by Gil Paterson MSP

Folk could be forgiven for becoming sick of the debate on Brexit but March 29, 2019 – when the UK will leave the European Union – is looming large and the complete incompetence of the Tory UK Government in negotiating a deal is alarming.

While we are enjoying some of the best weather we’ve had for a very long time, the glorious summer has produced a bumper crop for Scottish food growers and they are already feeling the effects of Brexit as they leave food rotting in the fields because they cannot get enough workers to lift the crop.

Seasonal workers have been coming to this country providing extra labour in the summer and autumn months for many a year. Their contribution to the farming sector has massively increased the amount of food exports Scotland produces which boosts our economy and is good for everyone. Since the Brexit vote, their numbers have been dropping and the UK Government sits idly by in a complete dereliction of duty.

Food left rotting in the fields doesn’t get to the supermarkets of Clydebank so the food that is available is sold at a much higher price.

And it is not just food prices that’ll be affected by Brexit. The tourism industry, which also contributes a huge amount to our economy, relies on seasonal workers who work for the summer months and then go home, the NHS needs doctors and nurses from other countries to look after us when we are ill.

The Scottish health secretary, Jeane Freeman, worries about supplies of vital medicines, insulin and blood transfusion products after Brexit and has received little reassurance and hardly any information about contingency plans from the UK Government.

The SNP government in Edinburgh have said from the beginning that the current set-up between the Scottish and UK parliaments is not working and the UK committee for constitutional affairs agreed when it gave a damning verdict on how the UK Government deals with the Scottish Parliament.

It’s hard to believe the 62 per cent of Scottish voters who voted Remain are being disregarded, we mustn’t be dragged down by the madness of a hard Brexit. It’s time for Theresa May and the Tories to listen – before it’s too late.