Select committee: Scottish Affairs Committee
Conclusion 7
First Report: Coronavirus and Scotland: Interim Report on Intergovernmental Working
Published 23 Jul 2020
Paragraph 71
Addressed to Scotland Office
Scottish Affairs Committee Coronavirus and Scotland All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
Evidence heard on the role of the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland (Scotland Office) echoes the findings of the previous Committee, which found that Scottish and UK Ministerial counterparts preferred to communicate directly, rather than via the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland. While the Secretary of State and officials at the Scotland Office provided us with accounts of additional engagement with the Scottish Government, there is a continuing risk of the Scotland Office finding itself out the loop on UK-Scotland issues relating to the pandemic.
From: Scottish Affairs Committee, First Report: Coronavirus and Scotland: Interim Report on Intergovernmental Working (HC 314), paragraph 71, 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.