There are some very interesting articles about the forthcoming Scotland Bill, the details of which were unveiled on Thursday, in today’s press.

The Tories were trying to back out and Clegg, Alexander and Carmichael wouldn’t let them

According to Michael Moore in Scotland on Sunday today.

 It is not a surprise to me that the Conservatives fought tooth and nail to remove some of the key elements of the Smith agreement.

We saw in the commission itself they adopted two or three different positions in the space of 48 hours on welfare and were clearly in touch with London colleagues at every stage.

We resisted it there and I am glad that my Liberal Democrat colleagues have resisted it in terms of the bill. There is no question in my mind that without Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg digging in on this over the last crucial 48 hours before the bill was published, we would have ended up with the whole Smith process unravelling.

I think that this shows that it’s the Liberal Democrats, not the SNP who are the true guardians of devolution. The SNP will do anything to undermine devolution because they want independence. It’s what they do and they will never change. If we were them, we wouldn’t either, although I’d like to think we would be more constructive than they are.

Carmichael says there’s no Westminster veto on new welfare powers.

All the criticism from the SNP about the new welfare powers being watered down is wrong. Alistair Carmichael was asked about this on the Sunday Politics. The Orkney studio where he was interviewed looked a lot tidier than it did the last time, too. He said that the only thing that requires agreement is the start date  not on actual proposals. It makes sense, too. If Scots want the UK benefits system to deliver a new Scottish benefit, they will need to have some notice to get their systems in order. He added that the duty to consult on new welfare powers is reciprocal, as is fitting for governments working in partnership. If the UK government wants to enact welfare reform, it needs to consult the Scottish Government. You can watch his interview here

Nick: Never mind the SNP’s negativity. Lib Dems have delivered home rule

In an article on Scotland on Sunday, Nick was very clear on the fact that use of powers could not be vetoed by Westminster. He also laid out the Lib Dem position on the voting rights of Scottish MPs, saying that these should be protected:

Home rule is part of the Liberal Democrats’ DNA. It’s part of our history going back to William Gladstone’s Midlothian campaign in the late 1870s. We have always been 100 per cent behind the transfer of powers away from London and these new powers mark an exciting time in Scottish politics.

This is why I have been dismayed by the antics of the SNP to manufacture a row about the draft clauses that the UK government has some kind of “veto” over policy areas that will be devolved to Scotland. This is categorically not true. The UK government has guaranteed we will not veto any such decisions.

Instead of welcoming new powers and talking Scotland up, the SNP spent Thursday in a fog of negativity desperately trying to find an excuse not to endorse a package they have already signed up to.

While strengthening the Scottish Parliament my party has endorsed the letter and spirit of the Smith Commission, including the right of Scottish MPs to vote on budget decisions.

The Tory proposals to take away these rights are plain wrong. They are trying to correct an anomaly in the UK Parliament in light of devolution by creating another anomaly.

 And what about the borrowing powers they already have?

And now a fourth thing about the powers they already have, as a bonus. Before we even start with the new Bill, there are new borrowing powers available to the Scottish Government from this year under the terms of the Scotland Act 2012. Holyrood magazine asked representatives from the main parties what they would borrow money for. Willie Rennie’s view ws this:

After 100 years of talking about home rule I am proud that we are in a place where we can talk in real terms about what we will do with home rule. The capital borrowing powers will mean the Scottish Government has no excuses when it comes to supporting the big infrastructure projects in places like the North East and Highlands. The AWPR [Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route] has hardly started and transport infrastructure is crumbling. We need to see concrete action from the SNP and these powers should mean there is no excuse for continuing to shortchange the North East and Highlands.

* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings. You can find her on Bluesky at caronmlindsay.bsky.social