Archive for Our Scotland - www.our-scotland.org Scottish Politics Discussion Forum / Messageboard - Dedicated to online discussion about Scottish Politics and an Independent Scotland, as well as Scottish Society today. We also have a section dedicated to Banter, Sport and Recommended Sites.
|
Holebender
|
Scottish QuestionsI have just finished watching the monthly farce which is Scottish Questions at Westminster and I'm fair scunnered with it all.
The format is as pathetic as it is predictable; a Labour backbencher asks the Labour Secretary of State a contrived question about a devolved matter (i.e. not really the business of Westminster) which is nothing more than an attack on the SNP Government (which is not there to defend itself) and the Labour Secretary of State has a further pop at the SNP in his reply.
What is even more pathetic is the sight of the Secretary of State having a go at the SNP for seeking to score political points if an SNP member dares to stand up and decry some aspect of Labour's administration.
What is the point of this? Why does the Speaker allow questions which are not part of the Secretary of State's or Westminster's remit?
|
Aventinian
|
Re: Scottish Questions | Holebender wrote: | I have just finished watching the monthly farce which is Scottish Questions at Westminster and I'm fair scunnered with it all.
The format is as pathetic as it is predictable; a Labour backbencher asks the Labour Secretary of State a contrived question about a devolved matter (i.e. not really the business of Westminster) which is nothing more than an attack on the SNP Government (which is not there to defend itself) and the Labour Secretary of State has a further pop at the SNP in his reply. |
Contrived questions are all part of the ministerial questioning process. If you're going to grant the right to other parties to criticise, then you equally have to give the party in power the right to publicise its own views.
Some of these sorts of questions really are brown-tonguing, cringe-worthy nonsense though.
| Quote: | | What is the point of this? Why does the Speaker allow questions which are not part of the Secretary of State's or Westminster's remit? |
Everything is in Westminster's remit - it is the supreme, absolute and sovereign legislative body for the United Kingdom.
I think you'd have more of a point asking why the Presiding Officer allows the Scottish Parliament to debate reserved matters, as the often do.
|
RadgeJougal
|
Don't worry, given time there shall be no "reserved matters", whatsoever. 
|
|
|
|