Pro-life MPs launch bid to change Scots abortion law

By The Press Association6th July 2015News ScotlandAbortion, Children, Families, News Scotland

A group of pro-life MPs have launched a bid to give the Scottish Parliament the power to change abortion law in the country.

A cross-party amendment to the Scotland Bill, signed by three Catholic MPs – Liberal Democrat John Pugh, Tory Fiona Bruce and Labour’s Robert Flello – would devolve powers over abortion north of the border.

Veteran Tory Sir Edward Leigh, who sits alongside the three MPs on the all-party parliamentary pro-life group, said Scotland has its own point of view which should be reflected in the Scottish Parliament, particularly on “moral maze” issues such as abortion.

The Gainsborough MP, who moved a separate amendment which would devolve powers on abortion and surrogacy, genetics, embryology and other health areas, said any “self-respecting parliament” should be allowed to deal with such issues.

Sir Edward suggested he would not push his proposal to a vote but highlighted the cross-party amendment signed by the other pro-life MPs.

But he insisted his pro-life views were “irrelevant” because the new devolution settlement is focused on creating a “real parliament”.

Sir Edward said: “I suppose it’s no secret that I will always take the pro-life argument, whether it’s to do with capital punishment, or assisted suicide or abortion, I have my own views, I appreciate they are not the views of everyone in this place.

“My research assistant said, ‘well is this wise, what would the Scottish Parliament decide? Would their views be more like us in the UK Parliament?’.

“And I said to him it’s completely irrelevant what my views are, or what your views are, that’s a value judgment, it’s not for me to decide.

“Frankly I have no idea whether if the Scottish Parliament was allowed to decide the law of abortion, whether it would take more my view, pro-life view, to amend the Abortion Act or it wouldn’t.

“I have no idea and it’s none of my business. I would have thought a self-respecting parliament can and should be trusted to deal with abortion, especially as I understand that the Scottish Parliament already deals with assisted dying.”

Sir Edward said he tabled his own amendment because he wanted to know why Scotland could not have the power to change abortion law in the country.

He said: “I wanted to have an explanation of why the Scottish Parliament is not going to be allowed under our Scotland Bill to debate or decide these matters.

“These matters are of course of vital interest to any nation.

“I will recall that whereas sometimes our debate, say on social security, when we’re discussing spending extra billions of pounds, are extremely poorly attended relative to interest.

“As soon as we get into these, what I would call moral maze issues where people have strong personal views and there are often free votes, our Parliament really comes into its own.

“It’s what makes a parliament and it’s part of being a parliament.

“And the Scottish Parliament is in its essence, what we’re trying to create is a real parliament, and Scotland may be a small nation but it is a proud nation and it has its own individual point of view, which I would have thought is best determined by the Scottish people through their Parliament.”

Meanwhile, former Scottish secretary Alistair Carmichael called for powers over Crown Estate land to be devolved directly to local island communities so they could generate more income from them.

Scotland’s foreshore, seabed, fishing rights and other urban and rural state assets are currently managed by the Crown Estate, accountable to Westminster with revenues sent to the UK Treasury.

The Bill will devolve its revenues and accountability to the Scottish Parliament in Holyrood.

But Mr Carmichael said the land around islands would be better managed by local communities and so the powers should be devolved directly to them

Moving his own amendments to the Bill, the Liberal Democrat MP for Orkney and Shetland said: “It is I think manifestly the case that the seabed is a resource which is something which could be better managed and would be better managed if it were to be managed by the communities that were most directly affected.

“That would I think actually generate more income.

“There are a tremendous number of opportunities for generating income from the seabed, many of which are thwarted because the Crown Estate Commissioners over the years have taken a particularly narrow construction of the duties that they have under the Crown Estate Act.”