TORIES’ SMASH AND GRAB ON SCOTLAND’S POWERS

In a debate on the UK Government’s new Internal Market Bill, I once again highlighted how this bill is an assault on devolution, by introducing a veto over the democratic wishes of the Scottish Parliament and limiting its ability to act in devolved areas. Despite the rhetoric of a ‘power surge’, these plans represent the greatest threat to devolution since the establishment of the Scottish Parliament, reserving the devolved policy of state aid, and giving powers to UK Ministers in devolved policy areas.

The Tories are clear that they wish to be able to legislate in Scotland, but they have long since abandoned any hope of winning an election here. Instead, they plan to simply overrule and undermine Scotland’s democratically elected Parliament and impose their will on a Scottish electorate that has consistently rejected them for decades.

These plans have been met by vociferous opposition from across Scottish society, from farmers to trade unions, educational establishments to legal experts. The irony is that those who portray themselves as the ‘defenders of the union’ are those who are pushing more and more people towards the cause of independence, through their sheer arrogance and incompetence. The more they seek to tighten their grasp on the Scottish Parliament, the more support for the Union is slipping through their fingers.

You can watch my contribution below.