Holyrood’s Finance and Constitution Committee brands EU Withdrawal Bill ‘incompatible with devolution’

Holyrood’s Finance and Constitution Committee has said it is not in a position to recommend legislative consent to the EU Withdrawal Bill.

In a parliamentary report published today, the committee said the Bill as currently drafted is incompatible with the devolution settlement in Scotland, and this is still the case if clause 11 is designed to be a transitional measure.

The cross-party committee of MSPs has, therefore, concluded it will not be in a position to recommend legislative consent for the Bill unless clause 11 is replaced or removed.

Bruce Crawford MSP, finance and constitution committee convener, said: “The committee is unanimous in its view that it is not in a position to recommend Legislative Consent to the EU Withdrawal Bill.

“The whole committee is of the view that clause 11, as currently drafted, is incompatible with the devolution settlement in Scotland. This view was shared by the vast majority of expert evidence we received on clause 11 as it represents a fundamental shift in the structure of devolution in Scotland.

“The Committee also believes that a resolution to clause 11 is required regardless of whether a way forward on Common Frameworks can be arrived at.”

On the use of ‘common frameworks’ to bring about regulatory convergence and policy harmonisation across the UK, Mr Crawford added: “We welcome the commitment from the UK Government that common frameworks will not be imposed. Our committee strongly believes that both the process for agreeing common frameworks and the actual content must be arrived at through agreement, not imposition. We also believe that this process is not solely a matter for governments and must be transparent and inclusive.”

Deputy convener Adam Tomkins MSP said: “All of the committee welcomes the progress that has been made between the UK Government and the devolved governments in developing an approach to agreeing common UK frameworks and notes that this work is on-going.

“In particular, members welcome the UK Government’s commitment to respect the devolution settlement.”