Holyrood committee recommends Scotland be excluded from Trade Union Bill

And if the UK government is not willing to amend its bill, the Scottish government should use any means available to encourage the lodging and agreement of amendments in the House of Lords to achieve that outcome.

Holyrood’s Devolution Committee further reports that, should this process fail, then as a minimum, regulation-making powers should be conferred upon Scottish ministers in relation to “facility time” and “check-off”. These issues relate directly to public services in Scotland, such as local authorities, the NHSand Police Scotland, all of which are devolved matters.

Devolution (Further Powers) committee convener, Bruce Crawford MSP said: “There is widespread opposition to this legislation in Scotland, and a clear majority of the committee rejects the general principles of the UK government’s Trades Union Bill.

“We recognise the UK government wishes to pass this bill despite there being no real evidence to support its position. It is unlikely, therefore, to heed our call to halt the legislative process in the UK Parliament, so that the bill does not become law in any part of the UK.

“That being the case, the committee recommends the UK government removes Scotland from the territorial extent of the Bill, through amendments in the House of Lords at Committee or report stage. Without these amendments, Jeremy Hunt will, in practice, have regulation-making power over industrial relations in the NHS in Scotland.”

Mr Crawford added: “We echo the comments made to us in evidence by CoSLA’s Human Resources Spokesperson, Conservative councillor Billy Hendry. He described the Trades Union Bill as an “unnecessary and unjustified imposition, which could ultimately lead to more industrial unrest across Scotland” and, worryingly, to a breakdown in partnership working across the public sector.”

The next step will be for the Scottish Parliament as a whole to debate the report as a matter of urgency, so that Holyrood’s view is made clear to the UK government before the bill completes its passage in the UK Parliament.