GE2015 Part Four - Don't delay

Wow!, I mean Wow!

The Conservatives are on course to achieve an overall, though slim, majority.

Hats off to David Cameron, George Osborne, Lynton Crosby and all of the candidates and hard-working constituency workers.

As was predicted in the opinion polls (something that they did get right!), the Scottish National Party scooped-up almost all of the seats in Scotland, gaining 56 of 59.

The Lib Dems, until recently the Conservative's partners in Coalition,  have been severely reduced - they will likely end with 8 seats down from their 54 seats won in 2010.

Labour were all but wiped-out in their Scottish strong-hold and now have just one seat, there and have been hit by the Conseravtives and indeed, UKIP, in the North of England..

There have been some notable casualties along the way.  Obviously those Scottish Labour MPs that were Shadow Cabinet members but also Ed Balls the Shadow Chancellor.  Balls was a member of former Labour leader Gordon Brown's inner circle and intimately involved with Labour's profligacy and.  Throughout the 5 years of the Coalition and this campaign he, and Labour leader Ed Miliband, have steadfastly refused to either apologise for ruining Britain's economy nor for admitting that they overspent.

Also gone is Danny Alexander who spitefully leaked a welfare position paper and suggested it was a policy that the Lib Dems stopped.   The ever awkward Vince Cable has also gone and the promoter of foolish Green policies, Ed Davey has also left the House!

It is looking like Miliband and the Lib Dems leader, Nick Clegg, will resign.  Nigel Farage, of UKIP has already said he will resign as leader, if not elected, and that outcome is looking likely. Natalie Bennett of the Green Party was not elected and so other than the Ulster parties, David Cameron looks to be on course to be the only Westminster leader that survives this election.  Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP leader, didn't contest a Westminster seat.

Now it is time to get back to work.

I know that there is a manifesto that lists out the policy programme but let's cut to the chase and start the ball rolling with the following:

• Implement the Smith Commission proposals and give Full Fiscal Authority to Scotland.  In doing so, the much discredited Barnett Formula falls away and the money saved, can be used in England and Wales.

• Implement the Boundary Changes that were put forward, by the independent Boundary Commission, a couple of years ago.

• Deliver on the promise of a referendum on membership of the European Union by enshrining this in law - to the effect that it must occur on a date before the end of 2017

• Set out a timetable for the re-negotiation of the terms of Britain's membership of the European Union.

• Introduce legislation, that means that on devolved matters, MPs from non-English constituencies, cannot vote at Westminster.

• Vote into law the Budget, that was presented, just before the last Parliament was dissolved.  Consider adding to that to include the changes on inheritance tax, with immediate effect.

These actions need to be put into place now.  With such a slim majority, there is every need to get these underway and while the opposition are focused on internal struggles, recrimination and power-plays, what better opportunity?

The English Vow

Immediately prior to voting commencing for the Scottish Referendum, UK political leaders issued a so called 'vow'.  This promised certain changes to the constitutional settlement, post vote, should a No vote be achieved.  Subsequently, the Smith Commission has convened and published a report on the devolution of further powers to the Edinburgh parliament.

What though of the English?  Where is the 'vow' for them?

It is clear that the Scottish Nationalists, who despite losing the referendum seem to be the party that is in a rampant ascendancy in Scotland,  intend to be very meddlesome in English and UK politics.  There is a certain irony in a party that wants no part of the UK being committed to becoming so heavily involved in those self-same politics.  However, this hypocrisy is then compounded when the SNP announce that they will, in the next parliament intend to participate very frequently in UK and English politics and will use their parliamentary right, to vote on purely English matters.   So for the SNP, they would not extend their 'Scottish votes for Scottish matters' to the English.

The SNP have already stated that they could not conceive of forming any kind of a coalition with the Conservatives, so that means they could only get into bed with Labour.  Irony heaps upon irony since the SNP are probably the second largest barrier to Labour achieving an outright majority at Westminster.  The biggest barrier is the Labour party itself - economically incompetent and very badly led are just two of the factors.

How about a new 'vow' ?  One signed-up to by the leaders of the Conservatives, Labour, Lib-Dems, UKIP and the Green parties?  One that guarantees, on a cross-party basis, that following the May 2015 General Election, an English equivalent of the Smith Commission would be convened to address the issue of English matters within the UK parliamentary system - perhaps looking at English Devolution.  I consider myself a Unionist but the reality is that right now, the constitutional settlement that is currently in play, is so biased against the English  and England that it should not continue.

It cannot be right that Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland MPs can vote on matters affecting the English NHS or English education etc., but cannot vote on those same matters within their own constituencies.

This isn't about a particular economic or environmental policy on which we could expect the parties to differ.  This is about making sure that the rights and views of those living within England are appropriately  represented and considered.  I suppose 'party politics' might intrude when the proposed commission looks at issues like the anti-English Barnett Formula are considered but the necessary review of this no-longer appropriate legislation would require a UK based approach rather than solely being an 'English' matter.

 So how about it David, Ed, Nick, Nigel and Natalie?  How about a pledge to the people of the largest country in the United Kingdom?  One that says that the views of the people from the largest constituent part of the United Kingdom, will no longer be ignored.