Meeting of the Parliament 19 March 2026 [Draft]
That is an issue that I have looked at very closely. The conflict in the middle east is a subject that is causing members of the public enormous concern and unease, and it is having enormous ramifications for every citizen in our country in relation to energy prices, the cost of living, mortgage prices and the value of pension investments. There is going to be a real, serious and acute economic impact as a consequence of the unjust and unjustified conflict that is taking place in the middle east. I am deeply concerned about the situation that we face, given the escalation of events that has taken place in the course of the past few days, which has enormous environmental, economic and geopolitical implications for all of us.
As a consequence of that concern, I have looked closely at the situation in relation to Prestwick airport. The Scottish Government acquired Prestwick airport on the basis of an intervention that it was within our powers to exercise in relation to economic development and employment. If I were to take the appropriate steps to prevent flights from entering Scotland, I would need to exercise national security, aviation, air transport, defence and foreign affairs powers, all of which are reserved to the United Kingdom Government. I would like to be able to exercise powers in that respect, but I would be exceeding my constitutional authority if I did so. That is a matter of regret for me.
However, I am continuing to pursue dialogue with the United Kingdom Government, in order to address and raise the issues that Gillian Mackay has put to me today.