MICHAEL Gove has been challenged on his eleventh-hour decision to cancel an appearance before the Scottish Affairs Committee.
As the UK Environment Minister, the Edinburgh-born MP had been scheduled to speak at the cross-party panel’s inquiry into the future of farming for six weeks. However, he pulled out of yesterday’s session just the day before it was due to start.
The SNP’s Pete Wishart, who chairs the Westminster body, has now written to Gove on the matter, branding the last minute change “discourteous”.
Wishart’s letter was disclosed following a charged session in which Scotland’s Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing was accused of “bluster” and giving “non-answers” by Tory MPs.
READ MORE: MSPs to quiz Michael Gove over Tory threat to devolution
Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk MP John Lamont and his Conservative counterpart David Duguid, who serves Banff and Buchan, challenged the Government minister on his evidence.
On migrant workers, Duguid said SNP “scaremongering” was being “transmitted” to potential incomers and deterring them from coming to Scotland, exacerbating recruitment problems for producers. And on post-Brexit farming payments, Lamont said Ewing was delivering “bluster” instead of answering questions.
Appearing via video link from Holyrood, Ewing defended his approach to the questioning and expressed “regret” about Lamont’s position.
On the importance of post-Brexit migration to rural businesses, he said: “Over 90% of vet staff in abattoirs are from the EU. If you can’t run abattoirs, there is no farming, there is no meat production.
“If you don’t have people working in fish processing, you can have all the fish in the world, but no-one is there to process them so the more fish will be landed in Norway.
“If you don’t have people working in forestry then how do we meet the targets which we hope we will do quite shortly to contribute to [tackling] climate change.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel