Greer Questions Swinson’s ‘Welsh Abstention’
Green MSP Ross Greer has criticised East Dunbartonshire MP, Jo Swinson, for failing to vote against a ‘power grab’ by the Westminster government against the Scottish Parliament, only to justify her abstention on the basis of the Welsh Government’s position.
Despite a majority of East Dunbartonshire’s MSPs and all of her Liberal Democrat colleagues at Holyrood voting to reject consent for the UK Conservative Government’s EU Withdrawal, Ms Swinson abstained on the amendment to respect the devolution settlement and the wishes of the Scottish parliament. The amendment subsequently fell.
In a bizarre turn, Swinson took to Twitter to defend her position, explaining that supporting the Scottish Parliament’s view “would have meant denying Welsh Assembly what they did want.”
Ross Greer, Scottish Green MSP for the West of Scotland and East Dunbartonshire resident commented:
“Jo Swinson’s constituents, as well as her Lib Dem MSP colleagues, will feel that this is a major let-down. For a Scottish MP to vote against Scotland’s interests and the position of her own party colleagues and then use the Welsh Assembly as justification is bizarre.
“With this chaotic UK Government riding roughshod over Scotland and the devolution settlement to deliver a disastrous Hard Brexit, which 70% of East Dunbartonshire residents voted against, we need MPs at Westminster who will stand up for their constituents and oppose Theresa May’s out of control administration.”