The honeymoon's over
It seems only last month, it was only last month, when Cheryl Gillan would roll her eyes in response to any journalist brave enough to raise constitutional issues with her.
These - the timing of referendums etc - were not the issues, she argued, that bothered most voters. Similarly, her predecessor, Peter Hain, used to argue that the pubs of Wales were not full of drinkers contemplating their constitutional navels.
They speak of little else in my local, and tonight will be little different. This is what David Cameron told the House of Commons this afternoon: "What we're going to do is allow the referendum to go ahead that was actually rather held up by the last government, so yes, a date will be named for that referendum and I believe it should be held next year and I believe there should be a free and open debate in Wales for that to happen."
Previously, as they say in all the best soap operas, the coalition government at this end of the M4 (Westminster) had merely suggested the coalition Assembly Government's preferred date of October might be a bit tight.
Speaking after Mr Cameron let the cat out of the bag, his Welsh Secretary Cheryl Gillan told us that, unsurprisingly, she agreed with the PM. She read out a long list of the hurdles a referendum would have to overcome before it could be called without risk of legal challenge.
This included 10 weeks to consult on the question, and 10 weeks for the referendum campaign - "you do the maths".
She promised to communicate her views to the First Minister, Carwyn Jones, but it appears we got there first.
A spokesman said: "We are disappointed about the issue of timing, as we understood the Electoral Commission could amend its timetable to accommodate a referendum this autumn.
"We are also dismayed to have been told of this announcement via the media and not through the formal channels of government.
"Indeed, we are surprised this announcement was made before we had received any communication from the Secretary of State.
"When we correspond with the Secretary of State, we ensure she has received the letter before Assembly Members are made aware of its contents."
It seems only last week, it was only last week that the Prime Minister, visiting the Welsh Assembly, promised to respect its wishes. His respect agenda's honeymoon seems to have ended rather abruptly.
Hello. I'm David Cornock and I'm parliamentary correspondent for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Wales. This is the blog for the latest news and gossip from the Westminster village - with a Welsh accent.
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