– in the Scottish Parliament at on 6 October 2016.
Emma Harper
Scottish National Party
7. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to the proposed deadline of March 2017 for the triggering of article 50. (S5F-00337)
Nicola Sturgeon
Scottish National Party
It seems clear that the decision on article 50 timing is being driven more by the Prime Minister’s desire to appease the Tory Eurosceptics than by a rational consideration of what is in the best interests of the country. That is deeply irresponsible. As we have already heard in this First Minister’s Question Time session, the Fraser of Allander institute report that was published this morning shows the damage that Brexit, especially the hard Brexit that the Prime Minister now seems to favour, will do to our economy. That is why the Scottish Government will continue to do absolutely everything in our power to protect Scotland’s interests.
Emma Harper
Scottish National Party
Given the time that it has taken for the Prime Minister to set a timescale, what is the First Minister’s best bet on how long it will take the United Kingdom Government to come up with a plan or any substantial notion of what Brexit really means?
The First Minister:
I have no idea how long it is going to take the UK Government to come up with a plan. It should have had one by now.
What I get more concerned about with every day that passes is the direction in which the UK Government seems to be going. This is not just exit from the European Union, but exit from the single market. Let us be quite clear about what that will mean: it will mean tariffs and non-tariff trade barriers to our companies that export to the European Union; it could mean our financial services companies losing their passporting rights; and it could mean all of us having to pay for the privilege of travelling across Europe. Those are real implications for each and every single one of us. That would be bad enough, but it is even worse, because Scotland did not vote to be in this position.
I hope that everybody in the chamber will unite behind a call from the Scottish Government to stay in the single market, because notwithstanding the result of the referendum, I do not believe that Theresa May has any mandate to take the UK out of the single market. How many times did we hear the leave campaign say that leaving the EU did not mean leaving the single market? I hope that Ruth Davidson will go back to one of her previous positions and again get right behind the Scottish Government when it says to Theresa May, “Keep the UK as a whole in the single market and stop putting the interests of the Tory Eurosceptics and UKIP ahead of the interests of the country.”
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
Question Time is an opportunity for MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask Government Ministers questions. These questions are asked in the Chamber itself and are known as Oral Questions. Members may also put down Written Questions. In the House of Commons, Question Time takes place for an hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after Prayers. The different Government Departments answer questions according to a rota and the questions asked must relate to the responsibilities of the Government Department concerned. In the House of Lords up to four questions may be asked of the Government at the beginning of each day's business. They are known as 'starred questions' because they are marked with a star on the Order Paper. Questions may also be asked at the end of each day's business and these may include a short debate. They are known as 'unstarred questions' and are less frequent. Questions in both Houses must be written down in advance and put on the agenda and both Houses have methods for selecting the questions that will be asked. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P1 at the UK Parliament site.
The political party system in the English-speaking world evolved in the 17th century, during the fight over the ascension of James the Second to the Throne. James was a Catholic and a Stuart. Those who argued for Parliamentary supremacy were called Whigs, after a Scottish word whiggamore, meaning "horse-driver," applied to Protestant rebels. It was meant as an insult.
They were opposed by Tories, from the Irish word toraidhe (literally, "pursuer," but commonly applied to highwaymen and cow thieves). It was used — obviously derisively — to refer to those who supported the Crown.
By the mid 1700s, the words Tory and Whig were commonly used to describe two political groupings. Tories supported the Church of England, the Crown, and the country gentry, while Whigs supported the rights of religious dissent and the rising industrial bourgeoisie. In the 19th century, Whigs became Liberals; Tories became Conservatives.
