LABOUR must agree to hand control of referenda to Holyrood – or risk losing SNP support for a minority government in Westminster, Ian Blackford has suggested.
In a televised interview, the SNP’s Westminster leader hinted that opposition parties and Tory rebels will unite this week to put further pressure on Boris Johnson over Brexit.
Refusing to reveal details of behind-the-scenes planning, Blackford said his side had “gamed out” possible scenarios for preventing a No-Deal Brexit, and said a united effort by other parties would be impossible for Johnson’s minority government to resist.
This may include a vote of no-confidence in the Tory administration, triggering a snap General Election that, according to experts, may lead to a hung parliament.
READ MORE: Johnson has ‘no plan’ to stop No-Deal Brexit, minister reveals
Appearing on the BBC’s Sunday Politics Scotland, Blackford ruled out a formal coalition with Jeremy Corbyn’s party.
And he suggested that any deal would hinge on Corbyn agreeing to give the Scottish Parliament the Section 30 order it needs to call a future independence referendum.
Last month Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard restated opposition to indyref2.
But Corbyn has not ruled out approving a Section 30 order if the circumstances arise, saying he would decide on that “at the time”.
And shadow chancellor John McDonnell (below) has suggested a Labour government would not stand in the way of a referendum if there was support for one in the Scottish Parliament.
Any future vote on the constitution must comply with domestic law if it is to be recognised by the European Union – something necessary for a post-Brexit independent Scotland to regain membership of the bloc.
Blackford said Corbyn must “respect democracy”, stating: “We have that mandate there.
“If the people in a Westminster election reinforce that by voting for the SNP, he has to respect that it should be the Scottish Parliament that determines when a referendum is called, not a government in Westminster.”
The Ross, Skye and Lochaber MP went on: “Everything that was seen going on at Westminster demonstrates that the people of Scotland have got to have the right to determine their own future.
“That means that we have to have that Section 30 sitting in the hands of the Scottish Parliament.”
Blackford said any agreement with Labour would be made on a “progressive basis”.
However, Scottish Labour have said they will not make “deals, pacts or coalition agreements with any party”.
Speaking about the current Commons chaos, Blackford said the majority against No-Deal Brexit – which includes opposition parties and Tory rebels – has “held together”.
And he said that majority could “seize control” of parliamentary business if the Government does not operate in accordance with the Benn Act, which requires them to formally request a delay to Brexit if no deal is agreed by October 19.
READ MORE: Here’s my open letter to Nicola Sturgeon on need for action
That gives the Government just 12 days to win the backing of parliament.
Blackford said No-Deal opponents could use the strength of their numbers to “dictate the agenda in parliament”, stating: “There are mechanisms that we can put in place.
“I don’t want to go into details on that today, but we’ve gamed out all of this and we know exactly how we can do that.
“The ultimate, I suppose, is the ability to bring the Government down in a motion of no confidence. There’s a number of things that we can do.”
In weekend newspaper articles, Johnson called on the EU to compromise and insisted his Brexit proposals are winning support.
But Blackford said “we can’t trust” the PM and appealed to Tory rebels to “go the extra mile and recognise, whether it’s Jeremy Corbyn or anyone else, what we’re talking about doing is putting someone in No 10 in an administrative capacity to do two things – to send that letter to extend article 50 and to call an election”.
He suggested any vote of no confidence must be held by mid-October and would provide 14 days to form an interim administration led by a “caretaker” prime minister whose hands would be “very clearly tied” by the need for consensus across any coalition.
However, LibDem Christine Jardine told the programme that her party would not back Corbyn. The Edinburgh West MP said No-Deal Brexit and a Corbyn leadership are “both bad options”, stating: “Jeremy Corbyn doesn’t have the support in Parliament that’s needed to run an interim government of national unity. He doesn’t have the numbers.
“What we need is someone who can command the respect of Parliament.
“Jeremy Corbyn can’t stop No-Deal. It’s not a choice.”
She went on: “Jeremy Corbyn believes in Brexit, the Labour Party is all over the place on this.
“To me, they are one in the same thing. I can’t make that choice because neither of them is good for the country.”
On Johnson, she said “parliament will not allow this country to be crashed out of Europe”, stating: “If he doesn’t comply with the law then parliament will step in to ensure that the law is followed.”
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