VOTE WILL ‘HAUNT LABOUR FOR YEARS’ AS THEY CONTINUE THEIR DEMISE IN SCOTLAND
The SNP has accused anti-independence politicians of supporting taking back control from the Scottish Parliament and handing it to Westminster after they failed to condemn UK Tory government power grabs.
In a sign of contempt for devolution, Tory MSP Donald Cameron claimed during a Holyrood debate that there should be ‘no limit’ on where Westminster decides to spend money in Scotland, even in the face of devolved responsibilities.
During the debate, MSPs had an opportunity to back the Scottish Parliament and its devolved powers in spite of a Tory power grab, but Labour, the Lib Dems and the Tories all voted in favour of undermining the Scottish Parliament and its powers.
Commenting, SNP MSP Michelle Thomson said: “This decision will haunt Labour for years to come and shows how they continue to sink into the abyss in Scotland and will continue to do so if they work in lockstep with the Tories to undermine our democratically elected Scottish Parliament.
“How sad it is that two of the political parties who campaigned for so long for Scotland to have its own parliament are now teaming up with the Tory party, which opposed devolution tooth and nail, to cut Holyrood’s powers.
“Unsurprisingly the Tories are unable to express their support for the future of the Scottish Parliament, their Westminster bosses and their constant attempts to undermine devolution have been plain for all to see with blatant power grab after power grab.
“However, it is outrageous that Labour and the Lib Dems supported that position in step with the Tories, even in the face of the extraordinary comments from Tory MSP Donald Cameron that Westminster should ‘decide’ how money is spent in devolved areas.
“We all know too well what happens when the Tories decide how to spend money in Scotland. They decide to cut, they decide to hand out public contracts to their donors and they decide to take money from communities that need it to benefit their own areas.
“We cannot trust any of the unionist parties to protect the future of Scotland. The only way to protect the best interest of the people of Scotland is in an independent country.”
Notes:
Full motion:
That the Parliament agrees that the UK Government’s Spending Review plans for Levelling Up and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund not only fall well short of Scottish expectations and needs, but also infringe the sovereignty of the Scottish Parliament by circumventing the devolution settlement to deliver policy in areas that are clearly and firmly within the ambit of the Scottish Government, and calls on the UK Government to keep the promises made to Scotland, and to work in full partnership with the Scottish Government and local communities on the development of these programmes going forward to ensure they support job creation and a just transition, and meet the needs of Scotland’s citizens.
Donald Cameron:
I have said that there is nothing in law preventing the UK Government from funding such areas. There should be no limit to anything that the UK Government, the Scottish Government or local government does. That is the whole point of levelling up.
