THE co-chair of Jackson Carlaw’s Scottish Tory leadership bid has endorsed a call for Boris Johnson to bring in a raft of measures to weaken Holyrood and the Scottish Government including forcing Nicola Sturgeon to get Alister Jack’s permission to travel overseas on business.
Rachael Hamilton liked a Tweet by the journalist Stephen Daisley which linked to a column he had written recommending policy changes which he argued would quell support for independence and the SNP.
As well as the FM requiring permission from the UK Government to travel abroad on business, Daisley called for a new Scotland Act ending the permanence of the Scottish Parliament, a ban on the Scottish Government spending money on reserved issues (such as the constitution) and an end to the Scottish Government being called the Scottish Government.
Instead he said it should be known under its former name, the Scottish Executive.
READ MORE: Jackson Carlaw’s tax cut plans could cost Scotland £270m
“Given the Nationalists’ near-total capture of the Scottish arm of the British state, and their intention to use Holyrood’s 2021 election to confect a ‘mandate’ for another referendum, Boris [Johnson] will have to decide whether to secure the Union for a little longer or end up as the Prime Minister who lost Scotland,” he wrote.
“If he is interested in something more than managing the Union’s decline, he will have to begin, in earnest, an almighty pushback against separatism.”
He added: “Devolution should be restored as far as possible to its original purpose with a new Scotland Act prohibiting the Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament from expending any resources in relation to reserved matters; forbidding the use of civil servants in policy-making, research, or the preparation of publications on reserved matters; requiring the Scottish Secretary to sign off on all overseas ministerial visits; reverting to original terminology (Scottish Executive, not Scottish Government; ministers, not secretaries of state); and reducing ministers’ political capacity by capping special adviser numbers.
“While they’re at it, MPs should consider amending the Scotland Act 2016 to remove Section 63A (which establishes the permanence of the Scottish Parliament in the constitution), form a joint committee to reconsider the balance of devolved and reserved competencies, and pass legislation outlining the criteria for any future national or sub-national referendums.”
Hamilton, who is MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, is the Scottish Tories’ spokeswoman on culture and tourism.
She is co-chair of Carlaw’s leadership bid of the Scottish Conservatives along with fellow Tory MSP Liam Kerr, who is deputy Scottish Conservative leader and justice spokesman.
Commenting, Emma Harper, SNP MSP for the South Scotland region, said: “The Tories have always hated devolution and fought tooth and nail to stop the Scottish Parliament being established in the first place – so it’s no surprise that they have been using Brexit as a power grab to steadily roll back the devolution settlement.
“Now Rachael Hamilton appears to be endorsing a bizarre plan to allow the UK Government to dismantle the Scottish Parliament at their will, as well as stripping yet more powers. And all because the people of Scotland keep voting for a party which is willing to stand up to the Tories.
“She must urgently clarify her position.
“One thing is clear – the Tories can’t be trusted with the future of our nation’s Parliament.”
A Scottish Tory spokesman said: “Rachael likes any article that exposes what a dire job the SNP Government has done in its 13 years in power.”
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