Select committee: Scottish Affairs Committee
Recommendation 5
First Report: Coronavirus and Scotland: Interim Report on Intergovernmental Working
Published 23 Jul 2020
Paragraph 62
Addressed to Scotland Office
Scottish Affairs Committee Coronavirus and Scotland All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
We have also noted that the Joint Ministerial Committee (JMC) has not been used as a method of intergovernmental communication throughout the pandemic, although we have heard suggestions that it would not have been fit for purpose in the COVID-19 context. This raises further questions about the resilience and suitability of existing intergovernmental structures in crisis situations and what it means for the future of intergovernmental relations. We call on the Government to justify its preference for COBRA and the Ministerial Implementation Groups over the Joint Ministerial Committee as the main mechanisms for intergovernmental relations during the pandemic thus far.
From: Scottish Affairs Committee, First Report: Coronavirus and Scotland: Interim Report on Intergovernmental Working (HC 314), paragraph 62, 23 July 2020
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 1 February 2021 (deadline 23 September 2020).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government responds to each recommendation in turn, setting out existing arrangements and some commitments, while saying it is "premature" to respond on the detail of the inquiry's terms of reference.
- On regular intergovernmental meetings, it says it "fully understands the importance of strong intergovernmental relations" and sets out current mechanisms, including regular meetings between the Prime Minister and First Ministers.
- It remains committed to concluding the Intergovernmental Relations review, and says the first quarterly report on IGR activity "will be published in 2021".
- On the economic support schemes, HM Treasury and HMRC have "committed to undertaking a detailed evaluation"; the Job Retention Scheme findings will be published "by the end of 2021".
- On the Shortage Occupation List, the government is "absolutely not rejecting" the Migration Advisory Committee's recommendations and "will consider whether to implement some or all" in immigration rules changes in 2021.