Time to put the brakes on Brexit

By the time this is published we’ll know the result of the vote on Theresa May’s EU withdrawal agreement. At the time of writing, it looks like MPs will refuse to back the Prime Minister.

The deal is bad for Scotland and for my constituents. By the Government’s own analysis it threatens tens of thousands of jobs in Scotland and damages our economy for decades to come. We stand to lose the right to live, work and study in other European countries, and we lose the substantial benefits we get from EU citizens who chose to come here and contribute to our economy.

I’ve had some constituents asking me to back the deal because they’ve been told that if we don’t, we leave with no deal at all. This is simply untrue. The Prime Minister herself admitted this just a few days ago. She has the power to rule out a no-deal Brexit entirely and that’s what she should do.

Speaking Up For New Scots

I’ve spoken several times in Parliament recently about the UK Government’s “hostile environment” on immigration. Their Immigration Bill, which was due to start its journey through Parliament this week, is demeaning to the tens of thousands of hard working families who have adopted Scotland as their home. By contrast the Scottish Government, with cross party support, is seeking to reassure Scots born in other EU countries that they belong here and will always be welcome. As well as the moral and humanitarian arguments, all the economic evidence tells us that immigration into Scotland has made us wealthier as a nation. In the words of my good friend, the much missed Bashir Ahmed MSP, it doesn’t matter where people came from, it’s where we want to go together that matters.

In The Constituency

One of the consequences of the absolute chaos in Parliament during December was that I had to spend much more time there than usual. This meant I missed most of the pre-Christmas fairs, concerts etc organised by so many of our schools, churches and community organisations. Thanks to everyone who invited me to your events; hopefully things will have calmed down a bit by next Christmas!

I’m due to hold advice surgeries on Friday January 18, 10am in Chapel Neighbourhood Centre Kirkcaldy, and 11 am in Dave’s Diner in Cardenden. Dates of future surgeries are on my web site www.petergrant.scot