LABOUR peer George Foulkes’s repeated plea for the Scottish Government to be forbidden from spending money on a future referendum has been rejected by the Conservatives in the House of Lords.
Foulkes was calling on the UK Government to monitor the Scottish Government’s spending on reserved areas such as holding a second independence referendum.
Speaking in the House of Lords, Foulkes asked the UK Government whether “devolution means that devolved authorities should be spending money only on the devolved areas and that any spending on reserved areas would be improper?”
He continued by asking the UK Government to “monitor the devolved authorities to ensure that they are not spending money on reserved areas, like the Scottish Government who are spending money on the constitution.
“[They are spending] £20 million, including employing civil servants to prepare for a referendum and breaking up the United Kingdom.
“Shouldn’t this be on the agenda for the next meeting between the Prime Minister and the First Minister?”
However Lord Stephen Greenhalgh, the Minister of State at the Department for Levelling Up, replied that although he agreed with Foulkes’s sentiment he would not be escalating this further.
He said: “It is clearly an important issue to maintain the Union but the devolution settlement set out the responsibilities that fall within devolved and reserved competence.
“Scottish ministers are accountable to their own legislature and electorate for their actions, including for their expenditure decisions”
%image('5668186', type="article-full", alt="SNP MP Mhairi Black said spending on reserved areas allows the Scottish Government to mitigate policies like the bedroom tax")
SNP MP Mhairi Black (above) is calling on Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar to confirm whether or not he agrees with his Labour colleague.
She said: "This exposes Labour’s real attitude to Scotland – they want to clip Holyrood’s wings rather than give Scotland new powers, and Anas Sarwar should make clear whether he agrees with Lord Foulkes.
“An unelected Labour peer is telling a Tory Prime Minister, who Scotland has rejected time and again, to curb the democratically elected Scottish Government's power and funds."
She went on: "It is these funds that are mitigatigating cruel Westminster policies like the bedroom tax, which is protecting over 70,000 households in Scotland.
"This makes clear what Labour's priorities are, and Scotland's voice is not one of them."
Last week it was announced that the Finance Secretary would be putting aside £20 million for a second independence vote, honoring an SNP manifesto pledge to hold indyref2 within the current parliament.
Lord Foulkes has repeatedly asked the UK Government to block the Scottish Government from spending money on reserved areas, including on overseas offices which attract business to Scotland.
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