Michael Gove has attacked the SNP’s approach to devolution and claimed the Scottish Government’s aim was to “take power away from Scottish councils”.
The Cabinet Minister made short work of a claim by MP Patricia Gibson that Boris Johnson’s Brexit replacement for EU funding was undermining devolution.
On his first outing as Communities Secretary, Gove was tackled by the North Ayrshire and Arran MP on the Internal Market Act which allows Scottish council projects to be funded directly by Whitehall without reference to the Scottish government.
Gibson, the SNP communities spokesperson, said: “The Internal Market Act has fundamentally undermined the devolution settlement and was explicitly rejected in Holyrood.”
She asked Gove: “how he explains riding roughshod over democratically devolved parliaments augments devolution?”
Scots-born Gove said: “We’d never ride roughshod or otherwise over the devolution settlement.”
“Of course, I won’t interfere in the devolution settlement, but there is a contrast between our approach where we devolve more power to local government in England, and the approach of the current Scottish Government which is to take power away from Scottish councils.”
He said: “I hope that shortly we’ll be receiving news from the Chancellor of the Exchequer about the allocation of funds under the Internal Market Bill’s financial assistance power through the levelling-up fund.”
Gove has previously said that £4.8 million of Levelling Up funding due to Scottish Councils will not undermine devolution.
He said a number of SNP MPs have “backed bids to that fund, including SNP councils as well”.
Gove added: “It’s great to have on the ground, locally-elected representatives, supporting the financial assistance power, the Internal Market Bill and the vital importance of making sure we all work together.”
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