Smith Commission – have your say on more powers for Scotland says McLeod
SNP MSP for the South of Scotland Aileen McLeod is asking people across the region to contribute their views on further powers for the Scottish Parliament to the Smith Commission.
The Commission – chaired by Lord Smith of Kelvin and charged with bringing more powers to Holyrood – is seeking views from across Scottish public life about which new powers should be devolved.
With the Scottish Government, the Green Party, Labour, the Conservatives and the Lib-Dems all having published their proposals on more powers for the Scottish Parliament, Aileen is asking people to make their own submissions to the Smith Commission before the deadline of 5pm on 31st October.
Aileen said:
“It is very important that the Scottish people have their say on what further powers they think should be devolved to the Scottish Parliament. Recent opinion polling shows a clear majority in favour of Scotland controlling all of its affairs with the exception of foreign policy and defence, but this issue is far too important to be left in the hands of politicians.
“We now have the most politically engaged population in Western Europe so I hope there is a massive response to the Smith Commission, very much following on from the massive participation which we saw in the referendum.
“I welcome the Scottish Government’s intention to play a full and constructive part in the Smith Commission and the proposals it has produced for the devolution of further powers are the right next step for Scotland.
“The Smith Commission will need to meet the high expectations of the people of Scotland as expressed in the referendum, given the various promises of ‘devo max’, ‘near federalism’ and ‘home rule’ which were made.
“Crucially, given the great rise in public engagement with politics which came about as a result of the referendum, I hope that people will not only read the Scottish Government’s proposals but also take the time to send their own thoughts and suggestions to the Smith Commission. The deadline is the end of October, so there is not much time but I think it is vital that people’s voices continue to be heard throughout this process.”
Notes:
The Scottish Government’s proposals can be found here:
Further information on the Smith Commission can be found here:
