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To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland with reference to the answer of 13 November 2008, Official Report, column 1319W, on the Northern Ireland Assembly, on which days he had official meetings with members of the Northern Ireland Assembly in the last 12 months.
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland with reference to the answer of 13 November 2008, Official Report, column 1319W, on the Northern Ireland Assembly, on which days he had official meetings with members of the Northern Ireland Assembly in the last 12 months.
Asked by
Owen Paterson
(Conservative)
Answered by
Shaun Woodward
(Labour)
Answering body
Northern Ireland Office
Type
Written questions
Status
Answered
Tabled on
9 December 2008
For answer on
11 December 2008
Answered on
17 December 2008
The meetings I have had with members of the Northern Ireland Administration have been and continue to be related to the Government's efforts to complete devolution in Northern Ireland. To that end, it would not be appropriate to discuss details of same. These meetings take place by arrangement any day of the week.
Subjects
Devolution; Northern Ireland; Northern Ireland Assembly; Northern Ireland Office
Date
17 December 2008
Reference
485 c776W; 243250
House
House of Commons
Type
Select Committee reports; House of Commons papers;
Parliamentary committees
Committee
Welsh Affairs Committee
Witnesses
Cardiff University; Airbus UK; Universities and Skills Department for Innovation; Higher Education Funding Council for Wales; Economic and Social Research Council; North East Wales Institute of Higher Education; Coleg Powys; Association of Colleges; Confederation of British Industry Wales; Deeside College; Bill Rammell; Harper Adams University College; Fforwm; Higher Education Wales; Lifelong Learning UK; Skills for Justice
Subjects
Devolution; Cross border cooperation; Further education; Higher education; Wales; Sector skills councils
Commons Library location
CS 850
Date
16 December 2008
Reference
HC 57 2008-09
House
House of Commons
Type
House of Commons papers; Select Committee oral evidence;
Parliamentary committees
Committee
Welsh Affairs Committee
Legislation
National Assembly for Wales (Legislative Competence) (Agriculture and Rural Development) Order 2008
Subjects
Devolution; Delegated legislation; Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; Legislative competence; Livestock; National Assembly for Wales; Meat; Wales Office; Wales; David, Wayne; Welsh Government; Jones, Elin; Statutory instruments
Date
15 December 2008
Reference
HC 5-i 2008-09
House
House of Commons
There are no current plans to do so.
There are no current plans to do so.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
Lord Harper
(Conservative)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
Whether he has discussed the findings in the interim report of the Commission for Scottish Devolution with the First Minister.
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c523
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
The Calman commission was set up after a vote of the Scottish Parliament and supported by Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats, trade unions and Scottish businesses. I welcome its interim report.
The Calman commission was set up after a vote of the Scottish Parliament and supported by Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats, trade unions and Scottish businesses. I welcome its interim report.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
Lord Robathan
(Conservative)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
What assessment he has made of the interim Calman commission report.
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c517
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
I would like to thank my hon. Friend for his question. The small number of SNP Members were heckling, so perhaps my hon. Friend was not able to hear. We are investing £20 billion of UK taxpayers' money in the Royal Bank of Scotland, and £17 billion based on the HBOS-Lloyds TSB merger proposals. That direct investment in those banks has led to the Royal Bank of Scotland taking an entirely sensitive approach to small businesses in Scotland, and where that bank has led, we look forward to other banks following.
I would like to thank my hon. Friend for his question. The small number of SNP Members were heckling, so perhaps my hon. Friend was not able to hear. We are investing £20 billion of UK taxpayers' money in the Royal Bank of Scotland, and £17 billion based on the HBOS-Lloyds TSB merger proposals. That direct investment in those banks has led to the Royal Bank of Scotland taking an entirely sensitive approach to small businesses in Scotland, and where that bank has led, we look forward to other banks following.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
Ian Davidson
(Labour)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
Surely the Secretary of State cannot be telling us the accurate position when he says that the Royal Bank of Scotland and the Bank of Scotland were getting more money than the whole of Scottish Government. Surely those figures cannot be true. Could he tell us a little more about that?
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c518
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
It is, as I said, both disappointing and surprising that Scottish Government Ministers will not give evidence; and Scottish Government civil servants cannot give evidence to the process. I want to strike a tone whereby I work with all Scots in Scotland's interests and I am just disappointed that that offer has not been taken up by the First Minister and the Scottish Government.
It is, as I said, both disappointing and surprising that Scottish Government Ministers will not give evidence; and Scottish Government civil servants cannot give evidence to the process. I want to strike a tone whereby I work with all Scots in Scotland's interests and I am just disappointed that that offer has not been taken up by the First Minister and the Scottish Government.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
Lord Harper
(Conservative)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
I am very disappointed by that. The First Minister has a tendency to conflate the interests of the Scottish National party with the interests of Scotland. It would very much be in the interests of Scotland if Scottish Government civil servants were able to give evidence to the Calman commission. If the Secretary of State manages to have that conversation, perhaps he could use his undoubted charm to persuade the First Minister to remove the ban and let them give evidence.
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c523
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
The hon. Gentleman is right to say that it is both surprising and disappointing that Scottish Government Ministers will not give evidence to the Calman commission. Of course, Scottish civil servants cannot give evidence to the Calman commission. He is absolutely right to say that if the Scottish Government continue to wish to see this process provide the high-quality outcome that we all want, that position should change over the next few months. The hon. Gentleman is right: there are a number of insomniac SNP supporters across Scotland at the moment. That is partly because their economic dream has turned into a nightmare and their ambitions of Scotland being just another Iceland are really a nightmare come true.
The hon. Gentleman is right to say that it is both surprising and disappointing that Scottish Government Ministers will not give evidence to the Calman commission. Of course, Scottish civil servants cannot give evidence to the Calman commission. He is absolutely right to say that if the Scottish Government continue to wish to see this process provide the high-quality outcome that we all want, that position should change over the next few months. The hon. Gentleman is right: there are a number of insomniac SNP supporters across Scotland at the moment. That is partly because their economic dream has turned into a nightmare and their ambitions of Scotland being just another Iceland are really a nightmare come true.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
David Mundell
(Conservative)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
We share the Secretary of State's welcome for the Calman commission. Does he note the contrast between the application and thoroughness of the interim Calman report and the so-called national conversation, which appears to be little more than a taxpayer-funded blog site for insomniac nationalists? Does he share my disappointment not only with the content but with the tone of the First Minister's response to the interim report? Will he therefore use his best endeavours to persuade the First Minister that now is the time to show that he is man not a mouse—to use the First Minister's own analogy—by abandoning the national conversation, which does not have the support of the Scottish Parliament, and by engaging, as many in the Scottish Government wish to do, in the Calman process?
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c518-9
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
We cannot dictate to the Calman commission the timetable for the publication of its report, but we continue to engage with it and we will respond to it. The fact is that Scotland gets the best of both worlds: it has the benefit of a devolved Parliament in Edinburgh and the security of the UK Parliament, which provides a sense of security and stability in these very difficult times.
We cannot dictate to the Calman commission the timetable for the publication of its report, but we continue to engage with it and we will respond to it. The fact is that Scotland gets the best of both worlds: it has the benefit of a devolved Parliament in Edinburgh and the security of the UK Parliament, which provides a sense of security and stability in these very difficult times.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
Ben Wallace
(Conservative)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
It is clear that by next summer the Calman commission will have completed its work and a final report will be published. In the light of the fact that Scotland's First Minister and the Scottish National party are not really interested in better governance for Scotland—[Interruption.] We hear about the Tory-Labour pact, and I am in favour of pacts so far as the Union of the United Kingdom of Great Britain is concerned, as opposed to the ark of insolvency offered by the SNP and its swivel-eyed supporters. Will the Secretary of State please tell us his plans for the Government timetable when the final report is published in the summer?
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c523-4
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
I am sure it will come as no surprise to the hon. Gentleman to hear that the Prime Minister was speaking on behalf of the Government, and it is important for that to be the case. The Calman commission and Anton Muscatelli have looked at those specifics in precise and great detail. Today's exchanges have also shown the merit of having a dispassionate, thorough, detailed analytic piece of work such as that currently being produced by the Calman commission. We look forward to the commission's final report next year and we will continue to give evidence to it. I say again that I think the process would be stronger if the Scottish Government joined the UK Government and gave evidence to the commission.
I am sure it will come as no surprise to the hon. Gentleman to hear that the Prime Minister was speaking on behalf of the Government, and it is important for that to be the case. The Calman commission and Anton Muscatelli have looked at those specifics in precise and great detail. Today's exchanges have also shown the merit of having a dispassionate, thorough, detailed analytic piece of work such as that currently being produced by the Calman commission. We look forward to the commission's final report next year and we will continue to give evidence to it. I say again that I think the process would be stronger if the Scottish Government joined the UK Government and gave evidence to the commission.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
Alistair Carmichael
(Liberal Democrat)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
Does the Secretary of State accept that today's exchanges highlight the need for the financial issue to be addressed and that central to that will be the tax-raising position of the Scottish Parliament? Does he recall the Prime Minister telling the CBI dinner in September:"““Devolution has worked, but I do see one problem…the Scottish Parliament is wholly accountable for the budget it spends but not for the size of its budget…That is why we asked the Calman Commission to look carefully at the financial accountability of the Scottish Parliament””?"
Is that still a statement of Government policy and can we expect to see that reflected in future submissions from the Scotland Office to the Calman commission?
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c519
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
I know that the hon. Gentleman has great affection and passion for the north-east of England, but the fact is that the funding settlement that has been established across the UK has been in place in a period during which Conservative and Labour Governments have been in power. The hon. Gentleman raises the type of issue that the Calman commission, through Anton Muscatelli's work with his expert group, will be considering, and it would be wrong of me to second-guess that process at this time. That work has to continue.
I know that the hon. Gentleman has great affection and passion for the north-east of England, but the fact is that the funding settlement that has been established across the UK has been in place in a period during which Conservative and Labour Governments have been in power. The hon. Gentleman raises the type of issue that the Calman commission, through Anton Muscatelli's work with his expert group, will be considering, and it would be wrong of me to second-guess that process at this time. That work has to continue.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
Lord Robathan
(Conservative)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
Does the Secretary of State think that the current system of funding is fair to the rest of the United Kingdom, especially the north-east of England?
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c517
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
Not at all, because in the recent pre-Budget report we saw an additional £2 billion go into the pockets and purses of Scots. Across the country and across the world, Governments are trying to find ways to drive efficiencies. I will not take any lectures from the hon. Gentleman. His party argued for lighter regulation of the banking system, just as it started to collapse; his party argued for an oil fund, just as oil prices fell from $150 a barrel to $42; and his party argued that Scotland should be just like Iceland, when the International Monetary Fund was being called in to save the latter's economy.
Not at all, because in the recent pre-Budget report we saw an additional £2 billion go into the pockets and purses of Scots. Across the country and across the world, Governments are trying to find ways to drive efficiencies. I will not take any lectures from the hon. Gentleman. His party argued for lighter regulation of the banking system, just as it started to collapse; his party argued for an oil fund, just as oil prices fell from $150 a barrel to $42; and his party argued that Scotland should be just like Iceland, when the International Monetary Fund was being called in to save the latter's economy.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
Angus Robertson
(Scottish National Party)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
The Calman commission has not yet had time to consider the £1 billion of cuts announced by the UK Government, which will impact negatively on Scottish social services. With the Labour and Conservative parties working hand in hand in the Calman commission, is it not time for the Secretary of State to be honest about the Tory-type cuts that he is now in favour of?
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c518
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
My right hon. Friend is typically right on the money. In his chairmanship of the Select Committee on Treasury, he shows great expertise on these issues. Despite the SNP heckling and haranguing him, the fact is that the £37 billion investment by the UK taxpayer in the two Scottish-based banks is more than the entire budget of the Scottish Government. That shows yet again that in good times the Union of the United Kingdom helps to make us all more prosperous, and in more difficult times it makes us safer and stronger.
My right hon. Friend is typically right on the money. In his chairmanship of the Select Committee on Treasury, he shows great expertise on these issues. Despite the SNP heckling and haranguing him, the fact is that the £37 billion investment by the UK taxpayer in the two Scottish-based banks is more than the entire budget of the Scottish Government. That shows yet again that in good times the Union of the United Kingdom helps to make us all more prosperous, and in more difficult times it makes us safer and stronger.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
Lord McFall of Alcluith
(Labour)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
I welcome the Calman report as a sound, thorough piece of evidential work. The evidence shows that in the financial crisis, with the loss of two of our dear banks in Scotland, Scotland on its own would not have been able to cope. [Interruption.] Is there not a case—[Interruption.] Is there not a case for looking at the evidence, working for devolution, and ensuring that we have good government in health, education and community care— all areas that are crying out for good policies, which the Administration in Scotland are not delivering?
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c517
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
My hon. Friend raises an important point. Anton Muscatelli looked in great detail at the funding balance and other issues, and the Calman commission will reflect on that and produce its proposals next year. Whether it is in Leicestershire, Lanarkshire or north or south of the border, the United Kingdom provides us with great prosperity in good times and great security in more difficult times. That is a situation that all of us in the House—except one, two, three, four, five and one other who is not in the Chamber at the moment—wish to continue.
My hon. Friend raises an important point. Anton Muscatelli looked in great detail at the funding balance and other issues, and the Calman commission will reflect on that and produce its proposals next year. Whether it is in Leicestershire, Lanarkshire or north or south of the border, the United Kingdom provides us with great prosperity in good times and great security in more difficult times. That is a situation that all of us in the House—except one, two, three, four, five and one other who is not in the Chamber at the moment—wish to continue.
Answered by
Jim Murphy
(Labour)
Asked by
David Leslie Taylor
(Labour)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Type
Oral answers to questions
I have particular warmth for Scotland and all the people who live there because I have Scottish blood in my veins and I represented a substantially Scottish ward on the local authority until I came to this place.
Further to the point made by the hon. Member for Blaby (Mr. Robathan), he and I represent constituencies in the east midlands of England that have a population not dissimilar to that of Scotland and a social, economic and demographic profile close to that of Scotland. However, public expenditure in the east midlands is 20 per cent. less per head than it is in Scotland. No one wants to take away from Scotland, but does the Secretary of State hope that one day the east midlands of England will rise to receive the largesse that those north of the border receive?
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c519
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
Does the Secretary of State think that the current system of funding is fair to the rest of the United Kingdom, especially the north-east of England?
Does the Secretary of State think that the current system of funding is fair to the rest of the United Kingdom, especially the north-east of England?
Asked by
Lord Robathan
(Conservative)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Oral questions - 1st Supplementary
Status
Answered
Answered on
10 December 2008
I know that the hon. Gentleman has great affection and passion for the north-east of England, but the fact is that the funding settlement that has been established across the UK has been in place in a period during which Conservative and Labour Governments have been in power. The hon. Gentleman raises the type of issue that the Calman commission, through Anton Muscatelli's work with his expert group, will be considering, and it would be wrong of me to second-guess that process at this time. That work has to continue.
Subjects
Devolution; Finance; Scotland; North East
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c517
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
I am very disappointed by that. The First Minister has a tendency to conflate the interests of the Scottish National party with the interests of Scotland. It would very much be in the interests of Scotland if Scottish Government civil servants were able to give evidence to the Calman commission. If the Secretary of State manages to have that conversation, perhaps he could use his undoubted charm to persuade the First Minister to remove the ban and let them give evidence.
I am very disappointed by that. The First Minister has a tendency to conflate the interests of the Scottish National party with the interests of Scotland. It would very much be in the interests of Scotland if Scottish Government civil servants were able to give evidence to the Calman commission. If the Secretary of State manages to have that conversation, perhaps he could use his undoubted charm to persuade the First Minister to remove the ban and let them give evidence.
Asked by
Lord Harper
(Conservative)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Oral questions - 1st Supplementary
Status
Answered
Answered on
10 December 2008
It is, as I said, both disappointing and surprising that Scottish Government Ministers will not give evidence; and Scottish Government civil servants cannot give evidence to the process. I want to strike a tone whereby I work with all Scots in Scotland's interests and I am just disappointed that that offer has not been taken up by the First Minister and the Scottish Government.
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c523
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
I welcome the Calman report as a sound, thorough piece of evidential work. The evidence shows that in the financial crisis, with the loss of two of our dear banks in Scotland, Scotland on its own would not have been able to cope. [Interruption.] Is there not a case—[Interruption.] Is there not a case for looking at the evidence, working for devolution, and ensuring that we have good government in health, education and community care— all areas that are crying out for good policies, which the Administration in Scotland are not delivering?
I welcome the Calman report as a sound, thorough piece of evidential work. The evidence shows that in the financial crisis, with the loss of two of our dear banks in Scotland, Scotland on its own would not have been able to cope. [Interruption.] Is there not a case—[Interruption.] Is there not a case for looking at the evidence, working for devolution, and ensuring that we have good government in health, education and community care— all areas that are crying out for good policies, which the Administration in Scotland are not delivering?
Asked by
Lord McFall of Alcluith
(Labour)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Oral questions - Supplementary
Status
Answered
Answered on
10 December 2008
My right hon. Friend is typically right on the money. In his chairmanship of the Select Committee on Treasury, he shows great expertise on these issues. Despite the SNP heckling and haranguing him, the fact is that the £37 billion investment by the UK taxpayer in the two Scottish-based banks is more than the entire budget of the Scottish Government. That shows yet again that in good times the Union of the United Kingdom helps to make us all more prosperous, and in more difficult times it makes us safer and stronger.
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c517
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
Surely the Secretary of State cannot be telling us the accurate position when he says that the Royal Bank of Scotland and the Bank of Scotland were getting more money than the whole of Scottish Government. Surely those figures cannot be true. Could he tell us a little more about that?
Surely the Secretary of State cannot be telling us the accurate position when he says that the Royal Bank of Scotland and the Bank of Scotland were getting more money than the whole of Scottish Government. Surely those figures cannot be true. Could he tell us a little more about that?
Asked by
Ian Davidson
(Labour; Co-operative Party)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Oral questions - Supplementary
Status
Answered
Answered on
10 December 2008
I would like to thank my hon. Friend for his question. The small number of SNP Members were heckling, so perhaps my hon. Friend was not able to hear. We are investing £20 billion of UK taxpayers' money in the Royal Bank of Scotland, and £17 billion based on the HBOS-Lloyds TSB merger proposals. That direct investment in those banks has led to the Royal Bank of Scotland taking an entirely sensitive approach to small businesses in Scotland, and where that bank has led, we look forward to other banks following.
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland; HBOS; Royal Bank of Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c518
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
It is clear that by next summer the Calman commission will have completed its work and a final report will be published. In the light of the fact that Scotland's First Minister and the Scottish National party are not really interested in better governance for Scotland—[Interruption.] We hear about the Tory-Labour pact, and I am in favour of pacts so far as the Union of the United Kingdom of Great Britain is concerned, as opposed to the ark of insolvency offered by the SNP and its swivel-eyed supporters. Will the Secretary of State please tell us his plans for the Government timetable when the final report is published in the summer?
It is clear that by next summer the Calman commission will have completed its work and a final report will be published. In the light of the fact that Scotland's First Minister and the Scottish National party are not really interested in better governance for Scotland—[Interruption.] We hear about the Tory-Labour pact, and I am in favour of pacts so far as the Union of the United Kingdom of Great Britain is concerned, as opposed to the ark of insolvency offered by the SNP and its swivel-eyed supporters. Will the Secretary of State please tell us his plans for the Government timetable when the final report is published in the summer?
Asked by
Ben Wallace
(Conservative)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Oral questions - Supplementary
Status
Answered
Answered on
10 December 2008
We cannot dictate to the Calman commission the timetable for the publication of its report, but we continue to engage with it and we will respond to it. The fact is that Scotland gets the best of both worlds: it has the benefit of a devolved Parliament in Edinburgh and the security of the UK Parliament, which provides a sense of security and stability in these very difficult times.
Subjects
Devolution; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c523-4
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons
Does the Secretary of State accept that today's exchanges highlight the need for the financial issue to be addressed and that central to that will be the tax-raising position of the Scottish Parliament? Does he recall the Prime Minister telling the CBI dinner in September:"““Devolution has worked, but I do see one problem…the Scottish Parliament is wholly accountable for the budget it spends but not for the size of its budget…That is why we asked the Calman Commission to look carefully at the financial accountability of the Scottish Parliament””?"
Is that still a statement of Government policy and can we expect to see that reflected in future submissions from the Scotland Office to the Calman commission?
Does the Secretary of State accept that today's exchanges highlight the need for the financial issue to be addressed and that central to that will be the tax-raising position of the Scottish Parliament? Does he recall the Prime Minister telling the CBI dinner in September:"““Devolution has worked, but I do see one problem…the Scottish Parliament is wholly accountable for the budget it spends but not for the size of its budget…That is why we asked the Calman Commission to look carefully at the financial accountability of the Scottish Parliament””?"
Is that still a statement of Government policy and can we expect to see that reflected in future submissions from the Scotland Office to the Calman commission?
Asked by
Alistair Carmichael
(Liberal Democrat)
Answering body
Scotland Office
Oral questions - Supplementary
Status
Answered
Answered on
10 December 2008
I am sure it will come as no surprise to the hon. Gentleman to hear that the Prime Minister was speaking on behalf of the Government, and it is important for that to be the case. The Calman commission and Anton Muscatelli have looked at those specifics in precise and great detail. Today's exchanges have also shown the merit of having a dispassionate, thorough, detailed analytic piece of work such as that currently being produced by the Calman commission. We look forward to the commission's final report next year and we will continue to give evidence to it. I say again that I think the process would be stronger if the Scottish Government joined the UK Government and gave evidence to the commission.
Subjects
Devolution; Finance; Scotland
Date
10 December 2008
Reference
485 c519
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
House
House of Commons