Hague: EVEL not tied to Scottish devolution timetable

Commons Leader William Hague has insisted plans to restrict voting on English issues to English MPs will not hold up further plans for Scotland. Speaking on the Scotland Tonight television programme last night he said the timetable for vows made on further devolution to Scotland "would be met in full".

Earlier he had laid out three options for "English votes for English laws" at Westminster, including giving English MPs enhanced scrutiny and a veto over new laws. He stopped short of offering a separate English parliament, or federalism. 

"Just as the people of Scotland will have more power over their affairs, it follows that the people of England, Wales and Northern Ireland will have an opportunity to have a bigger say over theirs," said Hague

 The Liberal Democrats added a plan to establish a grand committee of English MPs, with the right to veto legislation applying only England, with its members based on the share of the vote, while Labour accused the plans of being a "back room stitch-up", and "more in the interest of the Conservative Party than the country".