THIS time last week, I knew we had a difficult few days ahead of us in Westminster.
I knew we would be debating the EU Withdrawal Bill, which ignores the position of the Scottish Parliament, but I hadn’t foreseen just how shambolic the proceedings would be.
We are witnessing a constitutional crisis where devolution is being dismantled and Scottish people are being completely ignored as the UK leaves the EU – but we weren’t even given the opportunity to debate this issue in the chamber.
Devolution was given just 15 minutes by a Tory government minister, and not one Scottish MP was given the opportunity to speak. It was an absolute scandal.
I wouldn’t be doing my job – as the SNP’s leader at Westminster or as a Scottish MP - if I didn’t make a stand against the UK Government’s power-grab.
The SNP cannot stand by while Scotland’s voice is silenced and our devolution settlement – which Scotland overwhelming voted for – is put at risk.
The Brexit legislation leaves Holyrood exposed to having powers taken without consent in areas including trade deals, environmental standards and food safety – all issues of key concern to the Scottish Parliament.
The SNP tabled amendments to the UK Government’s EU Withdrawal Bill to protect the Scottish Parliament from a power grab and the Scottish Parliament overwhelmingly refused consent to the Bill; as well as the SNP, Labour, the Greens and the Lib Dems in Holyrood voted to refuse to give consent to Westminster’s damaging Brexit legislation.
At Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday I asked the Prime Minister to do the right thing. I asked that she bring forward emergency legislation to the EU Withdrawal Bill so that the will of the Scottish Parliament and of the Scottish people could be heard.
She denied my request.
I was then forced to call for the House of Commons to sit in private – using parliament’s own procedures to ensure Scotland’s voice is heard on Brexit. For this, I was excluded, asked to leave Parliament, and my colleagues walked out with me in support.
We have a duty to stand up against the betrayal that has taken place with the Tories' unprecedented power grab. We need to, we must and we will stand up for Scotland's interests. Events in Westminster have been absolutely outrageous.
As MPs return to Westminster tomorrow, myself and my SNP colleagues will use an emergency debate to debate devolution.
We have been granted the debate by the Speaker to ensure the case for protecting the devolution settlement is heard. While this is important – the UK Government needs to act.
The Prime Minister gave a commitment that she would treat Scotland as part of a "union of equals". Yet she pressed ahead with a power grab in direct opposition to Scotland’s elected Parliament. To right this wrong she must bring forward emergency legislation which protects the devolution settlement.
The Tories haven't won a democratic mandate from the people of Scotland for over 60 years, yet they press on to claw back powers from Holyrood without consent.
They fought so hard against our Parliament’s reconvening, and now they are dismantling the 1998 devolution settlement. The Tories' respect for Scotland is skin deep at best.
Last week, I was doing my job – standing up for Scotland in Westminster.
History will remember this as a defining moment when the UK Parliament chose to reject devolution, and this will rightly haunt the Scottish Tories for a generation.
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