I completely agree with my hon. Friend. I believe that we must not be foolishly optimistic but realistic. When SNP Ministers talk as positively as they have, which is a different sound from the one that we hear from SNP Members here, then we have every reason to believe that wise heads—adult heads—will have sway and there will be an agreement.
I repeat—I do not want this not to be heard—that the Government made a clear commitment to the House on the amendments to clause 11, and I took those commitments at face value. As a Conservative Member,
I never want to get to the point where I cannot take commitments given to me by right hon. and hon. Members at face value, because I hope, frankly, that they can continue to trust commitments that I might make to them. I really do want to understand why we have arrived at this point. I am afraid that there is a point of principle and accountability involved in answering these questions. What happened in the Departments in the past few weeks and months? Did they somehow lose focus? Were we not clear enough in what our expectations were?
I share with the House a concern that has resurfaced time and again since I was elected as Member for Stirling: since the devolution settlement UK Governments of all flavours have tended to devolve and forget, and that is a very dangerous practice. Again, I appeal to the Government to consider the appropriate machinery that creates the means by which our Governments work together, because that is what my constituents want. They are tired of the voices of conflict that they hear regularly in Scotland. They want us to be conciliatory. They want us to work by consensus and through collaboration.
When the devolution settlements first went through, when Labour was in power, there was a fashionable term that is still appropriate—“sofa government”. With a Labour Prime Minister in London and Labour First Ministers in Edinburgh and Cardiff, it was all very cosy, and so there was no need for any of the machinery that I am describing. In fact, one of the Scottish Labour leaders described their party in those days as the “branch office” of the party in London. By contrast, we as Unionists should believe in and work to the principles of partnership, and I believe that that is possible.
The reason behind amendments to clause 11 was to strengthen devolution and by doing so strengthen the Union. The nationalists will always create their narrative of grievance and scream “power grab” at every imagined opportunity. A strong amendment would have pulled the rug from under their squalid argument. It would have shown them up as the creators of grievance rather than giving grievance a voice, which we are hearing today.
Let me touch briefly on the rather weak amendments being offered up by the Opposition parties. The SNP amendment has no chance of passing and does nothing to address many of the concerns that Conservative Members have. The Labour amendment is well-intentioned but poorly drafted, and will only make room for legal wrangling and uncertainty. Not only that, but it shows no understanding that devolution in the UK is asymmetrical. The Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish Parliaments are very different creatures, and there will undoubtedly be a need for frameworks that cover different parts of the United Kingdom and not just whole-United Kingdom frameworks.
For the good of Scotland, any powers that are returning to the UK from Brussels that are not reserved must, by definition, be devolved. I accept that UK frameworks are required. They can pragmatically solve problems, and they should do so through an equal partnership where all sides—Cardiff, Edinburgh, London and Stormont —can come together to solve problems and to share ideas. This is pragmatic partnership building. It is Unionism at its best, and even the enlightened nationalists seem to sign up for this. Everyone seems to agrees with it, so
again I am left wondering why we would allow this Bill to leave this House and go to the other place without a suitable amendment.
I make no bones about it: it sticks in my craw to think that unelected Lords will make the vital amendments to this vital constitutional Bill. It is not really good enough, and as a Member of the House of Commons I hang my head to think that we have somehow dropped the ball. The Bill will leave this House unamended and in an unsatisfactory state, and we are now dependent on unelected Lords to do our job for us.
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The Government had control of the timetable—the deadlines were created by them—but they have let this Chamber down by not delivering on what they promised. I really want to hear from a Minister at the Dispatch Box what the Government now plan to do in detail about amending clause 11. I want to hear much more about the shape of the amendment they will bring forward. It is time to get into the detail: we have had enough of the generalities and of the reassuring news, and we now want the detail.
Let me conclude—[Interruption.] SNPs Members will all be very disappointed, but I think that is only fair. The Government have a great track record of listening to the concerns of their Back Benchers. Despite what I am saying, I want that to be a matter of record as well. That is what makes dealing with the situation we find ourselves in so much more difficult. This is an aberration, not what we are used to. The Government listened to our concerns about the Budget and acted on them. I know from my own experience the intensity with which Ministers have listened to suggestions from Back Benchers like me on matters such as the roll-out of universal credit. I cannot speak too highly of the former Minister for Digital, my right hon. Friend the Member for West Suffolk (Matt Hancock), for responding to the challenges and difficulties we have experienced in Scotland with the roll-out of superfast broadband, especially in rural areas.
However, this critical clause is of huge importance to me and many of us in the Scottish Conservative party. For the promises made to us not to have been kept is a poor show. I want it clearly understood that my constituents voted to remain in the EU, but they accept the UK vote and want an efficient withdrawal to be executed by the Government, and the Bill will do that. However, we must also deliver on the powers for the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, and the Government have failed on this element of the Bill. I therefore expect some interesting and convincing explanations and some convincing commitments from the Minister tonight. Although the Government have run out of time to make their own amendments, they can take the time tonight to make amends.