THERE is now “no easy or clear path” to averting a constitutional crisis over Brexit and devolved powers, Nicola Sturgeon’s office has admitted.
With a week until a crunch Holyrood vote on the EU Withdrawal Bill, the First Minister’s official spokesman said both sides appeared to have reached their final positions.
“I’m just being realistic... I don’t see any progress beyond where we were,” he said.
David Mundell: row over Brexit powers is "pinhead argument"
A meeting between SNP Brexit minister Michael Russell and the UK government in London last Wednesday failed to end a year-long stalemate between the two sides.
Mr Russell updated the Scottish Cabinet on the lack of movement this morning.
There are no more ministerial contacts scheduled before MSPs vote on whether to withhold legislative consent on the EU Withdrawal Bill next Tuesday, ahead of its final stage in the House of Lords.
If they withhold consent, it is likely to lead to a series of unprecedented consequences.
The Scottish and UK governments will square off at the UK Supreme Court over the validity of Holyrood’s alternative Brexit Bill, and the UK Government will probably impose the EU Bill on Scotland against the Scottish Parliament’s wishes.
The UK government wants to temporarily reserve around 24 devolved areas which will be repatriated from Brussels next year, most related to agriculture and the environment.
London says this is necessary to create UK-wide frameworks to protect the internal market.
UK could extend list of 24 Brexit powers, minister admits
Ms Sturgeon insists these frameworks must be agreed by consent, not imposed.
However the UK government says Westminster must have the final word, and Ms Sturgeon’s demand would give Holyrood an unprecedented veto over legislation in the rest of the UK.
Ms Sturgeon’s spokesman said there had been no “significant movement” since last week’s meeting, and it was a case of “as you were”.
He said: “Time is very short. We’ve not given up. We are still seeing if we can find a way through. But given where things have reached there’s no easy or clear path through this given that the UK Government appear to have reached a point where they don’t appear to be prepared to move further and we equally have a point of principle on the issue of consent.”
Last week, Scottish Secretary David Mundell suggested a “third way” would have to be found to break the deadlock, although he admitted it was unclear what it might be.
Mundell says unknown "third way" needed to end Brexit powers battle
Echoing his comments, Ms Sturgeon’s spokesman said: “I’m not sure what that something new could or would be.
“We certainly see it as a point of principle, the UK have their own position.
“I’m not saying it’s impossible. I’m not saying we won’t continue to engage but I’m just being realistic that at the moment I don’t see any progress beyond where we were.”
He said there was nothing currently in ministers’ diaries for a meeting or call with UK ministers on the issue before next Tuesday, although that could change at the last minute.
A UK Government spokesperson said: “The UK Government has made very significant amendments to Clause 11 of the EU (Withdrawal) Bill.
"Our approach provides certainty to businesses as we leave the EU, and fully respects the devolution, as the Welsh Government acknowledge.
"We still hope the Scottish Government will come on board and our door remains open.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel