Sunak heads to Scotland in push for the union

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will begin a two-day trip north of the border, which is expected to include talks with Nicola Sturgeon, on Thursday.
Rishi Sunak will use a visit to Scotland to highlight the benefits of remaining in the United Kingdom as he seeks to counter Nicola Sturgeon’s push for independence (PA)
PA Wire
David Hughes12 January 2023
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Rishi Sunak will use a visit to Scotland to highlight the benefits of remaining in the United Kingdom as he seeks to counter Nicola Sturgeon’s push for independence.

The Prime Minister is expected to hold face-to-face talks with the Scottish First Minister during his two-day trip, which begins on Thursday.

Details of the visit have yet to be confirmed, but the Daily Telegraph said it will tie in with the announcement of two new green freeports expected to be near Edinburgh and Inverness.

The UK Government’s relationship with Ms Sturgeon’s administration in Scotland has been strained not only by the independence issue but also the potential for Westminster to block Holyrood’s gender recognition laws.

MSPs last month passed the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill, approving charges which will allow trans people to obtain a gender recognition certificate without the need for a medical diagnosis.

Downing Street said no decision has yet been made on whether to invoke section 35 of the Scotland Act, which would block royal assent.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said the move is still being looked at ahead of a deadline next week, adding: “There is a process to consider it and then he will be given advice to make a decision, that’s still taking place.”

It will be Mr Sunak’s first visit to Scotland as Prime Minister, although he has held talks with Ms Sturgeon before and the pair met at the British-Irish Council Summit in Blackpool in November.

At Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, Mr Sunak said he wants to work with the Scottish Government on the issue of the North Sea oil and gas industry.

But he claimed Ms Sturgeon’s Government “don’t want to support the Scottish energy industry and the 200,000 jobs that it produces”.

He was responding to SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn, who said Scotland’s membership of the UK union “simply doesn’t add up”.

Mr Sunak said: “I’m keen to work with the Scottish Government to support the North Sea because it’s something that we’re all very proud of in the UK.”

According to The Telegraph, the new freeports will be at Cromarty Firth, near Inverness, and on the Firth of Forth, near Edinburgh.

The green freeports are aimed at boosting investment and growth through the use of tax incentives.

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