Conservatives back more devolution for Scotland

Monday, February 15, 2010

Conservative leader David Cameron has pledged to repair the relationship between Westminster and Holyrood governments if he comes to power are the next election.

In a speech which in turn attacked Prime and First Ministers, Cameron promised that if he became PM one of the first things he would do would be to come to Scotland and meet with the First Minister.

"That will signal the beginning of a new relationship, a fresh start, based on mutual respect. It will be good for Scotland, good for Britain and good for the Union," he told the Conservative party conference in Perth.

And he added that he would also work to make the devolution settlement stronger, commenting: "It should be natural for us to want devolution to work. Not just because it is a weapon against the Nationalists' obsession with independence. But because devolution should be central to our whole political approach."

But he remains firm in his belief that the Scottish people do not want independence, so: "let's make devolution work in a way that kills off the independence argument."

For the first time, Cameron recognised the recommendations of the Calman Commission without committing to implementing them, but did commit the party to producing its own White Paper and legislation to deal with the issues.

That will include, he said later, the devolution of more tax raising powers.

The Conservatives, although part of the group working across Parliaments on implementing the Calman Commission's recommendations, have always been seen as lukewarm towards the proposals and did not back a UK White Paper proposing rapid devolution of more powers to Scotland.

Cameron has also admitted that the party had abandoned plans to cut the number of MSPs while explaining his plan to reduce the number of Westminster MPs and cut ministers' pay, saying: "What the Holyrood Parliament does is a matter for it."

But SNP Treasury spokesman Stewart Hosie said that "warm words from the Tory high command" could not hide their plans.

Hosie accused the Conservatives of planning massive cuts to the Scottish budget which would "short change Scotland".

And First Minister Alex Salmond wrote to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Tory and Liberal Democrat finance spokesmen warning that any reduction to Scotland's block grant next year would bring political consequences and economic costs that "cannot be tolerated in this period of fragile recovery".