Parliament (Participation of Members of the House of Commons) Bill

When I wrote English MPs rebel at prospect of Scots MP as PM I missed out possibly the most important part of that article.

Today, Lord Baker of Dorking introduced the Parliament (Participation of Members of the House of Commons) Bill which will "provide for the Speaker of the House of Commons to have power to determine the eligibility of Members of the House of Commons to participate in certain legislative proceedings of that House."

This is effectively the Tory policy of English Votes on English Matters which is, frankly, never going to work. However, it is important that the bill was introduced because it means that there are politicians out there who are aware of what is happening to England and are prepared to do something about it.

There is also a private members bill being introduced to Parliament soon by the father of the house, Alan Williams MP, which would create a full English Parliament along the lines of the Scottish Parliament. It stands about as much chance as a ghosts fart in a force 10 gale but again, it is an important step and all the more important because Alan Williams is a Labour MP.

Finally, while I am on the subject, there are rebel amendments to the Government of Wales Bill - some of which I believe have originated from the CEP - which will automatically trigger a referendum in England should the Welsh Assembly get their increased powers.

All in all, some promising work from some of our elected representatives for a change.