Legacy Report of the Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee, Session 6

The Committee recommends that a priority issue for Session 7 will be consideration of any revised MoU on the Sewel Convention. We reiterate our previous recommendation in 2023 of –
the need for a new Memorandum of Understanding and supplementary agreements between the UK Government and the Devolved Governments. This should specifically address how devolution now works outside of the EU and based on a clear constitutional design including consideration of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality. This should be accompanied by new Devolution Guidance notes and other operational guidance notes. 3 Scottish Parliament. (2023). Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee 'How Devolution is Changing Post-EU'. Retrieved from https://digitalpublications.parliament.scot/Committees/Report/CEEAC/2023/10/24/6692fb8e-0bf0-47cd-a1ba-cff461d9395d

The Committee recommends to our successor that it may wish to prioritise scrutiny of the ongoing challenges in relation to the operation of UKIMA and common frameworks including taking forward the above recommendations.

Within this context we recommend that our successor follows up the relevant recommendations in our recent report on intergovernmental activity. We also recommend that these recommendations inform the discussions around the establishment of committees in Session 7. These recommendations are repeated here for ease of reference –
The Committee thanks Scottish Parliament and Scottish Government officials for their work in reviewing Statutory Instrument Protocol 2. The Committees supports the outcome of the review and believes that it will support the effective and proportionate scrutiny of all UKSIs made within devolved competence, including those anticipated to arise from any requirement for dynamic regulatory alignment with the EU. The Committee recommends that the revised protocol comes into effect at the start of Session 7. i This paragraph is an updated version of paragraph 182 in our report on the transparency of intergovernmental activity following the Committee’s consideration of the following correspondence: Letter from Minister for Parliamentary Business and Veterans, 18 March 2026
Issues which may arise in devolved policy areas which will fall under a UK-EU agreement are also influenced by the existence of common frameworks, governed by the operation of the UK Internal Market Act 2020, and shaped by the willingness of successive UK Governments to take and exercise powers in devolved areas, often without the consent of Scottish Ministers.
The UK leaving the EU drove the establishment of legislative and non-legislative mechanisms to manage intra-UK difference, but these mechanisms are now established in the operation and shape of the devolution settlement. As the Committee has previously noted the reach of these mechanisms extends beyond the scope of former EU competence and the areas which are likely to be governed by dynamic alignment.
In the Committee's view, it is accordingly essential that the Scottish Parliament is notified by the Scottish Government of all SIs containing provision within devolved competence, irrespective of whether they arise from dynamic alignment.
The Committee recommends that a priority for the Scottish Parliament in Session 7 should be to consider the level of resource required to support meaningful and proportionate parliamentary scrutiny of the exercise by the UK Government of all delegated powers within devolved competence. This should include consideration of the establishment of a Committee with lead responsibility for oversight of such delegated powers and the UK statutory instruments made under them .
The interrelationship between the issues also informs the Committee's view that the Session 7 committee responsible for oversight of UK-EU and external relations should also be responsible for scrutiny of the operation of the devolution settlement through the scrutiny of the common frameworks programme, UKIMA and its exclusions process, the operation of the Sewel convention including the taking of delegated powers and the exercise of delegated powers in devolved areas.
The Committee notes that procedures for the transposition and implementation of EU legislation in the UK were previously set out in the Concordat on Co-ordination of European Union Policy. The Committee further notes that if a similar transposition model is introduced for dynamic regulatory alignment that similar procedures will be needed. If so, it is essential that this includes consideration of the need for transparency and Ministerial accountability.

The Committee recommends that concluding the joint review of the written agreement on intergovernmental relations between the Parliament and the Government is a priority for our successor early in Session 7 as a means to improve transparency and accountability of intergovernmental activity.

The Committee recommends that this agreement is continued in Session 7.

The Committee notes that the final report on the REUL Act from the Scottish Government will be due after 23 June 2026. On balance, the Committee does not believe it is necessary for continued reporting on use of the updating power which will remain available to Scottish Ministers.

The Committee recommends that our successor should prioritise interparliamentary relations as an effective mechanism for the scrutiny of intergovernmental activity. We recommended in our report on intergovernmental activity that the four legislatures within the UK jointly commission research to examine how interparliamentary relations might be substantially strengthened and that this proposal is discussed at the next meeting of the Interparliamentary Forum.

The Committee recommends that the Scottish Parliament continues to participate in the PPA during Session 7 and that the Convener and Deputy of our successor committee continue to be the delegates. However, consideration should also be given to whether there is some flexibility to allow, where appropriate, the relevant subject committee to be represented where the agenda includes items of interest to that committee.

The Committee recommends that the Scottish parliament continues to nominate a full member and alternative member of CLRAE in Session 7 and that they should also be members of our successor committee.

The Committee recommends that our successor committee considers whether the Scottish Parliament should continue to have membership of the Contact Group in Session 7, including consideration of the role of the Group following the outcome of the next EU/UK leaders’ Summit.

We also recommend that our successor may wish to prioritise an early visit to Brussels to build effective links with the European Parliament, European Commission and the UK Mission to the EU.

The Committee recommends that our successor should give consideration to the scrutiny of the Scottish Government’s policy to align with EU law early in Session 7. We recommend that the Scottish Government should continue to provide the same level of information as it now does alongside the draft Annual report on the Continuity Act.

We also recommend that our successor considers whether reintroducing the EU Law Tracker is an effective use of parliamentary resources. In our view this will depend on the extent of dynamic alignment between the UK and EU and whether the new Scottish Government continues with a policy of alignment with EU law.

The Committee also notes that the ‘keeping pace power’ under section 1(1) of the 2021 Continuity Act is set to expire in March 2027. This could be extended until 2031 if regulations to that end are passed by affirmative procedure. We, therefore, recommend that our successor may wish to carry out some work early in Session 7 in relation to the review of the ‘keeping pace power’.

The Committee recommends that our successor monitor and scrutinise the work of the Scottish Government in this area (of its international strategy and international development work) and may wish to take evidence from some of the international offices after publication of their next Annual Report; the publication of an Annual Report being a practice we recommend the next Scottish Government continue.

The Committee recommends that the Session 7 Committee continues to scrutinise the funding position for the culture and heritage sector, including delivery of the Scottish Government’s commitment to increase culture funding by £100 million by 2028-29 as part of its pre-budget scrutiny.

We also recommend that the future Committee continues to take a cumulative approach to budget scrutiny over Session 7, including scrutinising the Scottish Government’s progress in the areas outlined in our Pre-Budget Scrutiny 2026-27 report, including multi-year funding, strategic funding approaches, mainstreaming and cross-portfolio funding, and the implementation of alternative funding models.

The Committee recommends that its successor continues to monitor the governance of Historic Environment Scotland, including—
how the ongoing situation at HES is progressing
HES’s progress towards implementing the AGS’s recommendations;
the outcome of the independent external review of HES, and the implementation of the review’s findings.

The Committee recommends that its successor seeks regular updates from Creative Scotland on the implementation of the review’s findings and recommendations as part of its pre-budget scrutiny in Session 7.

The Committee therefore recommends that its successor draw on the evidence and findings of the Scottish Broadcasting inquiry to inform a future debate without motion in the Scottish Parliament on the Draft Charter and Framework Agreement; and also that its successor should seek responses to the report from the UK Government, the Scottish Government, Ofcom, Screen Scotland and BBC Scotland.