers).David Timoneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03568348438980023320noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5312853715123370916.post-42872637449978231142014-09-23T15:04:32.317+01:002014-09-23T15:04:32.317+01:00The number of MPs is only an approximation of the ...The number of MPs is only an approximation of the political views of the population. In 2010, Labour secured 42% of the vote in the UK general election. In 2011, it got 32% of the vote in the elections to the Scottish Assembly. The SNP got 20% and 45% respectively. If you believe their joint claims, this implies a social democratic vote of between 62% and 77%.<br /><br />However, neither party is actually social democratic in the traditional sense of being committed to relatively high tax and spend, collective bargaining and selective nationalisation. Both parties have been infected by neoliberalism, hence their support for welfare "reforms", privatisation and low corporation tax. The term "social democratic" has come to mean little beyond "not Tory".<br /><br />The delusion of many commentators is that the Scottish people are more to the left of the English and (consequently) national Labour policy, which led many to assume the referendum would produce a yes victory (because that is the "progressive" cause). In fact, much of the SNP support comes from people who would otherwise vote Tory (and did in the past), while there is undoubtedly a strong strand of Scottish Labour that is comfortable with neoliberalism (Brown, Darling, Alxeander, Murphy etc).<br /><br />While the pseudo-left can command a majority in Scotland in both Westminster and Holyrood elections, this evaporates on the issue of independence, where personal financial concerns (pensions, shares etc) become more salient than anodynes about "saving the NHS", which is why Alex Salmond was initially reluctant to hold the referendum.<br /><br />Devolution is being proferred as the solution to the UK's economic and social imbalance, but that very imbalance means it cannot work. The problem is the dominance of London, and more particulary the current "independence" of the City. Unless that is addressed, and in particular we engineer a massive shift of capital investment to the regions, devolution can only turn into a national dole for depressed areas that actually serves to entrench the power of London.David Timoneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03568348438980023320noreply@blogger.com