English Votes for English Laws — House of Commons, 2021-07-13
Topic: Government Operations
Thangam Elizabeth Rachel Debbonaire (Labour, Centre-left): Oh, it is so very hard to avoid starting this speech with the "I told you so" dance—which does actually exist—but alas, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is just making it too easy. In a written ministerial statement yesterday about English votes for English laws, which I will hereafter refer to as EVEL, he said: "The introduction of the procedure in 2015 added additional stages to the legislative process in Parliament and in doing so introduced complexity to our arrangements and has not served our Parliament well." He also said: "It is a fundamental principle that all constituent parts of the United Kingdom should be equally represented in Parliament, and Parliament should deliver for the whole UK. The operation of this procedure—and the constraints on the role of certain MPs—does not support this aim."—[Official Report, 12 July 2021; Vol. 699, c. 1WS.] Goodness me! If only somebody could have spotted this sooner. Hmm. Let’s just see what my hon. Friend the Member for Wallasey (Dame Angela Eagle)—who, incidentally, did warn me against using sarcasm in the Chamber—the then shadow Leader of the House and a fantastic role model for me, said in the July 2015 debate on the EVEL proposals. She said that "as currently written, they are deeply flawed. We do not think that the Government’s proposals are either wise or viable. Indeed, they are likely to put the Union at risk by creating an English veto rather than a voice, possible gridlock in Parliament, and two classes of MP."—[Official Report, 15 July 2015; Vol. 598, c. 949.] My friend David Hanson, the truly right hon. and sadly not current Member for Delyn, said in that same debate: "When Members walk through that door into the Chamber, they do so as equal Members."—[Official Report, 15 July 2015; Vol. 598, c. 1011.] However, he and many others identified that the English votes for English laws provision would undermine that equality, and so indeed it has proved In the Leader of the House’s recent appearance at the Procedure Committee, he said: "It is of fundamental importance, constitutionally, that every Member of Parliament in this House is absolutely equal: Minister, non-Minister, spokesman for Opposition party"— thank you— "Front Bencher, Back Bencher, Privy Counsellor, well established, newly elected—there is absolute equality of the regions of the country they represent. That has been the most ancient constitutional principle, which EVEL contradicted to some extent." I so agree. I am glad that the Leader of the House can now see the points that my hon. and right hon. Friends made so clearly and eloquently six years ago Then there is the contradiction between the two Houses. The written ministerial statement observes: "The English Votes procedure does not apply to the legislative process in the House of Lords".—[Official Report, 12 July 2021; Vol. 699, c. 1WS.] It is so hard to avoid that stricture from my hon. Friend the Member for Wallasey (Dame Angela Eagle) not to use sarcasm at this point because, as David Hanson put it six years ago: "Lord Thomas of Gresford in Wrexham, who has never won an election in his life in north-east Wales, will vote on these matters in another place, while I, who have won elections on six occasions in north-east Wales"— I hope he will one day again— "will not be able to do so."—[Official Report, 22 October 2015; Vol. 600, c. 1212.]