SNP MPs will have a duty to vote on England-only matters at "each and every opportunity" when Scotland's national and economic interests are directly affected, Nicola Sturgeon has insisted.

 

And in what is likely to rile some English Conservatives, the First Minister has made clear the Nationalists will not stand for any ban on Scottish MPs from votes on the Budget, which William Hague, the Commons Leader, proposed when he set out the Conservative plan for English Votes for English Laws (Evel) last week.

Mr Sturgeon claimed that the aftermath of the independence referendum was still reverberating not only around Scottish politics but UK politics too.

Noting how the Ashcroft poll pointed to dramatic changes benefiting the SNP might be at hand, she denounced as "an affront to the very idea of the UK as a partnership of equals" the Tories' plan to ban Scottish MPs from certain Westminster votes.

The FM pointed out how she had already made clear that SNP MPs would forego their hitherto self-denying ordinance of not voting on England-only matters to vote on legislation on the English NHS, which had a knock-on budgetary effect on Scotland; "rejecting the pernicious impact of privatisation and protecting Scotland's budget in the process".

But Ms Sturgeon, in a newspaper article, set out an approach that would have a wider impact on other policy areas.

She explained: "The Hague plan has the potential to block Scotland's voice from key decisions affecting Scottish voters. Until powers on, for example, income tax are devolved to Holyrood in full, it is profoundly undemocratic for anyone to try to carve Scottish MPs out of important decision-making on such issues. And that is not something we will stand for.

"Make no mistake, the SNP's objective remains independence but for as long as Scotland is part of the Westminster system we must have an equal say there on issues which affect us."

That was why, she said, one of the first objectives of a strong group of SNP MPs would be to "push back" against the Tories' proposals and work to ensure continued protection of the rights of all Scottish MPs to have a say on budgets, taxation and other key issues for as long as those powers remained at Westminster.

But the SNP leader then stressed: "We will make our voices heard, when appropriate, by voting on matters which affect England but which also affect Scotland financially. We will vote on nominally 'English' matters at each and every opportunity when Scotland's national and economic interests are directly affected.

"That is not just our policy as a party, it is our duty as democratically elected representatives of constituencies across Scotland which face being profoundly affected by Westminster decisions. As such, it is essential that Scottish MPs - not just those from the SNP - continue to vote on issues affecting all parts of the UK."

Mr Sturgeon argued that Mr Hague's approach to seek to ban Scottish MPs from certain votes, paradoxically, helped make the case for Scottish Home Rule and against a "halfway house", which offered limited economic powers.

She insisted the Tory desire to act against the previously promoted notion of the UK as a family of nations was politically and intellectually incoherent.

"It is indicative of a political establishment which is still struggling to come to terms with the flowering of democracy Scotland witnessed last autumn and its ongoing effects; consequences, which Westminster has barely begun to properly understand, let alone deal with," added the FM.

Meantime, while Prime Minister David Cameron has made clear he would like a debate and a vote on Evel before the General Election, Liberal Democrat sources have stressed how this was unlikely to happen given that there is no consensus between the governing parties on the policy.