Tories, north and south of the border, split on Scots inquiry

Westminster Tories are at odds with Scottish Conservatives over a separate Covid-19 inquiry for Scotland.

A Conservative minister said last week there was no need for a Scots-specific inquiry, despite his party securing the Scottish Parliament’s support for an immediate probe into the pandemic in Scotland.

The Snp-led Scottish Government has also refused to fire the starting gun on an inquiry north of the border, prompting Labour to accuse both the SNP and Tories of failing to back a separate probe.

Iain Stewart, Parliamentary Under-secretary of State for Scotland, told the House of Commons last week he saw no requirement for a separate probe.

Responding to a question from Shadow Scottish Secretary Ian Murray, Stewart said: “I do not think that, at this stage certainly, there is a need for a separate inquiry.”

However, the Scottish Conservatives were instrumental in securing a majority vote in the Scottish Parliament for a public inquiry north of the border.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon told parliament she would instead seek a four nations approach and Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a Uk-wide inquiry in May, which will not begin until spring next year at the earliest. Sturgeon has since said she will not start a separate inquiry until she knows if the UK remit will include decisions taken by her devolved government.

Murray said yesterday: “There was a litany of catastrophic mistakes by the Scottish Government, just as there was by the UK Government, including cover-ups, PPE shortages and testing failures – particularly in care homes. No more delays, we urgently need a separate inquiry to get under way.”

The Scottish Conservatives said: “The Scottish Conservatives continue to support a Scottish inquiry to get answers for grieving families, especially those who lost loved ones when Covid was allowed to spread in care homes.

“We also support a UK inquiry to learn the wider lessons learned across our four nations.”