Historic first for Moore as date set for Holyrood visit
The Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore will make history next week when he addresses the Scottish Parliament to explain the UK Government's programme for government.
The Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore will make history next week when he addresses the Scottish Parliament to explain the UK Government’s programme for government.
The Minister will appear before a meeting of the Committee Conveners on Thursday 17 June after accepting an invitation from the Presiding Officer. It comes a few weeks after the Prime Minister visited Holyrood and met the First Minister in Edinburgh.
He will become the first Secretary of State to appear formally before the Scottish Parliament as part of the coalition government’s agenda of mutual respect between the parliaments. The meeting will be held in public and broadcast. The Minister will appear before the meeting at 12.45 for an hour.
The Minister is keen to re-state the Prime Minister’s offer of constructive engagement with the Scottish Parliament on an ongoing basis.
The Chief Secretary to the Treasury and Prime Minister are also expected to visit the Scottish Parliament in the near future.
The Secretary of State for Scotland said:
“I am looking forward to speaking to members of the Scottish Parliament and also hearing their views on the content of the Queen’s Speech and other issues.
“It is surprising that a Secretary of State for Scotland whose job is to make devolution work as well as possible has not appeared formally at Holyrood before now. Scotland has two governments and the closer they work together for our interest, the better.
“This UK Government has made clear, from the very top and from the very outset, that we want to constructively engage with the Scottish Parliament. I am committed to leading by example by appearing myself and by facilitating the process for other UK Ministers or officials to attend when appropriate.”