Humza’s meetings with foreign leaders ‘damages the UK,’ MPs told
- Scottish Secretary Alister Jack delivers damning verdict on First Minister’s unchaperoned sit-downs
Humza Yousaf has risked ‘damaging’ the UK’s standing on the international stage by holding private talks with foreign leaders, the Scottish Secretary has said.
The First Minister is alleged to have broken strict Foreign Office rules five times during the Cop28 summit.
The rules require Foreign Office officials to be present during meetings with overseas leaders and representatives.
It comes after Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron threatened to prevent the Scottish Government from operating ‘mini embassies’ within UK Government premises abroad unless it sticks to the rules.
There was outrage yesterday over ‘dangerous’ private talks about Israel between Mr Yousaf and the president of Turkey.
Not one, not two … but FIVE blatant ‘offences’
Five breaches of protocol at Cop28 by Humza Yousaf, who met, clockwise from top left: Pakistan’s acting PM Shehbaz Sharif; Najib Mikati, Lebanon’s PM; EC president Charles Michel; Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission chief; Turkey’s president Erdogan
Alister Jack Secretary of State for Scotland said yesterday the meeting was just one of five occasions when the First Minister breached protocol during talks with world leaders at Cop28
SNP ministers also faced calls to slash their £35million-a-year ‘international and European relations’ budget and to redirect the money towards devolved services instead.
At a meeting of Westminster’s Scottish Affairs Committee yesterday, Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said: ‘Foreign affairs is reserved under the Scotland Act and it is important for the UK – the United Kingdom – to speak on the world stage with one consistent voice.
‘It is wholly unacceptable for the Scottish Government to promote foreign policies which are at odds with the United Kingdom Government. It risks causing confusion and it damages the UK’s standing in the world.’
At the weekend, Lord Cameron threatened to throw Scottish Government officials out of overseas Foreign Office premises if there are any further breaches of the agreed protocol whereby officials from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) are notified about meetings SNP ministers have with foreign governments – and sit in on the meetings.
His warning came after Mr Yousaf met Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the Cop28 summit in the United Arab Emirates without FCDO officials being present.
Mr Erdogan has branded the West’s approach to events in Gaza as ‘barbarism’ and accused Israel of behaving like a ‘war criminal’.
The First Minister said he and Mr Erdogan discussed the ‘humanitarian catastrophe’ and called for an immediate and permanent ceasefire – in direct contrast to the UK position on the issue.
Mr Jack said yesterday the meeting was just one of five occasions when the First Minister breached protocol during talks with world leaders at Cop28. He said he supports Lord Cameron’s stance ‘100 per cent’.
Although the Scottish Government said FCDO officials were invited to the talks between Mr Yousaf and the Turkish president, Mr Jack said the notice was issued at the last minute and there wasn’t enough time to get there.
He told the committee chairman Pete Wishart: ‘But it wasn’t the only offence. Without Foreign Office officials present, there was a meeting with [European Commission president] Ursula von der Leyen, [European Council president] Charles Michel, the prime minister of Lebanon and the acting prime minister of Pakistan.
‘So there were five different occasions where meetings happened with foreign ministers without an official [from the FCDO]. If there aren’t to be any sanctions, all the Scottish Government have to do is take Foreign Office officials to their meetings.’
Mr Jack said he understood the UK Government only became aware of the five meetings on the First Minister’s Twitter page. Labour peer Lord Foulkes said Mr Yousaf’s meeting with Turkey’s president was ‘dangerous’ and the First Minister had become his ‘useful idiot’ in the UK.
Mr Yousaf said yesterday ‘the approach from Lord Cameron is really petty and, frankly, misguided’.
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