Electoral fraud happens in every election, and is rightly taken seriously. But 10 votes is utterly irrelevant when you're looking at 3.5m+ votes, and a winning margin of around 400,000. To swing that number of votes would require major league vote rigging, something which would be exceptionally hard to get away with given the intense scrutiny over this vote. It'd be a reasonable argument in Zimbabwe, but not in the UK.
Because the rushed changes we will see implemented won't just be in the periphery, but will affect Westminster itself in one way or another. Two tier MPs will mean some governments won't be able to pass legislation, for example. There is currently a backlash from some English MPs, and there will be a backlash to the backlash. How, for example, will the Tories sell 2nd class Westminster membership to Ulster Unionists? They'd see that as an attack on the concept of Union. So, would they be exempted? And how long would that stick for?
See my post above. Northern Ireland isn't on the banks of the Thames, and doesn't host the government of this Union.
That's already been done. We used to have 72 Westminster constituencies in Scotland. It's 55 now. How far would you continue the trend? When would No voters wonder what remains of the Union they voted for?
Scottish constituencies have same size electorate as English, Wales smaller. Not my genie, or bottle. What I don't think England wants is a new tier of politicians sitting in regional assemblies. Certainly think you'd have to plebicite before introducing (again), think Milliband has been outmanoeuvred. But its a mess and think Gladstone was right you can't have two tier MP's with the speaker deciding on every vote who gets to vote, they have enough trouble with Bercow as it is.
I agree there'll be a farce. What interests me is how much further you think constituencies should be enlarged & reduced in number, beyond what was already planned prior to the referendum? (http://www.bcomm-scotland.independent.gov.uk/6th_westminster/)
Next to none. (Outside of the tiny Cornish nationalist movement).
It's worth pointing out again, since everyone seems to forget it, London is the only English region that already has devolution; the London mayor and assembly.
...but why?
For weighting to have any impact you are looking at <48, probably lower, and I agree it would have an impact on feeling up here,but the real battle ground would be Wales which is disproportionately overrepresented, but would go from minding its own business to getting itself kicked in the teeth.
Been ranting about this on facebook myself. So much wrong with 'the 45' as a platform. As you say it basically creates a little self-congratulatory club that says 'you're not invited' to precisely the people we need to bring on board to change anything. And the Jacobite connotations make my republican teeth ache. Also, the '45 Rising was a gigantic failure
It doesn't rhyme with a popular breakfast, though.
By calling themselves the 45 they are literally identifying as the minority, as opposed to the 55% who voted No. It's daft, it's elitist, and it's offputting to people who might now be or might soon be regretting their No vote.
