Lots of members of parliament were missing from the House of Commons today. The green benches were half empty. It was like being at a second division football match. The main topic of discussion was Scotland. Although there was grand talk of this being a historic time, it did not feel like a big occasion. The action was happening elsewhere.
William Hague, now leader of the house was at the despatch box. He is the man thought to be the safe pair of hands who will take over in the interim were David Cameron to stand down in the event of a yes vote.
Harriet Harman, the shadow deputy prime minister was batting for Labour. Harman is normally a witty attacker, but this time she was expressing the Labour party’s huge concern that Scotland might break away from the United Kingdom. ‘We want Scotland to stay’ was her clear message. She did not quite say ‘We love you Scotland!’ but that is what she meant.
She did her bit, asking Hague about full devolution in the event of a ‘No’ vote.
‘Will he confirm full devolution and a Scotland bill setting out new powers to be published in January.’ Hague did.
Harman went on to demand that powers should also be devolved ‘to Wales and the great cities of England’. Hague was more cautious on this point. But then they continued to agree about solidarity, and the very seriousness of the current situation.
‘For sure there must be change’, declared Harman, ‘but not by tearing this country apart. We must stay as a family, not become foreigners to each other.’
Hague is a much better debater than Cameron. His touch is lighter and Harman had her usual good one liners and used them.
Interestingly it was Tory MPs who asked the most questions about Scotland each one standing up to defend the union.
But there were hints of the problems that Cameron is going to have when he comes back whatever way the vote goes. Christopher Chope, the Tory MP for Christchurch and one of the ultra-swivel-eyed brigade, demanded to know why the Scots had been promised so much devolution when the issue had not been discussed in parliament. Hague said the leaders were doing what one might do in an election campaign and these were campaign pledges – a slight contradiction to his earlier assurances to Harman.
There was quite a lot of heckling from the Scottish National party during the whole proceedings.
Jim Sheridan, the Labour MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire North said the Scottish nationalist campaign had been ‘fought by fear and intimidation’ and made the point that SNP MPs had not been around for welfare debates last week but had turned up to the House of Commons en masse ‘to whinge rather than debate.’ Hague said he could only agree with him ‘I don’t need to add to my friend’.
Labour MPs’ main concerns seemed to be cuts to the national health service and falling wages. Clive Betts (Sheffield South East) said that his local GPs had been told there would be 22 to 24 per cent cuts from NHS England and was that the scale of cuts his constituents could expect. Gareth Thomas (Harrow West) asked about why Britain was seeing the largest fall in wages of any country except Cyprus, Portugal and Greece.
The big constitutional crisis the UK faces hung over the House of Commons, but there was a feeling that parliament – which so often claims to be sovereign – was suddenly impotent.
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Sally Gimson is a journalist, a Labour councillor, and reviews PMQs on Progress
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