Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 29 November 2022
29 Nov 2022 · S6 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill
On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I seek your guidance in respect of this afternoon’s Government debate, which, on the face of it, appears to cut across an inquiry into the consenting or otherwise to a legislative consent motion that is currently before a committee of the Parliament.
The guidance that I seek relates to rule 6.2 of standing orders, which is on the functions of all committees and which, to gather it all together, suggests that the role of the committees is to hold the Scottish Government to account when it comes to policy and administration, and to deal with proposals for legislation—under which, I believe, the legislative consent motion falls.
My concern is that the motion on which we will be asked to vote pre-empts an opinion from the committee, to which members would rightly look for advice as to how to vote later on that legislative consent motion.
I seek your guidance on the apparent anomaly that has occurred.
In the same item of business
The Presiding Officer (Alison Johnstone)
NPA
The next item of business—
Martin Whitfield (South Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I seek your guidance in respect of this afternoon’s Government debate, which, on the face of it, appears to cut acros...
The Presiding Officer
NPA
I thank Mr Whitfield for his point of order. There have been instances when the Parliament has debated matters that are the subject of committee scrutiny pri...
The Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture (Angus Robertson)
SNP
I would like to return to the Brexit freedoms bill, which was last discussed in the chamber on 22 June. At that time, I said that the bill would have “a dam...
Martin Whitfield
Lab
Would the cabinet secretary agree that that cliff edge means that there is the potential that there are regulations that we do not even know about that will ...
Angus Robertson
SNP
Indeed. That is yet another reason why the bill should be consigned to the dustbin of history. I will come back to the Labour amendment, which I very much we...
Sarah Boyack (Lothian) (Lab)
Lab
It would be helpful to know what changes to the bill the cabinet secretary is suggesting so that we can get proper transparency from the Scottish Government ...
Angus Robertson
SNP
Indeed, and that is what we have already done. The amendments have been tabled in committee. I am grateful for the support of Labour members on that committe...
Donald Cameron (Highlands and Islands) (Con)
Con
I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests, which shows that I am a member of the Faculty of Advocates. It is not often that I get to...
Fergus Ewing (Inverness and Nairn) (SNP)
SNP
The Presiding Officer has, of course, ruled that today’s parliamentary proceedings can continue. I recall that, during the 2016 referendum on EU membership,...
Donald Cameron
Con
I am not quite sure of the purpose of that intervention. I voted remain; that is on the record. I am not naive about the politics of this debate. The cabine...
Jenni Minto (Argyll and Bute) (SNP)
SNP
Will the member take an intervention?
Stuart McMillan (Greenock and Inverclyde) (SNP)
SNP
Will the member take an intervention?
Donald Cameron
Con
No. I have already taken an intervention. Today’s debate is contrary to the principle of proper and objective scrutiny by the Parliament. By holding the deb...
Sarah Boyack (Lothian) (Lab)
Lab
Today, we are again debating the fallout of Brexit, which is a situation entirely of the Tory Government’s own making. I think that we are now on our third T...
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Liam McArthur)
LD
I advise members in the chamber that there is quite a bit of time in hand, so you will certainly get the time back for any interventions that you take. I ca...
Willie Rennie (North East Fife) (LD)
LD
Here we are, again. Frustratingly, we are stuck in yet another debate about process. The UK Conservative Government is being cavalier, but I cannot help but...
Fergus Ewing
SNP
I am most grateful to Willie Rennie for giving way, and I promise that I will not be at all “processy”. I think that he invented that word. There is not much...
Willie Rennie
LD
Now it is Mr Fergus Ewing who is inventing words and putting them in Ed Davey’s mouth. Ed Davey is very pro-European. He has made the case for a closer relat...
Bob Doris (Glasgow Maryhill and Springburn) (SNP)
SNP
Willie Rennie mentioned a federal UK, which sounds a bit processy. How can we really stand up for Scotland’s interests? Surely the best way is by scrapping B...
Willie Rennie
LD
A federalism debate would be the process debate to finish all process debates—I hope including the process debate about independence that seems never, ever t...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
We move to the open debate. Again, I note that we have plenty of time in hand. 15:15
Jenni Minto (Argyll and Bute) (SNP)
SNP
I will open with a slightly amended quotation from a novel that was written on Jura almost 75 years ago. It is George Orwell’s “Nineteen Eighty-Four”. “It w...
Jim Fairlie (Perthshire South and Kinross-shire) (SNP)
SNP
The editorial director of Le Monde, Sylvie Kauffman, said, a couple of years ago, “Watching the long descent of Westminster into something resembling hell h...
Sarah Boyack
Lab
Will you tell us where in the motion, as amended by our amendment, it says that we are staying in the European Union? This is about retained EU law, so there...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
Through the chair, please.
Jim Fairlie
SNP
I am not entirely convinced where Sarah Boyack’s intervention comes from. I am talking about the fact that her party is now entirely committed to Brexit. If...
Alex Rowley (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab)
Lab
The Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill does not, in itself, make any major policy changes directly. It is a framework bill that provides extensive ...
Kaukab Stewart (Glasgow Kelvin) (SNP)
SNP
I make no apology for starting my speech by expressing my on-going dismay and anger at the position that Scotland finds itself in with regard to EU membershi...
Alex Rowley
Lab
It is disappointing to hear the approach that you are taking. Labour has opposed the bill at Westminster and we are absolutely opposed to it here. You seem t...