Boris Johnson will today use the Queen’s Speech, setting out the priorities of his “People’s Government,” to underline the “utmost importance of the integrity and prosperity of the United Kingdom”.
The key message will coincide with Nicola Sturgeon’s renewed demand for a second vote on Scotland’s future, which will again be forcefully rebuffed by the Prime Minister.
The programme for the new Tory Government is not expected to contain any surprises and is, for the most part, the same as the one announced in October at the end of the last Parliament.
However, in light of the General Election it will contain legislative commitments to finish the EU trade deal by December 2020 in the new Withdrawal Agreement Bill and pour more money into the NHS in England in an NHS Funding Bill; some £33.9bn by 2023/24, which will, in itself, mean £3bn a year more for the Scottish Government in that year.
Speaking to nurses at a Downing Street reception, Mr Johnson described the NHS as the “single greatest institution in this country and it’s absolutely vital that we as political leaders, all kinds and all levels, understand what is going on in the NHS. You are doing an incredible job”.
Acknowledging the enormous pressures and demands on the NHS, the PM stressed how the Conservative Government was putting the largest investment into the public service in living memory.
“We have to keep that investment going. We have to keep supporting you. I would like to thank you for everything you do,” said Mr Johnson.
In his Commons address on the Queen’s Speech the PM will set out the Government’s plans to make 2020 a “year of opportunity, growth and unity for Scotland, not of further division”.
He will refer to the investment going into Scotland, including £1.4bn in city and growth deals, a £1.2bn cash windfall on the back of the latest spending round and an additional £211 million for Scottish farmers.
Downing St pointed out how the Gracious Speech would underline how a second independence referendum next year would be a “damaging distraction, that would undermine the decisive result of the 2014 referendum and the promise made to the Scottish people that it was a once-in-a-generation vote”.
The Government programme will aim to “unite and level up the country with wide-ranging domestic reform,” including increasing pupil funding in England, measures to ensure terrorists spend longer behind bars and to end vexatious clams against Armed Forces members.
- READ MORE: No 10 knocks back idea of creating new Cabinet role of Secretary of State for Constitution
Meanwhile, the SNP produced its own “alternative Queen’s Speech,” 12 bills that would facilitate an independence referendum, raise healthcare spending in England to the level it is in Scotland, scrap Trident and begin the process of abolishing the House of Lords.
Ian Blackford – who was re-elected as Westminster leader unanimously by his parliamentary colleagues – said: “The SNP Alternative Queen's Speech sets out our priorities to ensure Scotland's right to choose our own future is respected, to protect our NHS, end austerity, boost our economy, and deliver real action to tackle the climate emergency.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel