See you in court? Burnham’s legal threat to Scots Covid rules
The mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, has said that a decision by the Scottish Government to ban travel to his region was an infringement of his constituents’ civil rights and he could not rule out legal action, revealing he has written to Nicola Sturgeon questioning her decision
The mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, has said that a decision by the Scottish Government to ban travel to his region was an infringement of his constituents’ civil rights and he could not rule out legal action.
Mr Burnham, who has written to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon questioning the rationale for her decision, said he would be considering whether legal redress was an option after compensation was ruled out by the Scottish Government.
He also raised questions about the enforcement of a travel ban, but stopped short of encouraging people from the north west of England to ignore Ms Sturgeon’s decision.
“I don't want to work directly against a legitimately democratically elected government, but I am struggling very much to see how this is proportionate or justifiable,” he said.
"To ban double jabbed, older people, from the entirety of Scotland … I think that’s an infringement on their civil liberties, definitely.
“Just to say that you cannot go to Scotland because you happen to live in Salford, Manchester or Bolton, when all the evidence that we have locally is that the cases are significantly within the under-25s,
the case rate amongst the over60s is very low. I think it is an infringement of their civil liberties.
"I'm not going to directly contravene another democratically elected devolved administration by telling everyone here to ignore them. But at the same time, I'm struggling to understand their policy.”
He added: “I also don’t know how the ban gets enforced, to be honest. That is also a matter for the Scottish Government to set out.”
Mr Burnham said there was a lack of “consistency and fairness” in Ms Sturgeon’s decision. “I cannot understand at all, how tonight, Bolton is under a Scottish Government travel ban because their cases are below 300 and falling,” he said.
The mayor said he had received emails from Bolton residents about the damage of the travel ban and that “dismissing” compensation, as
Deputy First Minister John Swinney did earlier yesterday, was not acceptable.
"What does the Deputy First Minister say to a couple from Bolton who've been in touch with me today who are over £1,000 out of pocket, because their holiday cottage in the Borders has been cancelled this week with no ability to get a refund?" Mr Burnham asked.
Asked if he would consider legal action, he added: “I certainly think there is some shaky ground here for the Scottish Government.
"I don't know if they could demonstrate fairness across the different areas affected by restrictions. It raises the question of discriminatory action against people living in some areas.
"So I've had actually a lawyer getting in touch to offer help. I'm not necessarily saying that to say that we're going there.
"Threatening legal action is something that only should be done if appropriate, but I can't rule out. If there's hundreds of people that are out of pocket by hundreds of pounds ... if there is a legal redress route for them, then I think that should be considered.”
Mr Burnham published his letter to Ms Sturgeon on his Twitter feed. It asked her to clarify the criteria for the ban, as Bolton has a Covid-19 case rate of 269 per 100,000, while Dundee has a rate of 318, similar to the rate in Salford and Manchester.
He also asked for compensation for those affected, quoting an email from a local resident who has lost £1,000, which read: "My husband and I have been virtually isolated for 18 months. Both fully vaccinated.
Test ourselves twice a week. Never had a positive result. But the cottage won't let us cancel as my daughter booked it and she is allowed to travel."
Earlier yesterday Ms Sturgeon suggested Mr Burnham was seeking to "generate a spat" with her in order to position himself in a future Labour leadership contest.
She said: "These are public health measures. I have a duty, and it's one I take very seriously, to keep Scotland as safe as possible. I'm sure Andy Burnham feels the same sense of duty toward people in the Greater Manchester area.
"I've always got on well with Andy Burnham and if he wants to have a grown-up conversation he only has to pick up the phone. But if, as I suspect might be the case, this is more about generating a spat with me as part of some positioning in a Labour leadership contest in future, then I'm not interested.
"We've all got a serious job of work to do right now and I'm serious about doing that job in a way that keeps Scotland as safe as I possibly can."
Mr Swinney also defended the decision to impose a travel ban and said Mr Burnham's call for compensation is not "a relevant point".
He told the BBC’S Today programme: "We have in place, in Scotland, business support that we have made available to companies to try and sustain them, there will be support in place in England for exactly the same circumstances.
"We have got to take decisions based on the data that presents itself and sometimes that is very uncomfortable data for us.
"We have to act quickly to try to make sure we are doing everything possible to suppress the spread of the virus, and that is what members of the public would expect of us."
The Prime Minister's official spokesman was also asked about the travel ban yesterday.
He said: "Health is a devolved matter. It is for the Scottish Government to explain that decision."