Supreme Court

The Sewel Convention ensures that Westminster will normally legislate on devolved matters only with the express agreement of the Scottish Parliament, after proper consideration and scrutiny of the proposal in question.

So far, so good, but today, Tuesday 24th January 2017, the Supreme Court set out that the Sewell Convention is just that i.e. only a convention and not a legal obligation, thus Westminster can proceed with any legislation it wants to, even if it affects the devolved legislatures of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, without their consent.

President of the Supreme Court, Lord Neuberger said: “On the devolution issues, the court unanimously rules that UK ministers are not legally compelled to consult the devolved legislatures before triggering Article 50.”

The democratic deficit that is now prevalent in Scottish politics has never been so exposed as in today’s Supreme Court Judgement on devolved matters.

Irrespective of your vote to leave or remain in the EU, this judgement only reinforces the need for Scottish Independence – Independence is the only way Scotland will ever secure the future the Scottish people want.