Tory anger at votes for EU nationals

DAVID Cameron last night faced a backlash from angry Tory back-benchers after it emerged that foreign nationals will have a say in the break-up of the UK.

The government proposes to use the Scottish Parliament franchise, which means citizens of EU countries living in Scotland will be allowed to vote.

If the government had chosen the UK Parliament franchise instead, it would have limited it to British citizens in Scotland.

The revelation has infuriated English Tory back-benchers, who are already angry there is not a UK-wide referendum.

Meanwhile, many English students who will have started at Scottish universities by the time of the referendum will be blocked from voting, because the electoral roll, which is updated at the start of each year, will be out of date by the autumn of 2014.

Eurosceptic Tory MP Bill Cash said: “The government needs to recognise this affects the whole of the UK and voters across the UK should be allowed to vote.”

A UK government spokesman said the Scottish Parliament franchise was chosen because that is the one on which the SNP bases its mandate for a referendum.