Right of Reply: Stephen Richards

A member of the Campaign for an English Parliament replies to an article by Anne McElvoy

IT IS wrong for Anne McElvoy to characterise all those of us who are calling for an English parliament as "smug, arrogant and excluding southerners". Only some of us are like that!

Indeed Ms McElvoy's suggestions for a new English patron saint emphasise what a diverse lot we are in England. This diversity is represented by the membership of the Campaign for an English Parliament. We have members from Yorkshire to Dorset and from Herefordshire to Norfolk. The campaign includes Europhiles and Europhobes; members of the Conservative and the Labour Parties; monarchists and republicans. Most of us have not been active in politics before.

An English parliament, perhaps outside London, need not mean more politicians and more expense. A smaller UK parliament at Westminster and a renegotiation of the Barnett formula should mean that the English parliament would pay for itself.

We are not opposed to regionalism, but do have some concerns about the creation of competing regions without any overall national focus for England.

If the UK Parliament becomes the guardian of England's interests, what credibility will it have in Scotland? If the UK Parliament cannot represent England's interests, who will?

We are calling for a constitutional convention to examine all the options for the government of England. Proposals developed by the convention would be put to the people of England in a referendum. An free and open debate is surely better than trying to pretend that there are no shortcomings to the present arrangements. Perhaps what our opponents fear is that this would open up a genuine debate about how we are governed.