Yesterday enough Conservative MPs stayed in Parliament to defeat the government. By the time we got to the votes there were only just about 100 Labour MPs still there. The government was busy trying to set up yet more regional government bureaucracy and supervision in England. It was a pleasure to help vote down one of the motions, and disappointing that Labour then stirred themselves and called a few more MPs back to win the remaining votes.
Each motion proposed a Regional Grand Commmittee for a different part of the country should hold a meeting in the specified region to discuss that region’s response to the economic downturn. The votes recorded were as follows:
4.16pm South West 114 for, 105 against
4.27pm East Midlands 98 for, 104 against (government defeat)
4.38 pm South East 112 for, 105 against
4.49pm Yorkshire 118 for, 110 against
5.01pm East of England 120 for, 105 against
5.12pm North West 120 for, 105 against
5.23pm North East 121 for, 100 against
5.32pm West Midlands 124 for, 99 against.
June 26, 2009
More expensive socialist talking shops, that’s bound to fix the problem!
Maybe one or two are trying to create some more non-jobs for themselves when they lose their seats?
June 26, 2009
‘Divide and rule’ seems to be Labour’s aim in their unrelenting war on ‘their own’ and democracy.
Many aspects of the second world war are coming to the fore; Labour was voted in on empty rhetoric – propaganda – fooling the masses only to betray them.
The (undisclosed) ‘Nulabor Vision’ was ‘socialist totalitarnism’. Britain is now the most densely populated country in Europe and it’s citizens the most ‘spied on’ in the world.
June 26, 2009
Yes more jobs for the Boys and Girls.
Yet more expense, offices/staff/equipment/heat/light/power.
Probably have expenses as well !!!!!
Oh forgot about possible Pensions too.
June 26, 2009
The Labour party have not only lost one vote, on 1st July 2007 they lost atleast 10 million when they started to act like dictators.
June 26, 2009
Democracy? They are doing as they did in the early nineties. They placed many “officers” in councils to usurp the authority of elected Councillors. Now they are seeking to establish power bases regionally to undermine The Conservative Government. dreadful individuals but stil very powerful, sadly.
June 26, 2009
Correction, sorry.
“Dreadful individuals but still very powerful, sadly.”
June 26, 2009
I may be falling into an EU trap here, I know the EU wants to Carve our country up with its regionalising divide and conqEUr Policy but, if we had decision making powers at regional level it might not be bad Idea,
We could decide that the way out of the economic mess might be a local currency, however since these Regions report directly to Brussels, sidestepping Westminster, even this is not an option, the EU would have to have control, since they don’t allow this at National level, they wouldn’t at regional level, so I’m not going to fall into this trap.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NtSd0EOF3w
June 26, 2009
Nice one!
June 26, 2009
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/index_en.htm
There seems to be a lot of activity about regionalism just at the moment in the EU.
Regionalism makes a lot of sense in Germany, Italy, Spain and Poland, even, perhaps, in France too. In smaller countries, there is, of course, just one region.
Already in UK, Scotland, Ireland and Wales have been hived off again.
What the Eurocrats loathe is nationalism which, they consider, started two world wars and is therefore a Bad Thing.
We, of course, know that the UK is just one region divided into counties and cities, except for TV and Water. But – hey! – that’s nationalism!
So, congratulations for defeating this insane set of proposals.
June 26, 2009
Being resident in the East Midlands, I am delighted that the proposed ‘Grand Committee’ (that sounds very ‘soviet’ to me) for our region was voted down.
With one less layer of bureaucracy, we might just forge ahead with economic recovery faster than everywhere else !
June 26, 2009
It is sad that not only is the current government pretending that spending cuts are not required, it is creating more commitments for an incoming conservative government to cut.
June 26, 2009
[…] A Labour Government Planning for Opposition 5 – Regional Assemblies 2009 June 26 by manicbeancounter John Redwood points to a small victory for the Conservatives in the Commons yesterday in a vote on Regional Assemblies. […]
June 27, 2009
Dont talk to me about regional government; we are sick to death of it in the south-west. As example, the imposition of huge housing targets on rural and semi-rural areas has fueled enormous anger; many district and county councils have been furiously lobbied by residents. We have had no say in how much housing is needed, we have simply been told “you’re getting it, whether you like it or not”. It would be nice for the communities to work out how much is required; not some geographically distant pen-pusher.
June 27, 2009
Do I assume that 16 Labour MPs and 1 Tory had a train to catch between 4:16 and 4:27 pm? How come you didn’t have Tory MPs secreted in cupboards all over the building ready to ram raid the NO lobby?
June 27, 2009
Dear John. My first thought is that it’s a shame that a few more Tory MPs didn’t hang around with you to make Labour work a bit harder. I cannot see this as effective opposition.