Stop playing games with devo, Ruth
ROW OVER ‘UNION GUARANTEE’ Lib Dems and Labour slam amendment
RUTH Davidson has been warned to stop “playing games” with devolution and help protect Scotland from a hard Brexit.
Labour and the Lib Dems turned on the Scottish Tory leader as Holyrood prepares to pass the SNP’s emergency legislation to stop a Westminster “power grab”.
It follows an attack by Tory constitution spokesman Adam Tomkins, who is pushing for a “union guarantee”. He called on the other unionist parties to sign up to an amendment on the importance of the UK “single market”.
It was seen as a move to provoke a row over independence while MSPs debate the Brexit plans.
Tomkins said the SNP should back UK- wide legislation on leaving the European Union.
He said: “At least this amendment would deliver a union guarantee, making it clear Scotland will not diverge from the rest of the UK in key areas such as regulation and case law.
“Wherever parties stand on the constitution, all should be able to support giving this guarantee. It is in Scotland’s interests.”
Labour and the Lib Dems, who cautiously support the SNP’s legislation, criticised the move.
A Labour spokesman said: “The UK single market i s the key marke t for Scottish businesses and any attempt to threaten it would do untold damage to our economy. But this attempt by Ruth Davidson to put a sticking plaster over her party ’ s att a c k on devolution is jaw-droppingly shameless.
“The Tories should be protecting devolution and not playing games at Holyrood.”
The Lib Dems said leader Willie Rennie has already taken the edge off controversial parts of the SNP’s Brexit Bill.
A spokesman for SNP Brexit Minister Michael Russell said: “This is yet another stealth attack by the Tories on devolution – if they can’t take Scotland’s powers away, they want to prevent us using them.
“When, as they know well, there are already differences in key policy areas which do not prevent trade within these islands or beyond.”