MSPS poised to reject Brexit bill ‘power grab’
● Last ditch plea by UK for deal ● Anger over ‘power grab’
A committee of MSPS has called on Holyrood to reject the UK government’s Brexit Bill in a vote next week amid fears of a “power grab”.
In a last ditch plea for an agreement, UK Cabinet Secretary David Lidington will tell business leaders in Edinburgh today that “the door is still open”.
The Scottish Parliament looks poisedtorejecttheukgovernment’s Brexit Bill next week after a committee of MSPS called for consent to be withheld without a deal to address fears of a “power grab.”
It would mark the gravest constitutional crisis in the two decades of devolution.
Holyrood’s constitution committee says it still wants to see a deal secured between Westminster and Edinburgh in the row over powers coming back from Brussels after Brexit.
But failing this, it concludes in a report: “The Committee recommends that the Parliament does not consent to Clause 11 and Schedule 3 of the Bill.”
MSPS will vote on the legislative consent motion (LCM) at Holyrood next week. UK Cabinet Secretary David Lidington will make a last ditch plea for an agreement in Edinburgh today, as he tells business leaders: “The door is till open.”
Clause 11 is the controversial section which most MSPS fear would see powers in 24 key areas, including farming and fishing, being “appropriated” by Westminster when they should rest at Holyrood in line with the devolution settlement.
Scottish Secretary David Mundell again re-iterated yesterday the UK Government will not shift on the issue.
The call to withhold consent had the backing of Labour and Green members of the com- mittee. But the three Tories on the committee did not back the call, after party leaders accused the SNP of using the issue to push for independence. A compromise has already been struck with the Welshgovernmentwhichhad similar concerns.
The UK Government can press ahead with the Brexit Bill even if MSPS reject it.
Constitution committee convenor Bruce Crawford said: “The Committee remains deeply concerned about the lack of any statutory provision within the Bill for UK Ministers to seek the consent of Scottish Ministers or the Scottish Parliament to legislate in devolved areas, especially given that the Sewel Convention does not apply to subordinate legislation.”
Mr Mundell said yesterday he was “disappointed” by the committee’s recommendation to withhold consent.
But he added: “We are not able to move to a position where clause 11 was simply deleted and we’ve been very clear on that since the outset – nor could we accept what we would see as a change to the devolution settlement that would give the Scottish Parliament a veto over Uk-wide measures.”