Second Report - Coronavirus and Scotland

We agree with Professor Nicola McEwen that trust is an essential ingredient for intergovernmental relations, and it is clear that trust needs to develop between the UK and Scottish Governments. This takes effort from both sides. Holding regular, formal, structured, minuted meetings is an essential part of co-ordinating the response to a pandemic that does not respect borders. All four Governments of the UK need a reliable forum for communicating with other key decision makers to ensure that a co-ordinated, evidence-based response is achieved. The current rising case numbers make the need for such an approach even more vital. Regular meetings can help build on the existing relationships and grow trust between the two Governments. We build on our previous recommendation in the interim report (paragraph 60) and recommend that a timetable of regular intergovernmental meetings should be set up, both during the rest of this pandemic, especially if there is a second wave, but also for after the pandemic. We need a resilient format to be put in place immediately so that we know there will be regular, formal, planned meetings of key decision makers.

We welcome the review of intergovernmental working and look forward to seeing the results of the report. We intend to return to this issue later in the Parliament.

The evidence we received covering the general role of the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland has been helpful. We look forward to hearing a response to the recommendation in the interim report about the specific role of the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland during the coronavirus pandemic and what their role could be in the context of similar UK-wide emergencies. (Paragraph 22) Health

We recommend that the lessons learned from Exercise Cygnus in relation to intergovernmental working, specifically inviting devolved administrations to smaller meetings, are revisited. This should feed into the public inquiry of Covid-19, as committed to by the Prime Minister. A section of this public inquiry should relate to the pandemic in Scotland. This should focus on areas of reserved competence, concentrating on intergovernmental relations and working together in the health sector. It is crucial following the publication of this review that lessons learned are implemented and are assessed annually to ensure that Scotland is prepared for any future pandemics. (Paragraph 31) Economy

The evidence we have received suggests that the economic support packages provided by both the UK and Scottish Governments have been effective. Nonetheless, we believe that there is a case for conducting a review of the impacts of these packages, Coronavirus and Scotland 39 ensure they provided value for money and were targeted appropriately, and to see what lessons could be learned for any future similar contingencies. This review should take place by Easter 2021 and implement lessons learned into contingency planning by the end of 2021 at the latest.

The Government response to our predecessor Committee’s report on Immigration and Scotland is now more than two years overdue. While we acknowledge the exceptional pressures on the Government in recent years, a delay of this length is wholly unacceptable. The response must now be produced as soon as possible, and in any case no later than the end of 2020.

The Seasonal Workers Pilot Scheme is vital for the Scottish food sector, the pandemic highlighted that there is not the local take-up for these seasonal roles. We believe that not having enough people to harvest Scottish food puts an important part of the Scottish economy at risk, along with the ability to feed Scottish people and export food. With potential continued restrictions upon immigration as cases rise, the UK Government needs to assess the impact of the “Pick for Britain” scheme moving forward. We agree with the evidence we have heard about increasing numbers for the Seasonal Workers Pilot Scheme and recommend that numbers on this programme be increased by at least 50%.

We acknowledge there are staffing issues for the health and social care sector and that the Migration Advisory Committee did not have enough information when making the decisions about the Shortage Occupation List for Scotland. We welcome the recent development of including senior care workers and nursing assistants to the Shortage Occupation List but do not believe this goes far enough. We recommend that the Migration Advisory Committee include all key health and social care workers on the Shortage Occupation List for Scotland. We also urge the Scottish Government to do more to encourage a larger share of migrants to the UK to live in Scotland.

Scottish exports make a major contribution to the Scottish economy and the risks to those key export sectors ought to be a major concern of both the UK and Scottish Governments. We have heard about the huge reduction in exports throughout the first part of 2020, largely due to the coronavirus pandemic. More could be done to support exports both in the short and long-term.

We recommend that when the UK Government plans for future pandemics it considers all three areas—immigration, supply chain and exports—as part of the whole picture. Where responsibility is devolved to Scotland, the UK Government and Scottish Government should work closely together to support these three key areas. These plans should be annually reviewed by the UK Government and have the recommendations implemented as soon as practicable, at least by the end of