LABOUR ministers “clearly do not understand the devolution system”, the SNP have said after a UK Cabinet Secretary told them to step in and compensate Waspi women – despite the powers to do so being reserved.
It comes after Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall said that the UK Government would pay no compensation at all to women who lost out amid state pension changes – despite an ombudsman’s recommendation that they receive between £1000 and £2950 each.
Questioned by SNP MP Kirsty Blackman, Kendall deflected by saying: “If the honourable lady wants a different approach, then the Scottish, the SNP Government in Scotland can do a different approach using the £4.9 billion settlement we have provided, the biggest ever in the history of devolution, if they want to take a different approach.”
However, SNP figures have now highlighted that the 2016 Scotland Act appears to make it impossible for them to do so.
Section 28 of the act, which creates powers for Holyrood to legislate for new benefits, specifically omits pensions – which are a wholly reserved area.
The act further says that the Scottish Parliament cannot legislate for a new benefit “where the requirement for it arises from reduction, non-payability, or suspension of a reserved benefit”.
Asked if the SNP interpretation of the act was wrong, the UK Government did not respond before The National's deadline.
Later, they disputed the reading of the act, claiming that the Scottish Government could use powers to "provide discretionary payments" to compensate Waspi women.
“We’ve known for some time that UK Government ministers don’t understand Scotland – but for a Secretary of State to not know what is and isn’t devolved in her own portfolio, is beyond belief.
“It is stated explicitly in the Scotland Act that the power to create new benefits devolved in 2016 does not extend to pensions – the UK Government’s own ministers clearly do not understand the limits of their own devolution system.
SNP minister Christina McKelvie interpreted the law in the same way, writing on social media: “It really is a disgrace how little Labour ministers know about devolution.
“Liz Kendall flippantly suggesting that the Scottish Government should mitigate her disgraceful decision demonstrates clearly how little she knows. Short answer, we can’t.”
McKelvie shared note 211 from the official commentary on the provisions of the 2016 act, which states: “The power to create new benefits will not extend to pensions as the Smith Commission Report specifically states that all aspects of pensions should remain reserved.
“Similar to discretionary payments, new benefits created under this power cannot be used to simply offset a reduction, suspension or non-payability in a reserved benefit due to an individual's conduct (for example as a result of a sanction because of non-compliance with a work-related requirement).”
A UK Government spokesperson said: “This is not the case. The Work and Pensions Secretary was referring to the significant powers afforded to the Scottish Government and how it uses its £4.9bn settlement – the biggest in the history of devolution.
“These powers include the ability to create new benefits in areas of devolved responsibility, top up reserved benefits, and provide discretionary payments.”
The issue has previously come up in the Westminster parliament.
In 2017, during a debate on pension equality for women, then-Tory MP Jo Churchill argued that section 28 of the 2016 Scotland Act in fact did give the Scottish Government powers to act.
Mhairi Black, the former SNP MP, responded: “[Churchill] said that section 28 of the Scotland Act 2016 gives the Scottish Parliament the power to mitigate these changes. I have a problem with that argument because section 28 of that act states that we cannot give pension assistance or assistance by ‘reason of old age’.
“We are not allowed to do that – pensions are completely reserved, and when we campaigned for the devolution of pensions we were told no.”
