Give Scotland a seat in trade talks, experts say

Ministers in Edinburgh and Cardiff must be included in negotiations on post-brexit trade deals to avoid a breakdown in devolution, experts have told MPS.

Talks between the UK government and devolved administrations are deadlocked amid claims that the Repeal Bill will result in a Westminster ‘power grab’ in areas where powers return from Brussels after Brexit.

UK ministers want agreement on joint frameworks to govern aspects of devolved responsibility, and insist as much authority as possible will eventually be passed on to Edinburgh and Cardiff after Brexit.

Laura Dunlop QC, the convener of the Faculty of Advocates’ Law Reform Committee, said trade negotiations with the EU, WTO, and third countries like the US could impact devolution.

“[There] will need to be international negotiations on particular areas and [these] will cover a number of areas which are presently dealt with by the European Union,” Ms Dunlop told MPS. “It seems to me that one obvious solution is to have full participation by the other three [nations] in the negotiations and then the positions can be agreed with full participation by all the devolved bodies.”

Dr Kamala Dawar of the UK Trade Policy Observatory warned of a “terrible, terrible situation” if there wasn’t Uk-wide agreement on areas like agriculture subsidies, and said devolved administrations should get a seat at the table in trade talks to avoid a clash.