This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Queen's Speech and Scotland
23/11/2004
The UK government's legislative programme, announced
today in the Queen's Speech at Westminster, includes
several Bills containing measures which Scottish Ministers
will invite the Scottish Parliament to agree should be
enacted at Westminster for the benefit of Scotland.
Parliamentary Business Minister Margaret Curran
described the programme as a source of clear opportunities
for Holyrood and Westminster to work together to support
stronger and safer communities in Scotland.
She said:
"We want legislation that makes a positive impact on the
lives of Scots. Results matter.
"That means both our own ambitious and distinctive
legislative programme at Holyrood, based on our Partnership
Agreement, and working with our UK partners on mutually
beneficial legislation.
"Today a package of Bills has been announced, several of
which have provisions affecting Scotland, on which the
Scottish Ministers have been in discussion with UK
Ministers for several months.
"Some, like the Railways Bill, will confer new powers on
Scottish Ministers to improve transport services.
"Others, like the Serious Organised Crime and Police
Bill, will enhance our capacity to fight crime in Scotland
and elsewhere in the UK.
"We couldn't do all of this in our own Parliament
because some of these areas, like gambling, are reserved.
And in those areas that are devolved, legislating at
Westminster - always, crucially, subject to the consent of
the Scottish Parliament - means that in dealing with
issues like serious organised crime, which respects no
borders, we can readily achieve an effective cross-border
approach.
"It also means we lose no time to legislate on our own
distinctive priorities, like reforming Scotland's Further
and Higher Education system, securing the Gaelic Language
and dealing with smoking in public places.
"That's why we think that inclusion of these provisions
in Westminster Bills would be beneficial for the people of
Scotland and why we will be proposing to the Scottish
Parliament that we consent to Westminster enacting these
provisions.
Bills, for which 'Sewel' motions are currently proposed,
were announced today by Ms Curran in answer to a
Parliamentary Question from Scott Barrie MSP:
- the Animal Welfare Bill - to ensure
that people who are banned from keeping animals in
England and Wales, following conviction for cruelty to
animals there, continue also to be banned from keeping
animals in Scotland
- the Constitutional Reform Bill - to
create a UK-wide Supreme Court, establishing a clear
and transparent separation between the judiciary and
the legislature
- the Disability Discrimination Bill -
to put Scotland on the same footing as the rest of the
UK on new public sector duty to promote equality of
opportunity for disabled people
- the European Union Bill - to ensure
that the devolution settlement is taken into account in
legislation to enable the ratification and
implementation in UK law of the EU Constitutional
Treaty and to allow a referendum on the Treaty to take
place
- the Gambling Bill - to modernise
powers for Scottish Ministers to regulate gambling in
Scotland
- the Inquiries Bill - to modernise the
law for the conduct of inquiries into matters of public
concern
- the International Organisations (Immunities and
Privileges) Bill - to ensure that the
devolution settlement is taken into account in
legislation that secures the position of specified
international organisations
- the National Lottery Bill - to provide
power for Scottish Ministers to issue directions to the
Big Lottery Fund and allow a Scottish Committee to
exercise all the functions of the Fund in relation to
devolved expenditure
- the Railways Bill - to provide greater
responsibility for rail within Scotland to the Scottish
Ministers, including an extended role with regard to
infrastructure
- the Serious Organised Crime and Police
Bill - to strengthen the fight against serious
organised crime with the creation of a new UK-wide
agency and other measures