Let's be honest, English regional gov neither fosters a shared identity or is very efficient (unlike say Germany's). Labour is willing to take on this challenge, this big idea. But as the Quiet Riot points out, it's just a money-saving exercise; identity doesn't come into it. 8 - ThreadSky

nialloconghaile.bsky.social • 34 days ago

Let's be honest, English regional gov neither fosters a shared identity or is very efficient (unlike say Germany's).

Labour is willing to take on this challenge, this big idea. But as the Quiet Riot points out, it's just a money-saving exercise; identity doesn't come into it.

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nialloconghaile.bsky.social•34 days ago

Why does this matter? One of the antecedents of Brexit was the Celtic nations getting their own parliaments and increasingly a sense of identity (often European) Many argued the English felt left out.

So when Brexit came about, esp. after #Indy1, the English had opposition to Europe as identity

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nialloconghaile.bsky.social•34 days ago

Many say that if the English had had their own Parliament, Brexit wouldn't have happened.

Maybe. But in a conflict between first minister Farage, leader of the English parliament, and PM Cameron in Westminster using Celtic votes to "thwart the will of the (English) people", who'd win?

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nialloconghaile.bsky.social•34 days ago

There aren't really such unbalanced polities around in the world today (which makes sense, as they are unbalanced). There were in the past. They've generally resolved themselves in two ways.

I call them the Russia solution.

And the Prussia solution.

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nialloconghaile.bsky.social•34 days ago

The USSR was a similarly unbalanced polity, formed as it was (perhaps not dissimilarly to the UK?) via Russian imperialism. It couldn't continue with such an overweening central state, so when the time game, not only did the Soviet republics leave, but indeed Russia itself left the union.

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nialloconghaile.bsky.social•34 days ago

The other solution refers to the pre-federal-republic Germany. It too had a dominant state - Prussia - whose identity formed much of what made of Germanness both to Germans and to outsiders.

The solution here was to break up Prussia into many of the famous Laender that make up Germany today.

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nialloconghaile.bsky.social•34 days ago

At the moment, the UK seems on course to a Russia solution to its imbalance.

Done correctly and skilfully, regional government organisation and making those regions the units of the UK, could make that state not just function, but survive.

(I doubt Whitehall will face this big idea.)

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mikeiona.bsky.social•27 days ago

Yes, but it took a Russian nationalist in Yeltsin as the leader of the largest state to break up the Union.

mermaidspursej.bsky.social•34 days ago

Just to point out that although Farage has always been very noisy, he has never gained very many votes in England himself.

The idea of him being popular enough to be English FM is itself vapour.

nialloconghaile.bsky.social•34 days ago

Okay, meant it as an example. Take instead PM Starmer v FM Badenoch.

nialloconghaile.bsky.social•34 days ago

Farage's lot have finished first in elections in England in the past, incidentally. So not vapours.

mermaidspursej.bsky.social•34 days ago

The feature of the elections he has won has been low turnout. This is also true of Clacton.

He does better when areas are very polarised and the majority have given up with both sides.

mermaidspursej.bsky.social•34 days ago

That's much more likely.

mermaidspursej.bsky.social•34 days ago

I should also point out that (and this isn't an insult, just a statement of fact) Farage is not very intelligent, so if he ever did achieve a significant amount of political responsibility, he would quickly be found out.
He is best suited to short statements before vanishing down his burrow again.

nialloconghaile.bsky.social•34 days ago

He's ideal as insurgent leader of the English assembly, blaming them up in London for everything.

mermaidspursej.bsky.social•34 days ago

You said yourself earlier that the English don't like big ideas and high flown rhetoric. You can put insurgents in the same box.

tidybox.bsky.social•33 days ago

Interesting concept. An English Parliament, centred outside London, would give more balanced representation across the regions. There would be less reason for agitators like the Reform Party to exist. They be pushed back to the fringes.

nialloconghaile.bsky.social•33 days ago

It would destroy the UK.

nialloconghaile.bsky.social•33 days ago

Maybe Irish Republicans should have that as an aim?

tidybox.bsky.social•33 days ago

The UK will be limping through this next century until it adopts a federal system of governance. As it stands, I think the current system is untenable. Metro mayors are a start, but they really needs to be embraced by every authority to make any real change.

nialloconghaile.bsky.social•33 days ago

Metro mayors don't cut it. That doesn't change the imbalanced polity. There is a major issue there.

skzcartoons.bsky.social•34 days ago

I get your point but "efficient" is not an adjective one can apply to German govt. Not by a very long way.

Last year, my (German) ex wife had to run around town to find a fax machine because one govt dept would only accept documents by fax.

I am not making this up, I promise.

skzcartoons.bsky.social•34 days ago

The German govt also literally told me that they were months behind on paperwork but would get to my flat sale at some point. A job which should take a week took months and all they'd say is "meh, it's in the queue but we're not saying where".

Yeah

German govt is definitely not efficient!

nialloconghaile.bsky.social•34 days ago

I don't mean efficient in that sense. I mean that the units are mostly big enough to do major jobs and coherent enough to function across their territory. They also deliver results.

Yes, backwardness on technology is startling - just try paying by card.

skzcartoons.bsky.social•34 days ago

Gotcha! And yes. Having to carry cash around was a really jarring experience when I lived there. "What do you MEAN you don't take cards? Are we in a famous 1980s movie involving a Delorian?"

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