No STV, Holyrood won’t automatically get EU powers after Brexit
There was a bit of a misleading report today on the STV website suggesting that Holyrood will automatically get new powers after Brexit.
The report states:
The Scottish Parliament will automatically receive powers “by default” over fishing and farming once the UK leaves the European Union, a parliamentary committee has judged.
A report authored by the House of Lords EU committee has concluded leaving the EU will result in a “significant increase in the powers and responsibilities of the devolved institutions”.
The Scottish Parliament has had responsibility for farming, fishing and environmental protection measures since its foundation in 1999.
It jointly administers these areas inside the common European framework set by the EU.
Britain’s devolved settlements were created in the 1990s around the pre-existing European structures of government with the assumption of continued membership of the EU and the supremacy of its law.
The committee believes only a change of law setting out what powers are reserved back to Westminster before the UK officially ceases to be in the EU could stop the transfer of responsibilities to Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.
I’m not sure if STV were on holiday last week but they seem to have missed the publication of the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill.
As we pointed out that particular piece of legislation is designed to ensure the powers that should default to Holyrood will not. There is a chance that the bill can be changed. This would require a lot of work by the opposition parties and a few Tory rebels.
However, as things stand with the bill in its current form, we can categorically tell you that, Holyrood won’t automatically get EU powers after Brexit.
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