BRITAIN:British prime minister Gordon Brown has unveiled radical plans to cede executive power in key areas, including the decision to wage war, as part of his "route map" toward a new British constitutional settlement.
However Conservative leader David Cameron, while welcoming some of the government's proposals, has drawn future battle lines with Mr Brown over an inquiry into the Iraq war, a referendum on the new amending EU treaty and "English votes on English laws" in answer to the devolution settlements in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
In their first Commons exchanges since last week's handover from Tony Blair, Mr Cameron raised the famous "West Lothian question", signalling that the Tories may intend to make Mr Brown's Scottishness a major issue for his premiership.
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Menzies Campbell joined the controversy, telling Mr Brown he would not be able to ignore the role of Scots, Welsh and Northern Ireland MPs at Westminster. "I believe there is an issue here that cannot simply be dismissed," he told the house, from which all nine DUP MPs were again absent.
"We will do nothing to put at risk the union," Mr Brown told Mr Cameron, dismissing the creation of "two classes of MPs" and quoting shadow home secretary David Davis, who had previously argued that English-only votes on English laws would "cause constitutional chaos".
The prime minister said he was prepared "to look at proposals to strengthen the United Kingdom in the light of devolution".
He said justice secretary Jack Straw would consult the parties and peoples across the nations and regions of the UK in the search for consensus on a new constitutional settlement necessary to restore trust in government, give more power to parliament and make government "a better servant of the people".
In a brisk performance, however, Mr Cameron said it was "the failure to answer" the West Lothian question that was "putting the union at risk", while it was "broken promises" and the failure of ministers to give "straight answers" that eroded trust.
"We have two classes of MP already," he declared, pressing Mr Brown as to why the prime minister could vote on health and education issues affecting his English constituency, while Mr Cameron could not vote on the same issues affecting Mr Brown's Scottish constituents.
The only answer, he suggested, was to give English MPs "the decisive say" on matters affecting only England.
Mr Cameron said Mr Brown had been "at the heart of a government that, more than any other in living memory, has damaged trust in politics", adding: "We simply do not see that he can be the change the country needs."
The key proposals announced by Mr Brown would give parliament the power to wage war and ratify international treaties, establish Commons committees for every English region and create a new ministerial code of conduct.
While the Church of England would remain the "established" church, Mr Brown would give up his power to appoint bishops. MPs would hold hearings on key public appointments and the public would be consulted about moving elections to weekends, the potential lowering of the voting age to 16 and the possible creation of a British bill of rights.