An "English Grand Committee"

The Tories have been backed into a political corner over the 'English vote on English matters' debate, and it is not a pretty place they find themselves.

Personally, I'm all for it on every level as it is 'unfinished business', as so much that Tony Blair started, he never had the intelligence, political insight or drive to actually finish. A man driven by the next day's headlines, he proposed and tried to implement so many half-arsed ideas that sounded good and got middle-England cheering, but which were never able to be completed, or were abandoned before starting. Remember 'Marching offenders to cash-machines', anyone?

Anyway, Sir Malkie has done a fine job of pandering to the Daily Mail readers (and I mean that in as disparaging a manner as is humanly possible) whilst dressing it up as some kind of answer to the West Lothian question.

In practice, as any fule kno, it is the inevitable consequence of devolution and the inevitable next step before the UK dissolves.

IIRC, Brian Wilson campaigned against devolution citing this as the probable outcome. Which persuaded the rest of us to campaign even harder.

I love the prospect of having different classes of MPs, with presumably some debates and votes open to English and Welsh MPs whilst others will be for the English only, and presumably some for the Scots or the Welsh alone. As most members have little idea what to do unless instructed by the Whips, I forecast.

No-one seems to know where the Northern Ireland MPs fit in all of this. Probably everyone is trying to ignore them as usual, but no doubt there will be the usual 'special arrangements' involving Sinn Fein and the DUP screwing an enormous number of concessions, or they will threaten to return to the Chamber.