Written evidence to be reported to the House
UK Borders Bill
11:18 am
Mr. Byrne: As I said on Second Reading, because the powers that we seek for front-line immigration officers touch on devolved matters—such as, specifically, policing—this is a devolved issue and it is therefore something that the Scottish Executive would need to move on.
With the Scottish elections coming, obviously there is a great deal of pressure on the legislative timetable in Scotland, but I am sure that this issue will surface during the Scottish election campaign and that there are political parties in Scotland that will bring forward proposals that touch on this area. I am pretty confident about where my own party will sit on this issue.
Operationally, the Committee will be interested to know, there are many fewer international ports in Scotland. There are many more in England and therefore, as the Minister, I have had to satisfy myself that there is an operational solution in place while these powers are not in place in Scotland. The discussions that the Scottish Executive have had with ACPO Scotland have given me reassurance on that point.