Lord’s call for Section 35 order against DRS another Labour betrayal of Scotland
Scottish Greens have branded a call by Labour peer Lord Foulkes for the Tory Government to use a Section 35 order to block the Deposit Return Scheme a “betrayal of Scotland.”
Baron Foulkes of Cumnock sided with a former Scottish Secretary under the Thatcher Government, Michael Forsyth, now Baron Forsyth of Drumlean, in trying to undermine the will of the Holyrood parliament.
Foulkes urged: “Will the Minister, today, talk immediately with the Secretary of State for Scotland and see if he could decide to impose Section 35 of the Scotland Act.”
Forsyth had earlier also called on the government’s Lord Benyon to block the scheme by using the Internal Market Act - a legal move created by the Tories allowing them to effectively try and veto some decisions made by MSPs.
Scottish Greens climate spokesperson Mark Ruskell MSP said:
“This is proof absolute that Labour has abandoned the principles of devolution and is actively campaigning against the will of the Scottish people.
“What’s even worse is that they are siding with the Tories in doing so.
“For one of their own, a former MSP, to urge the Tory UK government at Westminster to use a Section 35 order to override the authority of the Scottish Parliament is disgraceful and, unless they immediately distance themselves, it will be a stain on every Labour politician here in Scotland.
“It is bad enough that their leader Sir Keir Starmer has rolled over on Brexit, abandoned the EU and failed to hold the Tories to account over the cost of living crisis.
“The fact that they are now openly campaigning against the work of Holyrood is nothing short of a betrayal of Scotland and of the electorate.
“It is now almost to be expected from the Tories, who are being dared by Thatcher’s hatchet man to open the Pandora’s box of the Internal Market Act, to behave this way. But this goes beyond the pale.
“The Scottish Government’s Deposit Return Scheme goes further and faster than anything yet on the table from the UK Government, which, time and again, has shown a total disregard for our environment.
“When it comes to legitimacy, we will take no lessons from them.”