Snp May Kill Plans For English Shops To Open Longer On A Sunday.

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3483421/SNP-kill-plan-longer-Sunday-trading-MPs-vote-Tory-rebels-Labour-ensure-shops-open-longer-six-hours.html

Whether or not you are in favour of keeping the English Sunday opening times as they are, should Scottish MPs be allowed to vote for them to stay as they are, even though it doesn't affect them, since Scottish shops are allowed to open longer on a Sunday?

[ABerrant]

"During the Thatcher years when a Tory MP north of the border was rarer than the Loch Ness Monster..."

That would be the Blair years.

The number of Conservative MPs returned by Scotland to Thatcher Governments were:

1979 - 22
1983- 21
1987 - 10

Post-Thatcher, John Major's 1992 General Election victory included 11 Scottish Mps.

[New Judge]

There are two aspects to this.

Firstly, it is unreasonable to expect the opposition to vote with the government. Their job is to oppose. The SNP is part of the opposition and I imagine (though have not checked) that SNP MPs have voted against the government on most issues in the last nine months or so and this was no different. The government has an overall majority and the reason this measure was defeated was because some of their own MPs rebelled against them.

However, more important than that, Mr Cameron pledged (among many other things) to prevent Scottish MPs voting in Westminster on matters that did not affect their constituents. In was his promise to address the “West Lothian Question”. The SNP, for their part, made a loose undertaking not to block measures which do not affect the Scots. Whatever contortion the SNP may use to dress up this matter, it would have little or no effect on people in Scotland.

Mr Cameron needs to urgently address the democratic imbalance that exists between the Scots and the English and if it encourages the Scots to demand a second referendum (where they will hopefully vote to leave the UK) then that will be a bonus.

[Togo]

New Judge has it right. But I did like First Miniature by Douglas.

[Ellipsis]

> The government has an overall majority and the reason this measure was defeated was because some of their own MPs rebelled against them.

That's the nub of it.

If the SNP had no seats in Scotland, but instead we were talking about a mix of Labour, Lib Dem and a few Tory MPs in Scotland and the rest of the UK defeating this bill, would this issue get the same attention? No - it would be seen as the Tories defeating themselves. But because of the SNP "block vote", it's portrayable as Scottish MPs defeating it ...

[maggiebee]

I have no wish to enter a political debate - just want to say that I was brought up in an era when we had half day shopping on a Wednesday and my parents didn't shop on a Sunday. No big supermarkets then of course. I still don't shop on a Sunday as I find that 6 days/24 hour shopping is more than enough for me.

[Old_Geezer]

No they clearly ought not. Too much is made of the excuse that they think something might just affect them somehow, maybe. They're worse than the EU for imposing.

That said I don't want a postcode lottery about whether shops are open or closed in my area. It's a national issue affecting the public and shop employees the same across the whole of Britain, not a local one.

[THECORBYLOON]

Odd how Ulster MPs who voted against the proposals have not been criticised, yet they have had their own modern Parliament/Assembly for decades longer than Scotland but not a murmur is heard when they vote in Westminster.

[mikey4444]

Lets not give the SNP a hard time here.

The principle reason that the Government lost was because their own MP's voted against. Add to that the fact that this wasn't in the Tory Manifesto less than a year ago, the Tories have been well and truly beaten.

[jourdain2]

Well, it is a timely reminder that for all his bombast, Cameron is in a weak position.

[naomi24]

Mikey, //The principle reason that the Government lost was because their own MP's voted against. ..... the Tories have been well and truly beaten. //

Clearly not ALL of them. ;o)

[Peter Pedant]

// The Midlothian Question as been around for a long time now AOG, and its not going to go away. //

MPs are not delegates but representatives

Nasty Nicola still has to get over the fact she supports an independent scotland ( smaller unit ) and supports the EU ( much larger unit )

being scots and a gurl - she thinks she can have it both ways
( sorry bit of a sordid reference there )

[Togo]

Little & Large in one manifestoation.

[anotheoldgit]

Gromit

/// Why should the Government stop us shopping when we want? ///

Don't blame this one on the Government, It seems in this case it was Labour, SNP and only few Tories who are stopping you from shopping when you want.

[anotheoldgit]

What we need is an ENGLISH Parliament for the those who live in England.

Don't hear much of England?

It is that largest country of the UK.

[murraymints]

I think this is just another example of how dear nicola thinks she is queen of England and is being a trite disengenious to bear the whip on this matter ..I am sure she shops in Edinburgh on a Sunday

[mikey4444]

Naomi...if the Tory MPs had all voted for this measure, it would gone through. The oppositions job is to oppose measures that it doesn't like or want. But Dave didn't do his homework here......he was defeated, end of story.

[naomi24]

Mikey, it’s not ‘Dave’, per se. It was a government proposal that was put before the house and rejected, in the main, by people it wouldn’t affect one iota – the Scots.

[Old_Geezer]

IMO MPs should reflect the majority opinion in their constituency, if they make any pretence to living in a democracy. Given that this is wishful thinking, and democracy a pipe dream, the job of an opposition would be to oppose bad law, not all on principle. Parliament should be making things better for the people, not worse; although no MP seems to realise this.

[naomi24]

OG, //the job of an opposition would be to oppose bad law, not all on principle. //

Absolutely - but with the SNP that clearly isn't happening.

[mikey4444]

Naomi....if all the Tory MPs had voted for it, the Bill would have gone through. He has a majority in the HOC.

The first thing a General does when he marches into battle is to check that his own troops are behind him, and on this occasion, not enough were !

If Dave can't rely on his own MPs, then he didn't do his homework properly.