Dear Constituent,
Thank you for contacting me about the scope of the UK Internal Market Bill (UKIMB).
I understand that concerns have been raised by the General Teaching Council of Scotland (GTCS) about the implications of the UKIMB on teaching standards. It is alleged that the UKIMB could force the GTCS to accept teachers from elsewhere in the UK who might not meet differing Scottish national standards.
The UK Government has therefore answered these issues by reassuring teaching bodies across the UK that they will still be able to set standards in those devolved authorities, as now, and control who can teach in them. If the GCTS or a council in any other devolved authority decides it is not appropriate to recognise teaching qualifications from other parts of the UK automatically, it can put in place an alternative recognition process to check qualifications and experience, as set out in the Bill.
The system will enable relevant authorities to assess an individual’s qualifications before allowing professionals to practise. Relevant authorities will continue to have the ability to refuse access to those who are unable to demonstrate that they meet the standard requirements, such as the Welsh language in Wales.
The UKIMB is a crucial piece of legislation, designed to underpin the functioning of the UK internal market after the end of the transition period. From January 2021, the EU will no longer have responsibility for economic regulation and such powers will return to the UK Government and the devolved administrations. It is possible that as these powers return, different parts of the UK might make different rules. This could create unacceptable trade barriers between constituent parts of the UK.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.
Kind regards, Alister
