Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 07 June 2022
The motion states that the Parliament resolves that
“the statement laid by ... Ministers ... under Section 7(1) of the UK Withdrawal from the European Union (Continuity) (Scotland) Act 2021 should not be approved.”
The opposition of members on the Conservative benches to the statement that ministers have laid is based on two points—first, a broad general one and, secondly, more technical arguments about Government transparency to Parliament.
In relation to the first and broader point, we, on the Conservative benches, firmly disagree with the stated policy of aligning with European Union law. The ramifications of Brexit have divided opinion sharply in Scotland and the wider United Kingdom, but the plain fact is that the UK has left the European Union and now has a trade agreement with the EU. However much the Scottish National Party resents that, the fact remains that we are outside the decision-making processes of the EU, we have no democratic input into the EU’s institutions, and we have very little—if any—influence on the legislative choices that the EU makes. However, the SNP insists on having the power to keep pace and align with EU law. That is, of course, predicated on the SNP’s desire to break up the UK and rejoin the EU at the earliest opportunity.
Further, it is notable that, according to a report dated 10 May 2022, not once has the Scottish Government used the keeping pace power—not once. Despite the warnings of the cabinet secretary’s predecessor in the previous session of Parliament, who kept saying that the keeping pace power was crucial and necessary, it has not been used at all. Perhaps more strikingly, there are no plans to use it in the future, as the Scottish Government’s report says in black and white.
Given that background, we are entitled to ask why the power has not been used, why there are no plans to use it and, more generally, what the point is of continuing alignment with EU law. For those very broad reasons, we ask Parliament to support my motion.
The second limb of our opposition is more technical but equally important and picks up on some of the points that the Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee made in a letter to the cabinet secretary dated 26 May this year, in relation to transparency to Parliament around the alignment process. The committee’s view was that
“we do not have that transparency at the moment.”
In particular, we, on the Conservative benches, are concerned that the revised statement of policy does not make clear how the Government will make decisions about which EU laws to align with and which not to align with. We are concerned that there is no commitment to set out which EU laws the Scottish Government has decided not to align with so far. Lastly, we are worried that the Government’s decision not to provide details of consultations that include consideration of whether or not to align is disproportionate and contrary to the transparency that Parliament deserves.
For all those reasons, I ask Parliament to support my motion.
I move,
That the Parliament agrees that the statement laid by the Scottish Ministers on 10 May 2022 under Section 7(1) of the UK Withdrawal from the European Union (Continuity) (Scotland) Act 2021 should not be approved.
17:04