The landmark declaration, made yesterday by Scottish Secretary Jim Murphy, came as the Prime Minister used the Westminster Parliament’s final Queen’s Speech to promote a populist raft of bills to draw clear battle lines with the Conservatives ahead of the General Election.
Although the speech only made passing reference to Calman, saying the Government would "take forward" its proposals, Mr Murphy was unequivocal, declaring: "We are fiercely committed to it. We want to make it happen."
Asked specifically if the Government was now intent on implementing the recommended 10p tax-raising power for Holyrood, he replied: "Yes," noting: "We want to create a stronger and more accountable Scottish Parliament."
The UK Government package of 14 bills contained measures to create jobs, crack down on bankers’ excessive pay and bonuses, tackle the deficit in the public finances and provide free home care for the neediest pensioners in England.
Mr Brown promised Labour "guarantees" rather than Tory "gambles" and insisted the measures were "not in the party interest but in the national interest".
Tory HQ pointed out that, given there were so few parliamentary days left before the election, few if any of the bills could be passed. It also criticised the lack of references to the Kelly proposals for cleaning up Westminster, some of which require legislation.
Conservative leader David Cameron branded the Speech a cynical political exercise to set out "dividing lines" ahead of the election.
He said of the Government: "They have run out of money, they have run out of time, they have run out of ideas and we have just seen from the Prime Minister they have run out of courage as well".
Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, said the legislative package was a "fantasy Queen’s Speech", while Angus Robertson for the SNP described it as "less of a legislative programme and more of a closing-down sale by a tired government that is out of time".
