What is the West Lothian question?

Since the opening of the Scottish parliament in Holyrood in 1998, Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) have powers over certain areas of Scottish policy—healthcare for example, is fully devolved to Scotland. MPs at the House of Commons are unable to vote on legislation passed at Holyrood, yet MPs from Scotland can vote on all legislation at Westminster. The West Lothian question, named after the constituency of Tam Dalyell, the Labour MP who first raised the issue in 1977, addresses this imbalance, and asks if there should be English votes for English laws. It queries whether Scottish MPs should have the power to vote on issues which do not affect them.

Why is it important now?

In their successful bid to secure a No vote in Thursday’s independence referendum, all three main Westminster parties pledged to hand over additional powers for Scotland. If Scotland is going to have less to do with the Union, politically speaking, some ask whether its MPs should still be allowed to have a say on issues which affect the rest of the UK. On the day after the referendum, David Cameron therefore announced two processes: one chaired by Lord Smith of Kelvin to oversee devolution to Scotland, with draft legislation agreed by January, and another to find an answer to the West Lothian question by the same deadline, overseen by William Hague.

How might it be resolved?

There are two possible options on the table. One, backed by Ukip and the right flank of the Tory party, is the creation of an entirely separate English parliament with jurisdiction over English issues. The other, perhaps more mainstream, alternative is to exclude Scottish MPs from Westminster debates on legislation which does not affect their constituencies. However, this has led to fears of the creation of second-class MPs. Resolution, it should be said, still looks some way away, with a split over the issue developing within the opposition Labour party. Labour leader Ed Miliband has expressed his opposition to Cameron's West Lothian timetable, calling for a constitutional convention to resolve the matter next autumn, though former Labour Cabinet Minister Ben Bradshaw has reportedly opposed this view (according to the Telegraph), following a private meeting of Labour figures.