The UK Internal Market Bill is an act of wanton vandalism on devolution. Although Clause 3(9) of the Bill says that ministers must ‘consult’ the devolved governments of the UK when making decisions in devolved areas, you only need to look at the last four years to realise the meaninglessness of this phrase.

The Bill also poses a threat to food hygiene standards both in Scotland and across the rest of the UK. Mutual recognition clauses in the bill gives UK ministers unfettered ability to lower these standards without the consent of the Scottish Parliament. This is despite food standards being a devolved area since 1999.

Creative and widely popular policy reforms passed by the Scottish Parliament will also become harder to implement in the future. Replication of successful public health policies such as the smoking in public places ban and minimum unit pricing of alcohol will become harder to replicate due to the restrictions posed by this Bill.

You can watch my speech and read my full contribution above.