Scottish Secretary Allister Jack in swipe at Nicola Sturgeon as he calls for ‘united message’ on coronavirus lockdown
Nicola Sturgeon has promised a “grown-up conversation” with the Scottish public over lockdown.
3 min read
Scotland should lift its coronavirus restrictions “in lockstep with the UK as a whole”, Cabinet minister Allister Jack has warned Nicola Sturgeon.
The Scottish Secretary called for a “simple, clear, united” message from Westminster and Holyrood following a string of differing interventions from the First Minister in recent weeks.
Scotland has moved ahead of the UK government in publishing its own criteria for lifting the coronavirus curbs and issued distinct guidance for face coverings north of the Border.
And on Monday Ms Sturgeon warned Scots not to expect any “meaningful change” to current measures this week, when ministers review the lockdown.
But, in a thinly-veiled warning to the SNP leader, the Mr Jack said: “I believe that when Scotland is ready to emerge from lockdown we should do so in lockstep with the UK as a whole.”
Writing in the Scottish Daily Mail, the Scottish Secretary added: “There are strong, practical reasons why this should happen.
“It’s important, as Scotland’s two governments make such onerous, difficult demands on people to stay at home and to stay away from family and friends, that we speak with the same voice.
“If we can present a simple, clear, united message, it will be much more effective.
“The more we feel we are in this together, the more we will pull together - to stay at home, protect the NHS and save lives.”
While the Conservative Cabinet minister said Ms Sturgeon had “acknowledged the advantages of taking a UK-wide approach to tackling coronavirus” and “spoken consistently of the benefits of working together”, he warned that devolution in Scotland “does not, and never has, meant that things must be done differently or are best done differently”.
He added: “The coronavirus pandemic is a national emergency and has created an unprecedented challenge for the whole of the UK. We should meet the challenge together.
“Up to now there have some differences in approach, though most have been minor.
“But where differences have been more substantial, the Scottish Government have not made good decisions.”
“The more we feel we are in this together, the more we will pull together" - Allister Jack
Mr Jack took aim at Scottish rules shuttering building sites during the pandemic, arguing that Ms Sturgeon’s government had “failed to justify their decision” amid a “disastrous impact on the Scottish building industry”.
And the Scottish Secretary said: “Let me be clear, we are not yet at the point where we are able to start ‘unlocking’ our society, because we have not yet met our five tests. For now, everyone needs to continue to stay at home, protect the NHS and save lives. But I am equally clear, when the data shows we can start easing the restrictions we are all currently living with, it will be important to do so as one United Kingdom.”
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