Many of the powers presently exercised by the UK government, such as defence and foreign affairs, would become reserved matters. Those areas of government which are not specifically reserved, would be devolved matters. The main reserved matters are those that relate to:
- the UK constitution;
- foreign policy;
- defence;
- employment legislation;
- social security policy and administration;
- transport safety and regulation.
The devolved powers would be greater than is commonly supposed, and include responsibility for important areas of everyday life such as:
- the National Health Service in England;
- schools and teacher training;
- further and higher education;
- local government finance and taxation;
- land-use planning and building control;
- the environment;
- passenger and road transport;
- economic development and financial assistance to industry;
- civil and criminal courts;
- much of criminal and civil law;
- prisons;
- police and fire services;
- food standards;
- certain areas of agriculture and fisheries;
- the arts;
- sport.
Members of the English Executive would be able to formulate policies that suit the demands and interests of the people of England. They would be able to give priority to local needs within natural political and cultural boundaries. In addition, the Executive would be able to represent the interests of England to the UK government and the European Union.
37 Responses to “What powers would be devolved to an English Parliament?”
Leave a Reply
If you haven't posted a comment here before or you put lots of links or words that Wordpress thinks might be a bit dodgy then your comment will be held for moderation. If you don't see your comment straight away, don't post it again - it'll be approved when someone gets a spare few minutes to review it!
As a Scot I agree with most of what you say, apart from the money of course. I hope when we looking at new constitutional arrangements, we look closely at the role and constitution of the UK parliament.
We could abolish the House of Lords completely with the Federal parliament acting as a second chamber, and there’s no reason why any one of the four ” kingdoms” should accept the monarch as head of state.
I hope you get this argument heard more. It seems to me that such a re-negotiation of the relationships among the ‘nation states’ of Britain could address the problems of the modern global economy rather than the current arrangement, successful though it may have been in trading and exploitation economies of the times which gave birth to the Union.
June 29th, 2008 at 11:04 pmAlthough the CEP proposes a separate English Parliament as distinct from the English Parliament in Westminster – which has been used as the unified British Parliament since the political entity of “Britain” first arrived on the scene in 1707 – the end of the union in 1998 has signalled devolution of co-operation too. This means in effect, that all powers should in all fairness, be devolved back to their origins, without prejudice. I see no problem with this, on condition that it genuinely is devolved fairly and without prejudice!
The English can then reclaim their own Parliament which is, and always has been, in Westminster. It may be that the British Parliament needs to be reconstituted somewhere else (how about in Stormont Northern Ireland!?) if indeed Britain is to survive at all as this political entity!? Quite frankly, I think that the union died the day that David Trimble agreed to power sharing with a foreign backed, foreign armed militia. Extraordinary!
I suppose then, that without Britain, Scotland being a very tiny economy, would be revealed as a kind of an “Iceland”, where industry would be driven by a few small companies and backed by and supproted by an international banking scam which favours its own banks rather than the foolish investors who are likely to lose everything at some inopportune moment. This is because Scottish investments can and will go down at some point, creating opportunity for great loss of investors’ money and great gains for the banks, who are very good at sitting on losses until they rise in value once again, and can therefore be creamed in secret! The £20bn that Gordon Brown has ripped out of the English economy to prop-up Scottish owned banks, is an example of this….except it doesn’t end there. The £20bn+ more will be regained once the economy recovers and that’s after the initial £20bn has been repaid – if it ever is repaid! Who will ever know as this stand?
My point is that without English industry, a devolved or Independent Scotland should in reality, become dependent upon England for its economic survival. You see I’m keeping tracks on those £40bn English pounds, and it shouldn’t stay just in Scotland, blueman! After all, it is mostly English taxpayers money and not Scottish taxpayers money. Now if there were a genuine British Union would I be noticing where my money is going? In hindsight, don’t you think that devolution was a big mistake?
The above question should be: what further powers are going to be devolved to the Scottish Parliament after Gordon Brown’s little trick? Which Englishman can ever trust him again after that? The answer is this: the Scottish led British and those who really don’t care about their own money! That’s who.
I believe as a result, that all powers should be devolved to Scotland, including defence powers. In order to avoid another Yugoslavia or Soviet Union scenario, then full Independence for Scotland and England is the only solution. Leaving all frontiers just as they are, will secure a peace, a peace that would otherwise be hard to maintain, I’m sure.
Devolution and Independence? What’s good for the goose, must also be good for the gander. An economy less than one tenth the size of the English cannot support itself at the same current level without massive life-style re-structuring, to live on a much smaller income. All that the extra £40bn is going to do for the Scottish economy is to give it a false sense of security for up to 10-15 years, so that it can blame England for its ultimate own short-comings and for its inflated opinion of its own position in the world. That is the reality of Scottish Independence and not Scottish Dependence.
I propose that in exchange for that 10-15 years of false peace, or for what I call the stolen £40bn, England gives Scotland complete Independence. What do you say?
December 29th, 2008 at 2:12 amNormally I would agree that, within a continuing British federation, England should have its own parliament equal in powers to the Scottish Parliament, and, of course, that includes Wales which currently has less powers. This should also apply to Cornwall by restoring its Tannary parliament. What happens to Northern Ireland is a matter between them and the Irish republic, and should not concern us at all, apart from guaranteeing the rights of Ulster protestants by diplomatic means.
Unfortunately, apart from the imbalance of the constitutional reforms back in 1998/99, one of the other reasons I became more English than British at that time was British foreign aggression, both military and diplomatic. For that reason I shudder at the thought of such arrogance continuing under new constitutional arrangements, even if they included an English Parliament. Consequently, I am for complete independence.
I believe that an independent England, true to itself, would never engage in the kind of neo-imperialist actions that currently make the British name mud around the world. Judging from the views of the SNP and Plaed Cymru, the Scots and Welsh, true to themselves, would be the same as us. The British Empire will not, therefore, finally be put to rest until there is total sovereignty for all the British nations.
This would not lead to border posts and trade restrictions. We would undoubtedly have our own Shengen, rather like the Scandinavian model, as has always been the case anyway between Britain and Ireland. Many British institutions such as the BBC would continue. Moreover, citizens and firms from each nation would have the same rights of abode and operation as they do now. What would change is that there would be no more unfair subsidies flowing north and west, less snooping nannyism, and no more foreign aggression.
Those who speak of the ‘dangers’ of the union breaking up ought to be confronted with a simple question – what dangers? The only true answer to such a question is ‘None!’
NB. to Adrian Thurston above:
England has no power give independence to Scotland. Only the British can do that.
January 20th, 2009 at 4:25 pmScotland could become independant if the SNP wins it’s referendum (2010) It would not be up to England to do anything in that case, as the Scots themselves will have voted for this. What is of concern is if the Scots go independant, then they think they are entitled to all the North Sea Oil. However, International Convention dictate that the ‘Border’ out to sea runs in the same way as on land. This being so I seem to remember that 30% or so of ‘Scottish’ oil would in fact be English! I suspect however, that if we are still lumbered with the Scottish Government we have now, then 100% of Oil would be ‘Scottish’. Also as when the Republic Of Ireland was formed it was not held to it’s ‘portion’ of the (then) national debt. Expect the same for Scotland. Gordon Brown would ensure England gets all the debts, and sits in Scotland laughing! We should press for full Independence for England as soon as possible to avert this !
January 26th, 2009 at 5:17 am3rd June 2010
The the last possible date for a general election in the UK, you then have to decide which party that you want to run the UK. Labour might call an election before that but I doubt if it will be much before that.
Once the national UK election results are known then the SNP will ask the Scottish Parliament to allow a referendum on Scottish independence. Personally I would surprised if the Scottish people vote for independence , there is after all a lot of history between our 2 nations, but if they do then there will be a lengthy process to go through. Not only for mineral rights, but fishing, defence, immigration, dual nationalities etc .
If you want an Independent English Parliament then you need to get the finger out and create a political party that people will vote for, that can set about creating a federal UK or if the people of England want it an English state that is not part of the UK … frankly you are running out of time .
By sitting on your hands you are leaving it to the people that live in Scotland , and if the Scots vote for independence then you can cheerfully blame it all on them. You shouldn’t , but you will
24 million people live in the greater Manchester area, 5 million in the whole of Scotland, the UK pays much more to the Manchester area than the entire country of Scotland . ( 2001 national statistics figures )
What Im saying is , if you want an English parliament then get on with it, stop whingeing on about Scotland. There are 49 million folk in England and only 5 million in Scotland.
Soar Alba
February 6th, 2009 at 8:19 pmAs a member of Plaid Cymru, I fully support this campaign.
You do realise, of course, that by inference, you are campaigning for more poweres for Wales.
You canot, for instance call for the following powers to be devolved to England with out making them dvolved to Wales as well;
* civil and criminal courts;
* much of criminal and civil law;
* prisons;
* police and fire services;
And you will no doubt be able to pass laws without having to have them ratified by the Secretry of state for Enlgand, the Hose of Commons (including Scotish, Wlesh and NI MPS) and the house of Lords, as we have to do now. You will I’mpretty sure, be basing your model on the Scotish model, and we look forward to hering your vocal support for the same for us, come the referendum on the matter to be held in the next few years.
February 12th, 2009 at 3:11 pmSion, i speak for no one other than myself. But if Scotland gains independance so be it. If Wales wants independance so be it. But i prefer the GB federation idea, in which all three countries have parliaments with equal powers. Living under a GB parliament for major issues; defence, foreign policy, border controls etc.
February 13th, 2009 at 9:08 amSion Jones. In fact we could call for all the those powers in relation to Wales to be retained by the UK Parliament, just as the supporters of Scottish Devolution called for Scotland to have more powers without any of the same powers being devolved to England and a number of them being withheld from Wales. We could, but we don’t. It is generally accepted by CEP members that it is right and fair for Wales to have the same level of devolution as England. However, it is for you to make the case, not us.
Anyway, if you are a Plaid supporter you presumably want full independence. Are you retreating from that?
February 14th, 2009 at 6:21 pmEngland Already got a Parliament {Westminster English Parliament}
March 7th, 2009 at 6:20 amThe North East of Ireland, Scotland, Wales Dont want nothing to do with it.
People here is the North East of Ireland are already tryin 2 get the Soverignty of the Island which is Rightfully ment to be Indepedent of The English Crown
Ya Can Have ya Crown we Dont Want here its a Outdated Institution
the Same as Westminster
“England Already got a Parliament {Westminster English Parliament}”
March 8th, 2009 at 7:40 amNot actually correct RJ. The parliament in London is the UK parliament.
As for North East Ireland getting it’s own sovereignty. Well if you want it, you can have mate. Just MY opinion you understand.
Daggs is right on both counts RJ. Hardly anyone on this side of the Irish sea wants to deny you the sovereignty you crave but can’t spell. I don’t think Wales or Scotland have mandated the Irish to speak for them though.
March 8th, 2009 at 11:59 amEngland expects,
we have Glastonbury, Stone Henge, Baker Street, London Bridge, The Tower of London, Big Ben, House of Lords, Oxford Street, Regents Street, Jack The Ripper, Winston Churchill, Jade Goody, The Thames Barrier, Charles Dickens, The double Decker Bus, WH Smiths, Boots, Dancing on ice, Avon, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Why Havent we got an ENGLISH Parliament
Dexter Reed
ANGLO SAXON
March 24th, 2009 at 12:01 amBecause the Scottish dominated New Labour party have no wish to vote themselves out of a job. And the Conservative and Unionist party are unable to break with the past, and recognise the UK they wish to preserve, doesn’t actually exist any more.
March 24th, 2009 at 8:24 amHi. Daggs and James Matthews, it’s nice to hear that you are both sticking up for the ENGLISH, I read the comment from “RJ” and I am pleased with your response’s. I am not anti Irish, Scottish or Welsh in any way, I have many friends inc. all of the the above mentioned, but I have an Irish friend who would like there to be a united Ireland, good for him, but it does’nt stop him living in ENGLAND and claiming his pension/benefits from the UK/British Govenment, how do you deal with that, I know that the Brits or ENGLISH may have been bad boys in the past, but should we not now move on, and have our own Parliament, do the ENGLISH owe anything to anybody, no they dont.
ALFRED THE GREAT was the KING who introduced modern democrecy in Europe, (read the history), let’s make ENGLAND, again, the greatest country in the wourld
Dexter
March 31st, 2009 at 12:47 amWhy do I want an Enlglish Parliament? Well firstly as an Englishman I am sick of being a second class citizen within the UK which is what devolution for the other nations/ principalities has made me. I demand equality with the other peoples of these islands.
What powers should be devolved? All powers except those relating to defence since this is a supranational matter. Since a national Parliament for England would mean the eviction of MP’s from Scotland etc from Westminster to form a National Parliament Scotland could be given voting rights on defence matters equal to the balance of their population compared to the whole of the popualtion. i.e. if their population is 5% of the total population they would during defence/war matters elect in proportion enough SMP’s to make up 5% of the total of the MP’s. Same for the other nations.
All other matters are negotiable between the newly elected English Parliament and the other National Parliaments. After all that is what we pay MP’s to do.
This is not complicated only vested interests prevent it.
April 7th, 2009 at 6:14 pmRJ, are you an Irish Nationalist/Republican or a supporter of an independent NI? Please could you stop confusing a UK Westminster Government with an English Parliament. I am English and do not class myself as British. As you are aware Northern Ireland (or the North East of Ireland as you call it) has a power sharing government. I am not going to go on about the partition of Ireland because that was driven by international Freemasonry (which is headed by the Franco-German-Scottish Royal Family) and carried out Scottish and Welsh Unionists – these unionists conveniently displace their faults onto the English and you will more and more of your fellow Irish Nationalists are working this out. I am an English Republican and want to see an independent English Republic that will work cooperatively will other nations and develop are more friendly relationship with Eire, Scotland, Wales and other nations who believe “England has oppressed them”.
April 10th, 2009 at 1:41 pmThe people of britain and ireland have far more in common in terms of History,language,culture and geography than those things that differentiate them. The island of Britain in particular are an extraordinary mix of scots and Welsh and English not to mention the infusion of many other nationalities in recent years. The creation of 4 artificial independent nations(maybe 5 with cornwall) would be such a backward return to an unnecessary balkanisation of the United Kingdom. What is needed is a Federal Parliament and four equal Parliaments for the Home Nations. The whole devolution process thus far has been a half baked hotch potch. Westminster can not be both a British and ad-hoc English Parliament-England must have its own house but in order to achieve this it is not necessary to destroy the Great British Nation!
April 12th, 2009 at 12:38 pmhi re francis English republican,i am an English nationalist but also an membe of the loyal orders AND am supporter of the protestant throne of england republican policies i will fight England even independant will NEVER be an republic god save the Queen of England
May 19th, 2009 at 7:34 amps if you wont to be a republican go an join sinn fein/IRA
Tony – being a republican doesn’t always mean the IRA or Sien Fein … not unless you think that the Australians are all Fenians .
I too support the Royal family, its a great tradition but I fail to see why they need to be protestant – other than the fact that they are the ‘head’ of the Church of England. I would have no problem with the Queen being any form of christian as both England and Scotland have had both catholic and protestant monarchs in the past, personally I could not support a hindu, muslem or buddist monarch as there is no historic relationship with non-christian monarchs. Perhaps a pagan monarch would be ok – we have had a few of those.
By Loyal Orders, do you mean something along the lines of the Orange Lodge ? If so please keep sectarianism out of politics in England I saw far too much of it in Scotland in the 70’s and 80’s, frankly catholic/protestant sectarianism goes agaist all christian principles .
May 20th, 2009 at 8:32 pmPS –
May 20th, 2009 at 8:35 pmGod Bless Elizabeth the second of England and Elizabeth the first of Scotland .
tonyy
What has English Republicanism got to do with religion? England does not have this sectarian protestant/catholic problems. I am an English republican nationalist but thoroughly detest Sinn Fein/IRA and their methods. English republican nationalists want England to become a fairer society – and that means removing all forms of discrimination. I suppose you will call me a leftie, well as English nationalists go I am probably the most left wing of them all. How is English republicanism connected with Fenianism?
May 21st, 2009 at 1:48 amAs it now Seems Westminster cannot be reformed. I would like as a Scots guy from Edinburgh to see an English parliament in unicameral form. Abolishment of the house of lords and the UK parliament to be replaced by a UK senate with a quarter of the present MPs. This would not be a second chamber its powers would be limited to the UK constitution foreign affairs defence social security employment legislation transport safety it would have a system of committees to oversee its legislation. A system that works fine for the Scottish parliament with 129 MSPs. Modern government for the 21st century. Please support increased economic powers for the Scottish parliament so we can grow our economy and cut subsidy.
May 30th, 2009 at 12:23 pmWatch Youtube Harry Enfield the Ulsterman “My community have enjoyed cheddar cheese and pineapple canapés for hundreds of years but you now try to refuse us! you vile hag!” god save the Queen! :¬)
May 30th, 2009 at 5:59 pmEngland is being governed by Scots, English money is propping up Scotland, NI gets more share of our wallet than any other region, Wales has no teeth, yes its a mess.
July 11th, 2009 at 2:44 pmHow to solve it ? Many posts are pointing to a federal model.
It seems to offer some advantages -> the 4 or 5 countries would have equal devolved powers, consistent foreign policy and defense arrangements, minimal change and disruption, should be possible to get support of widest cross section of populations with this model -> most likely to succeed. Interesting question of the monarchy, would there be a monarch as head of the federation, would the federation be a republic ? could there be both republics and monarchys in the federation ? As an Englishman who has lived outside England (in Scotland and Ireland) for the last 20 years Im watching this debate with a special interest. From my experience the relationship that now exists between Britain and Ireland proves that independant nations even with sometimes uncomfortable history behind them can enjoy close cooperation, for example there is complete freedom of travel ( like shengin) and ex pat Irish and British Citizens can vote in each others respective parliamentary and council elections.
England has been blamed for many things over the past 400 and more years. It all depends where you start. If for instance we take the Spanish armada then this is a clear case of aggression by a ROMAN catholic nation supported by the ROMAN catholic church in ROME (Note the name “ROMAN” in caps). The fact that England wanted to be independent from the RC church seems to have been taken as giving the RC’s the right to forever persecute the English in the name of their religion. The same happened in the mid 17th century when the French RC’s supported by the Irish RC’s again thought they had the right to interefere in English affairs. So it all depends on how you look at things.
We still have this problem with Northern Ireland. Nobody ever seems to ask the question “Why do the Protestants in NI NOT want to be part of the Republic”. This is a simple question and I will try to answer it. The Protestants seem to hate the Catholics to such a degree that they are portrayed as being merely a hateful group of people. Is this true, probably not. When the Irish free state was pushed on the Irish (by Lloyd George (A Welshman)) the protestant population in the IFS was between 10-12%. Now in the Republic I understand this figure to be 2%, where have they gone?. So we quite definitely have a problem here. Should we abandon NI and leave the Irish to finish off the remaining Protestants in Ireland. In my humble opinion the protestants in NI are hanging on for their lives in a country that they consider to be home. If this situation had existed anywhere else in the world there would be an outpouring of support for the minority population. What has the “British” government done. Again it depends on where you start but it is clear that over the last 100 years or so the Irish have been allowed to persecute a large body of people and the “British” government have stood by and allowed them to do it. At the same time the Irish have somehow convinced the world that they are in fact the persecuted.
So having said all of this do I want to be associated with these people from Ireland, well the Protestants yes I do, the RC’s – yes, but qualified with the words “Please stop persecuting Protestants”.
For the record, I am an Atheist. My Great Grandfather was Irish and RC. When he went to England he had the sense to ensure that his family and descendents had a balanced view and were able to look at the world in (I hope) an objective way. If people want to practice religion it is their choice and extreme religion like RC, Islam have should no part in the political life of any country.
England is a very tolerant country, but I am sad to say the same cannot be said for the other parts of the UK. They are exclusive and many people, my great grandfather included had the good sense to leave and adopt English ways. The Irish, Scottish and Welsh will always seek to exclude others from their land and at the same time move amongst the tolerant English and seek to destroy our culture. This has gone too far now. Blair with his Irish wife and the Scottish Raj have set the scene, we the English trusted them to do the right thing. They have defacto set the scene for the complete break up of the UK, in my opinion this process should be speeded up. These people will never be satisfied, anyone that thinks they will act in a reasonable way are living in a fantasy world. I regret saying this but a lifetime of experience at the hands of these people have taught me to be as extreme as they are.
So the details of who has what is a secondary issue as far as I am concerned, it can be dealt with but the priority should be complete independence for England.
July 15th, 2009 at 9:26 amIt would be a mistake to think that the Irish Republic is rife with religious intolerance as Bobby suggests. I am English and have lived in the south west of Ireland for the last 12 years, came here with my wife (also English) and kids ( who were born in Scotland ). We are not RC, I was christened a Methodist, my wife Anglican, today we are atheists.
July 17th, 2009 at 10:32 amNoobody has ever once made our religion or race an issue for us. In fact my wife was even elected onto the school board or our local RC primary school and it did not matter one hoot that she was not RC or Irish for that matter. This is not in cosmopolitan Dublin but in rural county Clare. In the last decade or so Ireland has seen a massive influx of people from all over the world, I work with people from every european country, from africa, south america, asia. The old conservative RC dominated culture is long since vanished. The reality down here in the south is totaly different than the situation in the north where the religion issue is just one facet of a very complex and historical problem. If it were simple it would be solved already, the problem goes way back to the plantation of Ulster with predominatly presbytarian Scots, who were given land confiscated from the Irish in the aftermath of a failed rebellion (look up flight of the earls 1690’s). The basic problem is frankly a failure over all this time of these newcommers and the idiginous Irish to integrate. Ironically both communities have a strong common celtic heritage but due to their religious differences even this has not been enough to bring them together. The generally accepted view is that the northern protestants have lived in fear of having their unique culture submerged by an RC majority. The reality, I can atest to, is that this is simply not any longer relevant ( in the south ). Also Bobby not sure about the 2% protestant, at the last census in Co, Clare the Anglican communion had growth by some 300 in Ennis ( mostly Nigerians).
Ian. It is nice to hear that tolerance is now breaking out in Ireland. If this had happened many years ago then the NI problem would by now simply have gone away. The economics of the past 10-15 years have helped this process along as has the scandals in the church which have exposed the religious lie that has been perpetrated in the past. I to am an atheist so we have something in common but I will not be convinced that the recent words and attempts at understanding are real until I see this sustained over a long period of time.
July 18th, 2009 at 9:22 amSo if the NI problem is as you say a Scottish problem then as far as the English are concerned we can walk away from it all when we get complete independence. It will be interesting to see how the NI protestants react, will they be English or Scottish or perhaps both….
But the truth is and as far as I can see will always be that the English are a rebellious nation, we have in the past rid ourselves of the RC political dogma. We have created a system of parliament which has been imitated throughout the world. All of this has been achieved at great sacrifice and at times with the opposition of the other occupants of the Isles. All of this is now under threat because the tolerant English fell asleep as passengers in the Blair political machine. Well we are waking up from our slumber and if history is any indicator of what will happen in the future then people had better start listening. We are extremely tolerant people but we are also passionate about our freedom, we have been robbed of that freedom, we WILL get it back.
I am English, very proud. Equally have huge admiration and respect for the Scots and Welsh. I am keen to see Cornwall get its status restored as a nation of Britain.
August 31st, 2009 at 10:58 pmWe are very lucky to live on this island, we are living through a time of great change. Unfortunately in an ancient nation change can sometimes be slow and indistinct, but I can see that there is a very strong current of opinion in England now. People of all walks of life are very angry.
My view is that we should take to the streets and have a huge (peaceful) protest to make our point. I wish someone would just say, right we’re all going to London to protest for an English Parliament or something. I’d be there, and I reckon so would thousands of other people. Then our voices would have to be heard.
Yes a federal model could work well and makes a lot of sense but don’t trust it to our useless politicians. Whatever happens in terms of federalism, devolution or independence for any of the nations I’d like us all to get on a lot better and for people to realise that the English culture and national identity was also oppressed by the British state and still is.
Finally, a point on race. You don’t have to be white to be English. In my view being English is totally a state of mind and a very good one indeed. That covers it.
i dont support Sinn Fein, but i do support englands cause and dont hate the english at all
my grandmother was english and the most gracious person i knew.
i am an Irish Republican first, but not saying i dont have some sort of British Identity [from family] i give my loyality to the President of the Irish Republic and to Ireland thereof.
just as People from england give theres to England and wish for an English Parliament [ive Changed abit about my option] and understand westminister is not the English Parliament
but dont reconise it as my parliament, i see the British-Irish Council and the North South Ministerial Council and institutions thereof , and the Dail Eireann as my Parliament, not the NI Assembly and Executive as its British Imposed.
im also an Athiest so religion isint the Reason i support a United Ireland [a Federal One tho]
i was Baptised a Catholic [but do not owe any alligance to the stupid pope as i didnt choose my religion at birth]
and 3 Cousins of Mine are Protesant and my Aunt is also one and there father is a Catholic,
i guess religion isint everything in ireland or anywhere else anymore.
i do despise the Orange Order only because i see it as Against Catholicism and
against ireland and anything to do with same which treatence my people [ireland and the catholicism] and the stability of the island as a whole [and of these islands]
Well Good Luck on an English Parliament and Independence
and to Scotland on its Indepedendence Referendum and for the Future.
and the Wales if it Decideds to take More Powers or Go With Independence.
May the English, Scottish, Welsh and the United Irish
be good Neighbours from now and forever with Respect for one another and not Rule over the Affairs of other Countries.
The Reason there isint a Lot of Protesents in The South of Ireland
is Either Because they crossed into the North [Moved by themselves] or Else
they Intermarried [and there kids where brought up catholic as was the Case here in the North when my Grandparents [on my fathers side] married.
Been brought up Catholic has advanges and disadvantages
so i guess when intermarriages happen you weigh up the pros and cons
and dont usually happen, and most protesent go and work, or go to university in Great Britain
as theres more Options, and in Scotland you can get Free Uni, and Proscriptions jes scotland have it good wish i had it that good if scotland left the Union where would Gordan Brown Live and What would he do, Probelly President of Europe or Chairman of the Local Fish shop lmao.
Well good luck in the Scottish Independence and the English Parliament ill be Crossing my finger and hoping it goes well.
Well UPDA REPUBLIC
p.s. Maybe with the Scots gone ireland will once and for all be free,
and we can all be good friends, and work in co-operation with one another,
and i wouldint mind ireland joining the Commonwealth one equal footing to Canada and the United Kinggom, as for Scotland and England if the English and Scottish get independence then
we can work together in friendship and harmony as friend and equal partners instead as Rival Enemies, i see one day when we can be real friends.
Well good luck and right soon.
October 31st, 2009 at 11:02 pmIt’s good to hear that RJ, what part of Ireland are you from? I’m a Kerry lad myself.
November 1st, 2009 at 5:43 pmOne think now is that all the peoples across England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland (both parts) and other EU nations have a common enemy. The common enemy is the self-loathing far left groups like the UAF who are trying to undermine democracy and our civil liberties. The anti-English Labour Party is the political wing of the UAF.
Make sure any MPs who support the evil UAF are defeated at the next GE and that includes David ‘Camaroon’
See the link
http://www.uaf.org.uk/aboutUAF.asp?choice=4
November 1st, 2009 at 8:37 pmAs a Scot, I completely support this campaign. Why shouldn’t the English have their parliament? If it means we can keep the union and have everybody feel like they are benefiting from better governance.
December 15th, 2009 at 3:25 pmI have to say I’m shocked at some of the comments regarding hand-outs to Scotland from Westminster, the fact of the matter is Scotland’s north sea oil was welcome extra income for a country that was practically on its knees. It arrived at a time when Saudi Arabia stopped selling oil to the west, and the country was rationing energy. Scotland’s oil has contributed massively to the United Kingdoms’ for many years now because we are part of a Union and therefore the resource belongs to everyone.
‘Adrian Thurston’ comments are so un-useful and yet all too familiar. His arguments steeped in a strong stench of self pity. Scotland and Wales are already benefiting, and its time the English get to.
I suppose with like any family we have our fallings out, I just hope we all remember that’s what we are.
This site confuses me. Why do you people feel the need to “celebrate” your Englishness? You are English by chance alone and this entire site seems like a front for something more sinister than a Campaign for English devolution.
I am Scottish and I don’t believe that we should partition up this very small Island and I also don’t believe that any home nation should have devolved powers, unless decided by a referendum. The bottom line is that there is a certain arrogance involved with any nationalistic notions and the perceived arrogance, on this site at least, is that Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland somehow drag England down, and if not for the other home nations then England would be a utopia. This is, of course, nonsense.
Why can’t we all just settle for being human beings and forget the ridiculous ideas of being different based on the very small things which divide the peoples of the home nations.
January 23rd, 2010 at 9:49 pmSam, there’s nothing confusing about it at all. Celebrating Englishness is no different to celebrating Scottishness, except for the country. You had a referendum in Scotland and you chose devolution. They had referenda in Wales and Northern Ireland as well and they chose devolution as well. We haven’t had a referendum in England because the Brit/Scot government won’t let us.
January 23rd, 2010 at 10:12 pmSam, can you be more specific about the “sinister” aspects to this site?
You say we are English “by accident alone”, then call yourself “Scottish”, but don’t qualify this with any reference to chance or “accident”. Do you also believe ” there’s no such thing as society” and therefore any sense of belonging, or collectivism, is “nonsense”?
I agree with you when you say “I also don’t believe that any home nation should have devolved powers, unless decided by a referendum”. Do you agree that every nation should have been offered a referendum, or do you think it is right that England (alone) has not been offered one?
January 24th, 2010 at 5:34 pmI am an Englishman who enjoys being British, I just wish that when we say we are English that those friends of ours would feel proud to be our friends instead of threatened. Scotland for Scots, Wales for Welsh, Northern Ireland for the Northern Irish. and England for The English. This does sound separatist. Which on the surface is a sad thing. But when you look at it, we do not want to be separate, we enjoy our unity. BUT we do want to be recognised. England has lost recognition. We do not have true representation. WHY IS THAT???
February 19th, 2010 at 3:47 amWill…You are not English unless you are born in England. It’s not just a state of mind. You could be born any were in the world and live in England and it wouldn’t make you an Englishman, you may accept the English way of life and that is all. You can’t be what you are not.
February 27th, 2010 at 11:57 am