Scottish Government to model Citizens’ Assembly on Ireland

Scottish Government to model Citizens' Assembly on Ireland

The Scottish Government has announced plans to establish a Citizens’ Assembly, inspired principally by the Citizens’ Assembly established in Ireland in 2016.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, addressing the Scottish Parliament today, said a representative cross-section of Scottish society would be brought together under an independent chair to seek views on how best to equip the Scottish Parliament for the challenges of the future, in light of Brexit.

Ms Sturgeon told MSPs that she was impressed by what the Irish body achieved in the run-up to last year’s abortion referendum.

The Irish assembly considered the country’s abortion laws over a five-month period in 2016-17 and produced a report which was referred to the Oireachtas committee on the Eighth Amendment.

The input of the assembly ultimately helped to shape the proposals that later became the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018, which now governs abortion law in Ireland.

Separately, the Scottish Government has said it will also introduce legislation to allow for the possibility of an independence referendum before May 2021, provided that the power to hold one is transferred to the devolved legislature via a Section 30 Order.

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