The SNP’s Westminster leader (pictured) has criticised the Tory government as it said it intends to overturn changes to its Internal Market bill and plough ahead with plans to undermine devolution and break international law.
The UK government says it will reinsert law-breaking clauses back into the bill that were removed by the House of Lords and says the clauses will remain if there is no Brexit deal.
The UK government also intends to push ahead with clauses in the Bill which will undermine devolution, override the decisions of the Scottish Parliament and force Scotland to accept standards set by Westminster over devolved areas.
Commenting, SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford MP said:
“This ‘give us a deal or else’ tactic is nothing short of shameful and serves as yet another reminder of the extreme Brexit the Tories are pursuing.
“The fact remains that the UK government is still intent on reversing Lords’ amendments and reinserting the law-breaking clauses back into the Bill – underlining the true motives of this deeply damaging Bill.
“The Tories’ move to also ignore the Lords’ bid to remove devolution power grab clauses, yet again highlights the threat to Scotland and the devolved Parliaments.
“The Bill should be scrapped – it is nothing short of a power grab piece of legislation that will deliver the biggest attack on devolution since the Scottish Parliament reconvened, override the democratic decisions of devolved Parliaments, and impose standards over devolved areas.
“It’s clear beyond any doubt that Westminster is acting against Scotland’s interests.
“The only way to properly protect our interests is by becoming an independent country with our place in Europe.”
