| – Replace the House of Lords with a National Parliament – Establish an English Parliament – Create a UK Central Bank – Reset the mechanisms of the United Kingdom’s constitution – Protect and maintain this historic and successful Union |
| The Constitution Reform Group (CRG) has launched its new Act of Union Bill 2021, which would establish a new political and financial framework for equal cooperation between England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Bill has been launched to initiate a much-needed nationwide conversation on a ‘third way’ for the future of the United Kingdom, to break the restrictive dichotomy of ‘status quo versus independence’ being maintained by regional separatist movements. The CRG is calling on all pro-Union political parties to express their support for its core aim, which is to debate, introduce and complete any reform necessary to save the Union. It is also calling on all separatist movements to confirm publicly whether they would seek to renegotiate the framework of the United Kingdom before supporting its dissolution. For the past six years, the CRG has worked with leading constitutional lawyers and experts to draft this extensive legislation, which is comprehensive and internally logical and consistent. The Bill’s implementation would provide the four constituent parts of the United Kingdom a clearer view of their local autonomy and clearly define the scope and purpose of their cooperation. It includes options for consideration by Parliament and the electorate to replace the House of Lords with a National Parliament and another to establish an English Parliament. It also includes provisions to reset the mechanisms of the Union, such as the creation of a UK Central Bank, which would better and more equally serve the interests of all parts of the United Kingdom. Before Royal Assent, the Bill would be put to the people of the United Kingdom for approval in a referendum. Robert Salisbury, Chairman of the CRG’s Steering Committee, said: “The Group is convinced that the break-up of the United Kingdom would be a tragic and fundamental strategic blunder and end an intimate partnership that has been astonishingly successful, culturally and economically, and which has stood as a powerful defence of its people’s values and liberties in a dangerous world. “If the Union is to endure and prosper, the U.K. must be refashioned, and a new constitutional settlement is a necessary part of that refashioning.” The CRG was established after the 2014 Scottish independence referendum to devise a new path for the Union by addressing existing and developing constitutional inequalities between the four parts of the United Kingdom. Its membership includes former First Ministers of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and senior figures from across the political spectrum, who cooperate with the common belief that the United Kingdom is stronger together. The Group believes that reform of the United Kingdom’s constitution, although complex, is a significantly more desirable task than negotiating its undoing. They are therefore trying to raise awareness of the feasibility of a ‘third way’ and of the need for a wider national conversation on what must be done to ensure the United Kingdom stays together as one family. |
| Constitution Reform Group Steering Committee: Marquess of Salisbury KG KCVO PC DL, Chairman Bim Afolami MP David BurnsideThe Rt Hon the Lord Campbell of Pittenweem CH CBE QC Shana Fleming OBE Joanna George Daniel Greenberg CB The Rt Hon the Lord Hain The Rt Hon Carwyn Jones AM Sir Andrew Large Lord Lisvane KCB DL FLSW Seema Malhotra MP The Rt Hon the Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale David Melding AM CBE Sir Paul Silk KCB FLSW The Baroness Stuart of Edgbaston The Rt Hon the Lord Trimble Constitution Reform Group Sub-Committee on Public MoneyMembers include: Sir Andrew Large (Chairman) – Deputy Governor of the Bank of England and a member of its Monetary Policy Committee from September 2002 to January 2006. Sir John Gieve KCB – Former British civil servant, Deputy Governor for Financial Stability of the Bank of England and ex officio member of the Monetary Policy Committee, 2006 to 2009. Lord Macpherson of Earl’s Court GCB – Permanent Secretary to the Treasury, 2005 to 2016. David Peretz CB – Former Under Secretary for Home Finance and Monetary Policy HM Treasury, Executive Director of the IMF and World Bank, G7 Financial Sherpa, and Chair of Bermuda’s independent Fiscal Responsibility Panel. |