SCOTTISH MPs should be banned from ministerial jobs in charge of English affairs, according to a poll of British voters by The Sunday Times.

More than two-thirds of those polled believe Scottish MPs should not be allowed to vote on laws that apply solely to England and almost 80% think too much public money is spent on Scotland.

The evidence of mounting concern among English voters follows Jeremy Paxman’s claims in The Sunday Times last month that England is being ruled by “a Scottish Raj”. There were six Scots in the cabinet before the election was called — Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, John Reid, Alistair Darling, Ian McCartney and Lord Falconer. The apparent anti-Scottish backlash among voters will have to be taken on board by whoever wins the election.

The Tory leader Michael Howard is committed to banning Scottish MPs from Commons votes on matters that have been devolved to Holyrood, but he has no plans to limit the role of Scots in the cabinet and has pledged to retain the Barnett formula, which means public spending in Scotland is 20% higher per head than in England.

The poll of nearly 1,500 voters, conducted last week, found that English concerns have hardened in recent months after the support of Scots MPs allowed Blair to force through unpopular plans for university top-up fees in English and Welsh universities.

English politicians and campaigners have also complained that high levels of funding from Westminster have allowed Scots to benefit from free personal care for the elderly and the abolition of student tuition fees. Neither policy has been introduced in England.

A similar poll by YouGov in February last year found that 46% of voters were opposed to Scots MPs being in charge of English affairs. That figure has risen by 14 points to 60%.

The proportion who believe only English MPs should vote on purely English matters has risen three points to 70%.

Opposition to higher spending in Scotland — designed to take account of the greater cost of providing public services to a more widely-dispersed population — has risen from 60% to 76% over the same period.

Despite rising dissatisfaction with what many English voters see as Scots’ undue influence in their affairs, people across Britain retain an attachment to the union. Almost 60% say they would prefer Scotland to remain within the UK.

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