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Keir Starmer and Boris Johnson clash over Scottish devolution

Despite his clash with Boris Johnson over devolution Keir Starmer (inset) is equally opposed to Scottish independence as the PM

Labor leader, Keir Starmer, has added his voice to growing criticism of Prime Minister, Boris Johnson’s description of Scottish devolution as a “disaster”.  

Addressing MPs during Prime Minister’s Questions at the House of Commons, Starmer described devolution as “one of the proudest achievements of the last Labor government”.

Going on the rhetorical offensive, Starmer proclaimed: “The single biggest threat to the future of the United Kingdom is the prime minister every time he opens his mouth”.  

Starmer also said the PM’s alleged remarks on Monday (November 16) to a virtual meeting with Tory MPs from northern England was not an “isolated incident” and accused Johnson of “seriously undermining the fabric of the UK”.

In reply, Johnson accused the Scottish National Party (SNP) of misusing devolution by turning it into “a mission to break up the UK”.

However, in an awkward political moment – and one that betrayed the PM’s deep biases – Johnson was scolded by Commons Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, for misrepresenting the SNP as the “Scottish Nationalist Party”.  

“Can I just say it’s the Scottish National Party, not the nationalist party”, Hoyle told off the PM.

Meanwhile, the SNP’s Westminster leader, Ian Blackford, said the PM’s “attack on devolution” was “not just a slip of the tongue, it was a slip of the Tory mask”.

"The fact is Scotland has been completely ignored by Westminster. We now face an extreme Brexit, a power grab and another round of Tory cuts all being imposed against our will by a Tory government that we didn't vote for", Blackford complained.

 

 


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