Tom Richmond: A new democratic energy that must not go to waste

Five days on and a once-in-a-generation opportunity to harness this momentum for the greater good of all is being squandered. What do we have? David Cameron and Ed Miliband putting self-interest and electoral calculations first – albeit for differing reasons – over “English votes for English laws” and Alex Salmond, Scotland’s outgoing First Minister, crying foul.

No wonder trust and respect for all politicians is at an all-time low. People don’t want to be spoken to. They want to be listened to as the whole of Britain comes to terms with the ramifications of Scots voting to stay in the United Kingdom by the tantalisingly small margin. Already five lessons are becoming clear.

n 1. The United Kingdom’s future governance must take precedence. Instead of constitutional change being determined by Scotland’s best interests, a consensus first needs to be reached for the whole country – including the Celtic nations and English regions. Change should be driven by cities and communities rather than being imposed by London.

It is revealing that Tam Dalyell, the MP who coined the so-called ‘West Lothian Question’ in the late 1970s, cannot envisage Scottish MPs being denied the right to vote on English laws. His is solution, ironically, is the abolition of the Scottish Parliament and a return to the old county structure of local government.

As for Lord Barnett, whose formula gives a disproportionate amount of public funding to the Scots, he has admitted that he used fudged data to get Jim Callaghan’s government out of a fix during the 1978-79 “winter of discontent” when over-exaggerating Scotland’s population – and was as surprised when David Cameron, Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg pledged to maintain this flawed framework in their “vow” to the Scottish people.

n 2. Gordon Brown is not a political saviour. The raw passion of the former Prime Minister’s campaign speeches has been eulogised by many, but he sought – without Parliamentary approval – to give away the keys to the kingdom with a series of promises that could prove impossible to meet. Yes, his desire to preserve the UK was sincere – but his reputation for crudeness and Machiavellian politics is without parallel.

It will suit Brown down to the ground if Cameron is now forced by his backbenchers to renege upon his commitments to Scotland; he will be able to portray the Tories as the villains when all they have done is question the spending spree of a former Chancellor and PM who nearly bankrupted the country.

n 3. Yorkshire’s MPs should take the initiative. Rather than waiting for the Government’s plan, I would like to see a meeting of every Yorkshire MP – including the region’s big hitters – to discover whether there is sufficient common ground to forge a consensus.

They all say that they want more economic growth powers for the region; let’s see if they can work together for a change. After all, every MP’s first duty should be to their constituents.