The government's "modest proposal"

David Cameron repeatedly described his government's proposals for "English votes for English laws" as "a modest proposal" at Prime Minister's Questions this afternoon.

The proposals give MPs representing English (or English and Welsh) constituencies an effective veto over proposed laws that are held to affect England (or England and Wales) only.

They also mean that detailed consideration of the bill would be limited to MPs from England, or England and Wales, and amendments from the House of Lords would have to secure the approval of a majority within the relevant group of MPs as well as overall.

Bills, or parts of bills, qualify for this treatment if they apply only to that particular area of the country, and a devolved parliament or assembly would have the power to pass that law in its own area. The Speaker of the House of Commons decides on this.

Experts from the Constitution Unit at University College London looked at the ambition of this scheme recently. They, too, used the word "modest", but concluded that overall, "the government's new proposals are pitched between the moderate and radical poles" of suggestions made over the years.