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Famous names back commission on constitution
By ROBBIE DINWOODIE, Chief Scottish Political Correspondent
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The organisers of the Constitutional Commission are claiming a major coup in attracting the support of Baroness Helena Kennedy, the leading QC who chaired the Power Inquiry into political participation.

John Drummond, who along with Canon Kenyon Wright was one of the founders of the commission, which aims to ensure that future reform of the way Scotland is governed is driven by its citizens, said they had also received support from the former Labour politician John McAllion and the writer William McIlvanney.

Baroness Kennedy, whose report Power to the People last year spoke of the need to "save British democracy from meltdown", said in a note to Canon Wright: "I support the Constitutional Commission. I am always enthusiastic about efforts to engage people in the political processes."

Mr Drummond stressed that the commission was non-partisan and, crucially in view of the events which will unfold after Thursday, was "open-minded about whether the future should involve stronger devolution or independence".

He said: "It is not cut and dried but much more fluid. None of us is in a position to pre-judge what will be decided by the Scottish people, but I think it makes sense for a future Scottish constitution to be drafted essentially by the people and then put to the politicians, rather than the other way around. It has really got nothing to do with party politics and everything to do with a country based on how its people think about themselves. We have to figure out what our constitutional backdrop is, and it is eminently sensible for a group of concerned citizens to try to pin this down."

The commission has four aims: to ensure that proposals for Scottish constitutional change are fully debated and decided in Scotland; to look at how the Power Inquiry's proposals for more participative government could be implemented in Scotland; to clarify the constitutional implications of various future relationships within the UK; and to prepare a draft Scottish constitution.

Mr Drummond said: "If Scotland is to have a written constitution, the Scottish principle that sovereignty resides with the people implies that it should be the people of Scotland who decide what it should contain, rather than a parliament or politicians. Similarly, it should be the people of Scotland who decide what relationship they want with England."

12:01am Monday 30th April 2007

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Posted by: The West Awake, Argyll on 3:58pm Mon 30 Apr 07
We don't need a convention. We just need to vote SNP.
Posted by: chris thomson, Spain on 6:40pm Mon 30 Apr 07
even if the SNP win a landlslide, we still need a Constitutional Commission, partly because there should be an intelligent framework in place for any negotations with England and Wales over where power resides, but also because, like any other country in the world, Scotland needs an enlighted constitution. The Commission welcomes all contributions at www.constitutionalcommission.org
Posted by: LJPR LEGAL JUDICIAL POLITICAL REFORMERS, west coast on 8:20pm Mon 30 Apr 07
The lack of NO constitution has been seriously detrimental to the failures of the political and legal structures in Scotland.This has greatly undermined democracy and the right of access to JUSTICE.

Helena Kennedy may provide soundbytes for such a constitution but as former Chairwoman of the British Council she did more to harm Britains legal system with her radical feminist dogma that was plastered all over the British Council website until we complained and she was eventually replaced by Neil Kinnock who wont be much better as he is now firmly part of the UK's Establishment.

http://www.britishcouncil.org/history-who-chairs.htm
Baroness Helena Kennedy 1998 to 2004

Scotland requires a leadership that has as much distance from the establishment despots that have ruled Scotland for to long and instead have close ties with the vast majority of ordinary Scots who have time and again been let down by the political mobsters disguised in their robes and regalia who ignore Scotlands people and only seek their approval at election time.

LJPR LEGAL JUDICIAL POLITICAL REFORMERS
http://www.ljpr.cjb.net

Posted by: Neil Robertson, Dundee, Scotland (previously in Gaza) on 2:26pm Fri 17 Aug 07
Her 'radical feminist dogma' was not I think the problem with Helena Kennedy's tenure as Chair of that appalling unaccountable Quango
The British Council. Rather it was her total
refusal to address any of the key governance
issues within that organisation - not least
its denial of rights of appeal to employment tribunals in the UK of the overseas language
teachers they sacked. This is not the kind of endorsement needed by any campaign for reform of the constitutional status of Scotland. If your Convention wants further information on British Council's abuse of its curious status,
I suggest you take a cold hard look at a web blog maintained by David Blackie of Norfolk, who is a direct descendant of David Dale of New Lanark: http://www.dblackie.

blogs.com/

Getting shot of this appalling organisation which is propped up by toadies like Helena
Kennedy and Neil Kinnock is one of the best
arguments I see for Scotland's independence.
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