THE Tories must not be allowed to "run the show" on English issues in the House of Commons simply because they hold the most seats, Nick Clegg has insisted, as the party leadership stressed that a federal United Kingdom was now in sight.
The prospect of a pre-election agreement with David Cameron's Conservatives on English votes for English laws (EVEL) appears to have diminished even further, with the Liberal Democrats insisting that any proposals have to include a proportional element, so that votes on England-only matters reflect the votes cast at a general election.
In the wake of the referendum result, senior party figures upbraided the Tory leadership for seeking party political advantage south of the border. Alistair Carmichael, the Scottish Secretary, criticised his Cabinet colleague Michael Gove, the Chief Whip, for suggesting that granting Scotland more devolution was contingent on getting a deal on English votes.
Willie Rennie, the Scottish Lib Dem leader, also laid into the Tories, telling them that their partners in Better Together had not appreciated the Prime Minister's "opportunistic attempt to gain party advantage over votes in the Commons within minutes of the result of the referendum".
Earlier, Mr Clegg said on EVEL: "It's got to be fair votes for English issues. The Conservatives think that - (even though) they only got 38 to 39 per cent of the vote in England - somehow they can run the show. We say let's create a body of English and Welsh MPs but they've got to reflect the proportion of votes fairly won at the last election."
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