Call for MSPs to have more say over Covid restrictions

Holyrood's presiding officer has called for MSPs to be given more of a role in choosing Scotland's Covid restrictions.

Ken Macintosh said it was time for the parliament to "reassert its role" in holding ministers to account and taking part in "very difficult decisions".

MSPs are to hold a debate on the latest measures on Thursday, although it is not clear they will have any influence.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said it is important the government is able to "act quickly" to react to the virus.

However, she has said scrutiny of government decisions is "important and welcome".

Mr Macintosh wrote to party business managers ahead of Ms Sturgeon's speech setting out new restrictions, saying it was time to "discuss approaches to developing the parliament's scrutiny role in respect of Covid-related decisions".

He said that in the early days of the pandemic, members were happy to "respond in a flexible and constructive manner in the face of a public health emergency", but that six months on "a different approach is needed".

He said: "We need to create more and earlier opportunities to scrutinise and participate in decision-making on the restrictions affecting the daily lives of the people we represent, the impact on the economy, and the best ways to keep people safe."

The presiding officer has asked party business managers to consult with colleagues ahead of a meeting to discuss a new approach.

Ms Sturgeon has said she welcomes parliamentary scrutiny, but said it was "important that governments are able to act quickly in order to protect the population from the threat of the virus".

She said: "I am happy for there to be parliamentary scrutiny, but in the hurly-burly of politics, let us not forget that we are dealing with a virus, or that we have an obligation to protect the public from it as best we can."