Matt Wardman

David Melding AM, a Conservative Member of the Senedd, has suggested that Britain should implement a more fully federal Constitution, as a way of relieving pressures on the Union. This is from a piece by David Williamson at Wales Online.

The United Kingdom is in danger of disintegration and should embrace a federal structure of government and create individual parliaments in each nation, Conservative AM David Melding declares in a major book published today.

He envisages a new constitutional settlement which could cut the number of MPs at Westminster to 300 and officially recognise the sovereignty over domestic issues of the parliaments of Wales, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Even ignoring the implication of a savage cut in the numbers of MPs at Westminster, this is fascinating politically for a number of reasons.

The Conservatives have sometimes been referred to as “English Nationalists”, and Conservative Government has been founded on a strong majority of English seats at Westminster - compensating for a position in Scotland and Wales which has consistently been much weaker for a generation.

In contrast, Labour has historically relied on an incumbent majority in Scotland and Wales to shore up a weaker English position vis-a-vis the Conservatives.

Matt Wardman

Matt Wardman (Wardman Wire): This is the second in the lastest series of Blogpower Roundups, and this is my roundup of some of the current live issues around Civil Liberties.

While there are differences between bloggers on some questions at the edge on just what comes under Civil Liberties, there's usually a strong consensus around the right to self-expression, and that restriction of topics that we can write about or the excessive monitoring of online activity are BAD things.
Heather Yaxley has reflected on the whole theme of Defending Blogs.
In this roundup, I've covered recent Blogpower posts, and highlighted a number of other posts that I have come across. As it is a thematic roundup, I am going back several weeks.

Colin Campbell's comment about extra speed cameras in South Australia prompted me to do some digging into just how many speed cameras we have now in the UK. The answer: one hell of a lot - perhaps 7,000-10,000 plus all those installed in cars and on motorcyles.

By my count there are 75 links in this post. Enjoy.

Matt Wardman

Matt Wardman (Wardman Wire): Parliament closes this week until after the Party Conferences, and reopens in October.

It is the best season of the year for a certain sort of blogger or journalist. It is the time when Government Departments publish Written Ministerial Statements by the shedload, in order to “clear the desk”. Certain unsympathetic people will note that it is also the optimum time
to publish unpopular proposals which will affect public image, since it is the time where there is the maximum delay - until October - before scrutiny in Parliament will be possible.

For specialist bloggers, campaigners, and perhaps for occasional Comment is Free writers, it is an opportunity for detailed research without the day to day grind of political knockabout as a distraction.

Matt Wardman

Matt Wardman (Wardman Wire): Miss Wagstaff is reporting that the Welsh blogger, and Welsh Assembly Government employee, Christopher Glamorganshire, is going to an Industrial Tribunal after being sacked for blogging during the autumn of 2007. The tribunal is today.

The greatest value that I can add to this is an English perspective, and one from involvement in the debate that lead to the development of a set of Principles for Online Participation for Civil Servants. These are my initial thoughts about a significant cultural divide between "us" and "them".