Coronavirus (Recovery and Reform) (Scotland) Act 2022

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Coronavirus (Recovery and Reform) (Scotland) Act 2022
Act of the Scottish Parliament
Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom in Scotland (Variant 1).svg
Scottish Parliament
Long title An Act of the Scottish Parliament to make provision about public health protection powers; to make provision about educational establishments and school consultations; to make miscellaneous public service reforms; to modify the law on tenancies; to make temporary modifications to the law in relation to the justice system; and for connected purposes.
Citation 2022 asp 8
Territorial extent  Scotland
Dates
Royal assent 10 August 2022
Other legislation
Relates to Coronavirus (Scotland) Act 2020
Status: Amended
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

The Coronavirus (Recovery and Reform) (Scotland) Act 2022 (asp 8) is an Act of the Scottish Parliament which extends emergency powers used during the COVID-19 pandemic, legislates for remote provision of legal and administrative services, and contains protections against eviction for housing tenants. It was criticised by opposition parties and academics as a power grab by the Scottish Government.

Contents

Background

COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures

In early 2020, the global COVID-19 pandemic reached Scotland, necessitating lockdown measures, the implementation of which required new emergency powers defined in the Coronavirus (Scotland) Act 2020 covering devolved responsibilities of the Scottish Government, with reserved powers covered by the UK-wide Coronavirus Act 2020. [1] The powers were time-limited, initially set to automatically lapse after 6 months, with the option to extend the measures limited to a further 12 months. [2]

On 24 June 2021, [3] the Scottish Parliament passed the Coronavirus (Extension and Expiry) (Scotland) Act 2021 which continued the emergency powers for another 6 months until March 2022, [4] with an option to extend them until September of that year. John Swinney, the then-Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Covid Recovery, described the legislation as "essential" due to the continued presence of COVID-19 in Scotland, which was surging at the time. The moving of the expiration date for the emergency powers was criticised by the Scottish Conservatives and the Scottish Liberal Democrats, with Murdo Fraser expressing doubts about unnecessarily keeping "extraordinary and unprecedented powers" in light of progress on the COVID-19 vaccination programme. [5] [6] The new act was given royal assent on 4 August 2021. [3]

Consultation and bill

On 17 August 2021, [7] the Scottish Government published a consultation which proposed an indefinite extension to certain emergency powers, which Swinney explained as "keeping those [measures] where there is demonstrable benefit to the people of Scotland" while discarding those which are "no longer necessary". [8]

The Coronavirus (Recovery and Reform) (Scotland) Bill was published on 25 January 2022. [9] It was debated on 12 May 2022, when Swinney detailed proposed amendments to it including what he described as a "gateway vote mechanism" to improve the balance of power between the executive and parliament. [10]

The Scottish Parliament passed the bill on 28 June 2022 [11] and it received royal assent on 10 August. [12]

The act

In its original form, the bill included provisions to allow ministers to reintroduce lockdown procedures such as reverting schools to distance learning without parliamentary approval. [13] [14] This was later moderated to allow parliament to vote on ministerial uses of these powers. [10] It also includes safeguards against eviction of housing tenants and the option for various legal and administrative services to be carried out remotely. [11] [15]

Criticism

During the consultation, the proposed measures were denounced by the Conservatives with Murdo Fraser describing them as "a clear sign [the Scottish National Party] are unwilling to give up their control over people’s lives". [16] [17]

On publication, the bill was criticised by the Scottish Conservative and Labour parties as a "power grab" by the SNP, with Jackie Baillie adding that emergency powers are "not a free pass for ministers to hoard new powers" and that there is "no excuse for bypassing Parliament, when Holyrood has shown time and time again that it can respond with the urgency needed". [18] [19]

Prior to the stage one debate, the powers in the bill were compared to Henry VIII powers, with academic lawyers critical of the bill including Fiona de Londras from the University of Birmingham, who called the powers granted "extremely broad", and Andrew Tickell and Alison Britton of Glasgow Caledonian University, who described them as "infring[ing] upon the separation of powers". Alex Cole-Hamilton, the leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, called for the bill to be completely rejected, describing it as "a permanent transfer from Parliament to the executive, undermining democracy and civil liberties in the process". [20] [21] Fraser and Baillie similarly called for the bill to be scrapped. [22] Siobhan Brown, a convener of the COVID-19 Recovery Committee, defended the bill, saying it was "imperative" to "have legislation in place that is suitably flexible and proportionate to support an effective response to future threats". [23]

Upon the passage of the bill, the opposition reiterated their criticism of it, with Baillie calling it "Frankenstein-like" and "wholly unjustifiable", asserting that the amendments "simply don't go far enough". [24]

References

  1. ↑ "New coronavirus powers will be brought in immediately, MSPs told". The Herald. Glasgow. 24 March 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  2. ↑ "Coronavirus: MSPs pass emergency powers bill". BBC News. 1 April 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  3. 1 2 "Coronavirus (Extension and Expiry) (Scotland) Act 2021". The National Archives. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
  4. ↑ Gina Davidson (18 June 2021). "Coronavirus in Scotland: New Bill to extend emergency legislation into 2022". The Scotsman. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  5. ↑ "Covid in Scotland: Emergency powers could be in place until next year". BBC News. 9 June 2021. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
  6. ↑ "MSPs agree to extend emergency Covid-19 powers into 2022". BBC News. 24 June 2021. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
  7. ↑ "Coronavirus (COVID-19) recovery - justice system, health and public services reform: consultation". Scottish Government. 17 August 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  8. ↑ "Some Scots Covid powers 'could be made permanent'". BBC News. 17 August 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  9. ↑ "Coronavirus (Recovery and Reform) (Scotland) Bill". Scottish Parliament. 25 January 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  10. 1 2 Conor Matchett (12 May 2022). "Covid Scotland: Bid to give ministers controversial 'Henry VIII' powers labelled 'chilling' and a 'power grab'". The Scotsman. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  11. 1 2 "MSPs back making emergency Covid powers permanent". BBC News. 28 June 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
  12. ↑ "Coronavirus (Recovery and Reform) (Scotland) Act 2022". The National Archives. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
  13. ↑ Justin Bowie (28 January 2022). "Scotland's Covid rules: Why are people angry about controversial SNP 'power grab'?". The Courier. Dundee. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  14. ↑ Craig Paton (3 February 2022). "Scottish Government aims to keep power to close schools for another six months". The Independent. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  15. ↑ Hamish Morrison (12 May 2022). "Coronavirus Bill: SNP make 'major concessions' on 'power grab' bill". The National. Glasgow. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  16. ↑ Joanna Taylor (18 August 2021). "Scottish government considers making coronavirus powers permanent". The Independent. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  17. ↑ Conor Matchett (17 August 2021). "More than 30 'emergency' Covid-19 measures could become permanent in Scotland". The Scotsman. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  18. ↑ Neil Pooran (26 January 2022). "Government publishes Bill to make some pandemic powers permanent". The Independent. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  19. ↑ Emer O'Toole (26 January 2022). "Covid update Scotland today: Emergency powers to become permanent in new bill". The National. Glasgow. Retrieved 4 September 2025.
  20. ↑ Daniel Sanderson (12 May 2022). "SNP accused of 'undermining democracy' by trying to make Covid powers permanent". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  21. ↑ Conor Matchett (12 May 2022). "Covid Scotland: MSPs urged to block new bill including controversial 'Henry VIII' powers". The Scotsman. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  22. ↑ Andrew Learmonth (12 May 2022). "MSPs set to oppose SNP Covid 'power grab'". The Herald. Glasgow. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  23. ↑ Conor Matchett (22 April 2022). "Ministers told to consider removing controversial 'Henry VIII powers' from 'power-grab' bill by MSPs". The Scotsman. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  24. ↑ Gregor Young (29 June 2022). "Scottish Government to handed emergency Covid powers permanently". The National. Glasgow. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
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