Holyrood’s refusal to give consent to the EU Withdrawal Bill must act as a wake-up call for the prime minister Alistair Carmichael has warned.
MSPs’ rejection of the Brexit Bill puts Theresa May in the position of potentially overriding Holyrood’s wishes for the first time since devolution.
Orkney and Shetland MP Alistair Carmichael said it was time for Mrs May to think again
“This vote must be a wake up call for Theresa May.
“The Government has attempted to play fast and loose with the devolution settlement, but today the wheels have truly come off.”
The SNP’s Westminster Europe spokesperson Stephen Gethins agreed.
He said: “The Scottish Parliament has voted overwhelmingly to protect devolution from a Westminster power grab and it’s high time the Tory government realised that it has no mandate to think it can do whatever it wants to Scotland and get away with it.
“Since the EU referendum nearly two years ago, the Tory government has embarked on a path to a hard Brexit that will have catastrophic consequences on the economy, jobs and living standards of millions of people.
“They must also reflect on the fact that they have been left alone and isolated in the Scottish Parliament as every other party backed the Scottish Government.
“The Tory government must now respect the will and vote of the Scottish Parliament and now meaningfully engage with other parties and the devolved administrations.”
However, Aberdeen South MP Ross Thomson, Conservative, said the move was just mischief-making.
“The SNP are not interested in striking a deal with the UK Government and simply want to create a crisis,” he said.
“For Nicola Sturgeon, it is always about independence. She is simply using Brexit as an excuse to agitate for another referendum.
“It was disappointing today that neither Labour nor the Liberal Democrats would stand up to the SNP.”
Secretary of State for Scotland David Mundell said he was also disappointed.
“We are disappointed the Scottish Parliament has declined to back the EU Withdrawal Bill,” he said.
“We have worked hard over the past year to try to secure the support of the Scottish Government and have put a considerable offer on the table with the vast majority of devolved powers automatically flowing from the EU to Belfast, Cardiff and Edinburgh.
“We remain hopeful the Scottish Government will still come on board. Even at this late stage our door remains open.”
