Gavin Yates (Edinburgh, GYmedia): With Gordon Brown’s historic statement on constitutional reform resounding round OK and many other blogs the question north of the border might be best characterised not by what was left in the statement but rather what was left out.
The West Lothian question – a hardy perennial for politics watchers in Scotland - was dealt with firmly by the PM, saying that he did not want to have two tiers of MPs. However, as The Herald’s political editor Catherine McLeod points out in a brisk run through yesterday’s debate, English votes on English laws is “an issue that, however much he might wish it to be different, will not go away.”
There is a growing realisation, particularly within Scottish Labour circles, that the West Lothian question needs to be addressed if devolution is to continue. Momentum towards independence will increase if English voters think that Scots have disproportionate influence over English matters.
Another issue that was “missing in action” was the repeal of the Act of Settlement. The Act is a 300-year-old piece of legislation that bars non-Protestants from the throne. The repeal of the Act has been a totem for the Catholic Church in Scotland and very few discussions about ending the sectarian attitudes are held without the issue emerging. The Scottish National Party used the so-called ‘Sectarian Summit’ held in Glasgow in December 2006 to campaign for the Act’s repeal.
Cardinal Keith O’Brien, Scotland’s most senior Catholic cleric, said: “I am deeply disappointed at the statement from Gordon Brown. I remain deeply concerned that the Act of Settlement will continue to exist and believe it constitutes state-sponsored sectarianism.”
