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Scottish Secretary Alister Jack told MPs that the prime minister should stop writing different closure rules than Boris Johnson “just for the sake of doing it” as they have not led to lower COVID rates. Alister Jack told MPs on Thursday that Scotland’s separate guidance had sown public confusion and did not achieve better results in the fight against the virus.
He went on to say that relations between Sturgeon’s SNP administration in Edinburgh and Johnson’s Conservative government in London could be “strained.”
Mr Jack said: “We spoke with the Prime Minister last week about the rule of six, and at that meeting, we explained to her what our plans were on it and she said she would do something tomorrow, but she shouldn’t do it. Tell us that the next day he was complying with the rule of six excluding children under 12 years of age. “
He added: “She could have told us that, we could have reached an agreement.
“We tried in that meeting that all the decentralized administrations were on the same page, because I think that all over the UK people deserve it, there has been a lot of confusion during the summer.”
Alister Jack scheduled SNP administration in Holyrood (Image: Getty)
It comes when Michael Russell said Westminster couldn’t be trusted (Image: Getty)
The Scottish secretary said the prime minister’s repeated claim that the coronavirus was five times more prevalent in England than in Scotland was “totally false, totally useless.”
The conservative cabinet minister also lashed out at her refusal to rule out quarantine for English visitors, insisting that the country should unite as “one UK.”
Jack said a similar situation had occurred when Scottish Public Health Minister Joe FitzPatrick attended a meeting where UK government plans to develop a coronavirus contact tracing app were on the agenda.
The Scottish secretary said: “When we had a meeting to discuss our application, Joe FitzPatrick attended that meeting and participated in the discussions, and two days later the Scottish government announced its intention to develop its own contact tracing application.
READ MORE: Boris under attack: Scotland and Wales join forces to launch the assault
Scottish Secretary Alister Jack spoke to the Select Committee on Scottish Affairs (Image: Getty)
“But while Joe FitzPatrick came over and happily listened to our plans and advice and everything else, he didn’t mention the Scottish government’s plan.”
Jack concluded by saying that the differences in the UK “confused the message”, particularly for those who live near the border.
He added: “We need to stop the confusion.
“All the administrations in these weekly meetings that we actually have should be older, and not be different for the simple fact of having whatever agenda they have.
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Nicola Sturgeon decided to take her own approach to the Rule of Six (Image: Getty)
“It has led no one to a different result: the prevalence of the virus is as high in any part of the UK as it is anywhere else.
“On average, the four nations are experiencing similar problems.”
He described the relationship between the UK and Scottish governments as a “one-way street” and called Nicola Sturgeon’s Health Secretary Jeane Freeman a liar and accused Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon of provoking “bad feelings” between Scots and English.
Mr Jack also clashed with Committee Chairman Pete Wishart, who openly accused Westminster of using the Internal Market Bill to “circumvent” the Scottish Parliament.
Committee chair Pete Wishart beat Alister Jack (Image: Getty)
When questioning Jack, Wishart said: “There is no chance that the Scottish Conservatives will win in the next election in May.
“So instead of going to the trouble of winning an election, you are simply going to bypass the Scottish Parliament by investing directly in the areas you want. Is that what is happening?
Responding to questions, Mr. Jack raged: “No, that is not what is happening and I think it is arrogant of you to think that the upcoming elections at Holyrood are a foregone conclusion.
“I remember the SNP telling me what was going to happen when they supported a general election last year, they said Boris Johnson was going to be swept, he came back with a majority of 80.”
A spokesperson for Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon said in response on Friday morning: “The Prime Minister has always made a point of suggesting that where things can be done in a coordinated four-nation approach, she is more than happy to do so.
“That does not mean that in Scotland we will not make our own decisions based on our own circumstances.”
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