Oral Answers to Questions

Kenny MacAskill Excerpts

Wednesday 10th March 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Jack]

I agree with my hon. Friend, and I hope he will be aware that next week we are signing the full borderlands growth deal, which will include funding for the feasibility study into reopening the Borders Railway link between Carlisle and Tweedbank.

[Kenny MacAskill (East Lothian) (SNP)]

What assessment he has made of the effect of Budget 2021 on public spending in Scotland.

[Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)]

What assessment he has made of the effect of Budget 2021 on public spending in Scotland.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (Iain Stewart)]

The Budget confirmed an additional £1.2 billion for the Scottish Government in the next financial year. Taken together with the allocation at the last spending review, it means the Scottish Government will receive an additional £3.6 billion of funding in 2021-22 through the Barnett formula, on top of the baseline of £35 billion.

[Kenny MacAskill [V]]

The A1, the east coast main line and the national grid all run through East Lothian, but as this virtual call shows, broadband is as vital as older forms of infrastructure. East Lothian has lower than average download speeds and less gigabyte capacity than many parts of the worst 10% of areas in the UK. Is this a Brexit bonus or the price of the Union? What is the Minister doing to ensure that adequate spending is there to provide the connectivity that East Lothian and Scotland require?

[Iain Stewart]

As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has mentioned in his answers to previous questions, we have just published the interim report on the Union connectivity review, which emphasises the need for better connectivity across all transport modes between Scotland, England and the rest of the United Kingdom. On the question of broadband speeds, of course the recent pandemic has underlined the importance of having good digital connectivity, and this Government are investing substantially in improving broadband speeds right across the United Kingdom.