The Scottish Greens have accused the Secretary of State for Scotland, Alister Jack, of “clearly and demonstrably” misleading the House of Commons about Scotland’s deposit return scheme (DRS).
Following the delay to Scotland’s DRS, Scottish Green MSP Ross Greer has called for an investigation into comments by the Secretary of State for Scotland, Alistair Jack. Greer has written to both the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, and Cabinet Secretary Simon Case.
The letter highlights Jack’s comments in the Commons on 22 February 2023 that no request had yet been received from the Scottish government despite Greer writing that a “final detailed proposal” had been submitted over a week previously.
In the letter to Simon Case, the most senior civil servant in Whitehall, Greer asked for confirmation “that neither a formal nor an official request for an exclusion from the Internal Market Act is required.” Greer also accused Jack of “abusing his position in a partisan and opportunistic bid to block the progress Scotland is making”.
This is a direct attack on Scotland’s democracy.
The timeline of engagement that Greer has asked Simon Case to confirm includes that the Scottish government presented a “detailed final paper” for the UK and devolved governments on 13 February.
In a letter to Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Greer wrote: “It is abundantly clear that Mr Jack’s attempts to convince the House of Commons that the Scottish government had not sought an Internal Market Act exemption until March of this year is simply and categorically untrue.
“It is my firm belief that Mr Jack and his government have used the Brexit process to give themselves a new power of veto over the decisions of Scotland’s elected Parliament via the Internal Market Act. This is a direct attack on Scotland’s democracy.”
