Fraser Nelson Fraser Nelson

MPs should ask what they have done to preserve Parliament’s stature

I do feel for Her Majesty. This ordeal should be foisted on her only after an election. Having to read out the New Labour newspeak was bad enough, but the Brownian argot is dreadful. I do love the way she did it without any feeling – with a wearisome look in her eye – and the way Prince Philip was caught on camera apparently joking about throwing the speech in the bin. It was a pretty bald speech: just 13 pieces of legislation versus 21 in last year’s. After years of worsening child poverty, even by Brown’s narrow measures, he now legislates to “abolish” it by 2020 – as if that will achieve anything. Put that alongside some of the legislation announced for the banks, and it adds up to a whole load of gesture politics.

There’s also plenty here that will please Mr Brown’s trades union paymasters in the form of new regulation for businesses.

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