>>> The West Lothian Question <<<
En Inglaterra, prosigue el debate sobre “la cuestión inglesa” (la West Lothian question), es decir, cómo resolver el problema político que supone que el Parlamento de Westminster no pueda votar sobre asuntos competencia de Escocia, mientras los diputados escoceses en Londres sí deciden sobre cuestiones que atañen a una Inglaterra que carece de autonomía. Pero, pese a la promesa de Cameron de resolver el problema, los ánimos no están a favor de crear una región inglesa, de población y economía gigantesca en comparación a Escocia, o de dividir Inglaterra en varias regiones, lo que agravaría las diferencias entre el Norte, más pobre, y el Sur, mucho más rico. Hay que recordar que el territorio conocido como Inglaterra Noreste (North-East England) rechazó en referéndum en 2004 una autonomía, lo que paralizó pasos similares para otras regiones.
-la West Lothian Question
-Devolution y desigualdades en el Reino Unido, Institut d´Estudis Autonòmics, 2008
-Después de la devolución de poderes, los diputados en Westminster de circunscripciones inglesas no se pronuncian sobre materias objeto de devolución, mientras que los diputados elegidos en circunscripciones escocesas, galesas y norirlandesas pueden votar en Westminster sobre aquellas cuestiones que afectan únicamente a Inglaterra. Esta paradoja es conocida como la ‘West Lothian question’, tomando este nombre de la circunscripción escocesa del ex diputado Sir Tam Dalyell quien primero llamó la atención sobre dicha cuestión. link
WHAT IS THE WEST LOTHIAN QUESTION?
On 18 September 2014 Scotland voted not to become an independent country, but the arguments are not all over. The No result has sparked a big discussion about how the whole of the UK is run by politicians.
It has brought what is known as the 'West Lothian Question', back into the news.
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland each have their own parliament, or assembly, with their own politicians, who can make decisions about certain issues for that nation, such as changes to laws about schools and hospitals.
That is not the case in England; all issues are decided by Members of the UK Parliament, based in London.
The process where some powers from the UK parliament in London were given to assemblies in Cardiff and Belfast, and the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, is known as devolution.
Votes were held in 1997 in Scotland and Wales, and a year later in Northern Ireland, which decided the creation of new parliaments and allowed devolution to happen.
Devolution applies in different ways in each nation due to historical differences.
Powers that that are not devolved, or 'reserved powers', include foreign affairs, defence, international relations and money issues.
This has created a situation where MPs from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can vote on certain issues that only affect England, but it doesn't work the other way round.
The so-called West Lothian Question was named after a man called Tam Dalyell, who used to be an MP for West Lothian in Scotland.
He raised the question in 1977 of the participation of MPs in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in the UK Parliament. At the time devolution hadn't happened.
In a debate on devolution to Scotland and Wales on 14 November 1977, Dalyell said: "For how long will English constituencies tolerate members from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland exercising an important, and probably often decisive, effect on British politics while they themselves have no say in the same matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland."
Basically, it is asking why Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish MPs have the same rights to vote in Westminster as English MPs on laws that will only impact England.
25-IX-2014
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