BORIS Johnson plans to give 111 extra powers to the Scottish Parliament when the Brexit transition period ends.
Plans announced by Downing Street would see the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish governments receive powers previously controlled by the EU.
They are part of measures to legislate for an internal market within the UK come December 31, which will be open for consultation tomorrow.
The internal markets trade bill includes a “mutual recognition” regime which would see goods move freely within the country.
Even if Scotland or Wales upheld different standards for goods or services, they would still have to accept them from England.
The move comes after the SNP earlier today held a debate in the Commons where they protested about the so-called “power grab” from the Conservatives, arguing that the Prime Minister was disrespecting devolution.
Read More: Westminster trade bill "most signficiant threat to devolution yet"
Ian Blackford, SNP Westminster leader, told MPs that “UK relations with the Scottish Government are worse than ever under this Prime Minister’s leadership.”
He continued: “We have been increasingly concerned at the lack of any meaningful consultation with the Scottish Government and other devolved nations on the Brexit talks and at the growing threat of a Tory power grab in devolved areas, including agriculture and food standards—all for a Brexit fantasy that Scotland never gave its consent to and that is now being used as a power grab from the Scottish Parliament, and for a future that we never voted for.”
The SNP clams the approach could force supermarkets in Scotland to sell inferior quality food, such as chlorinated chicken from the US.
However Downing Street insists the plans are “pro-devolution” and will provide extra powers to Holyrood than they had before, as well as to governments in Cardiff and Belfast.
A No.10 official said: “What was being proposed is the system of mutual recognition and non-discrimination as in other countries around the world like Australia and Switzerland.
“There shouldn’t be any areas that are then impacted...The reason for this is the principle of mutual recognition and to protect trade and jobs. This is so we can continue to trade barrier-free throughout the UK, as has obviously been the case for hundreds of years, and what it means is that a regulation from one part of the UK will be recognised all across the country.”
Read more: Blackford: Scottish Parliament 'under attack' by Tory Government
When asked if the plans were a “power grab” the official said: “It is just not, The question for the Scottish Government is why is it okay to be set at EU level but not at UK level where we have Scottish MPs directly voting on measures?
“So it’s not, and if they want to influence things more they shouldn’t have walked away from this work stream in spring of 2019. We will try to engage in good faith throughout this consultation. ”
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove said the plan was a “power surge” for devolved governments.
He said: “As powers flow back from Brussels to the devolved administrations in Edinburgh, Belfast and Cardiff - as well as to the UK Government - we want to build on the good progress we have already made. We will develop new ways of working together and learning from each other to help create more opportunities for jobs and investment for businesses and citizens across the United Kingdom. “
Among the additional powers Westminster claims will be shifted from the EU to Holyrood are laws around public procurement, air quality, maritime legislation, energy efficiency and water quality.
Mr Gove said: “ So we will work over the coming weeks with the devolved administrations in Cardiff, Belfast and Edinburgh on a new structure for how we can cooperate better and share ideas, and we will be bringing proposals to the table to agree a way forward.
“We should be learning from one another, combining the expertise of each nation to share ideas, innovation and, where appropriate, put in place processes for voluntary cooperation.
“People right across the UK want their Governments and institutions to work together at every level to improve their lives, and the UK Government is committed to working to do this.”
“Our proposals respect and strengthen devolution. I hope the Scottish Government will work with us as we take this forward for the benefit of businesses and consumers in Scotland.”
Read More: Westminster trade bill "most signficiant threat to devolution yet"
Business Secretary Alok Sharma said: “The UK’s internal market has functioned seamlessly for centuries. When we exit the Transition Period at the end of the year, we want to ensure the most successful political and economic union of nations in the world continues to grow and thrive.
“This plan protects jobs and livelihoods. Without these necessary reforms, the way we trade goods and services between the home nations could be seriously impacted, harming the way we do business within our own borders.
“Ensuring businesses will be able to continue trading freely across all four corners of the UK without the burden of inconsistent regulation or additional costs will be essential as we fire up our economic engines as we recover from coronavirus.”
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