5.Devolution

Question 1

Creation of devolution

Answer 1

Started by New Labour in 1997 - When they gained power, the UK was a highly centralised state

Was a Labour Party manifesto commitment after the 1997 UK general election in order to secure more seats

Question 2

Devolved Administration created WITH democratic legitimacy

Answer 2

1997 referendum result to establish a Scottish Parliament

Yes votes just under 75% on a Turnout of 60%

Question 3

Devolved Administration created WITHOUT democratic legitimacy

Answer 3

1997 referendum result to establish the Welsh Assembly

Yes votes just over 50% on a Turnout of just over 50%

By far had the least approval out of any of the referendums

Question 4

Devolution being unequal

Answer 4

-Scotland Act 2016 extended the devolved competencies, including the introduction of taxation powers, whereas the NI admin lack this

-Government of Wales Act 1998 created the assembly but gave it no powers to make primary legislation

-Government of Wales Act 2006 finally granted limited law-making powers

Question 5

Devolution being a gradual further decentralising force

Answer 5

-Scotland Act 2016 extended the devolved competencies, including the introduction of taxation powers, created in the wake of the threat of the 2014 independence referendum

-Government of Wales Act 1998 created the assembly but gave it no powers to make primary legislation, Government of Wales Act 2006 finally granted limited law-making powers,

Question 6

Devolved governments testing policy regionally, before it goes nationwide

Answer 6

-Smoking in public places was banned in Scotland with the Smoking, Health and Social Care Act 2005

-Scotland was the first UK nation to do this, would later be introduced in England and Wales in 2007

Question 7

Impact of Devolution - Creation of a quasi-federal UK - Limited parliamentary sovereignty

Answer 7

-De jure, Westminster remains sovereign because it can overrule or abolish the devolved bodies

-De facto, Westminster is no longer sovereign over domestic matters in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland

-Westminster has accepted that it will not impose legislation in devolved areas

-The Scotland Act 2016 established in statute that Westminster cannot legislate over devolved areas without consent, and recognised that the devolved institutions are permanent features of the UK’s constitution

-The Scotland Act 2016 further constrains parliamentary sovereignty by stating that devolution in Scotland can only be overturned by a referendum

Question 8

Impact of Devolution - Creation of a quasi-federal UK - Quasi-federal Parliament

Answer 8

-Westminster operates as an English parliament in the sense that it makes domestic law for England but is a federal parliament for the devolved areas because it retains reserved powers on UK-wide matters

-EVEL System introduced in 2015 that gave English MP’s in the Commons the right to veto any bills that exclusively affect England, was abandoned in 2021 as an attempt to address the status of England

-MPs for the devolved areas have few constituency responsibilities and deal mainly with economic and foreign affairs issues in the Commons

Question 9

Impact of Devolution - Creation of a quasi-federal UK - Supreme Court

Answer 9

-The UK Supreme Court resolves disputes over jurisdiction by determining if the devolved bodies have acted within their powers

e.g. R Miller V Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union 2016 - Argued that the devolved governments had to consent to the to leaving the EU but the UKSC unanimously rejected this clearly defining that the UK government does not need the consent of the devolved administrations when it comes to foreign affairs under the Sewel Convention

Question 10

Impact of Devolution - Policy divergence

Answer 10

-The devolved institutions have introduced policies that differ from those pursued by the UK government for England e.g. Tuition fees abolished for Scots in Scotland in 2008, compared to still full fees for English students throughout the UK

-Policy differences may be regarded as positive because the devolved institutions have responded to the concerns of their electorate

-Divergence in policy may undermine other principles such as human rights with same-sex marriage only being legalised in Northern Ireland in 2020

Question 11

Impact of Devolution - Funding

Answer 11

-Devolved administrations are funded by block grants from the UK Treasury, the size of which is determined by the Barnett formula

-The Barnett formula, which was agreed in 1978, translates changes in public spending in England into equivalent changes in block grants for the devolved administrations on the basis of relative population

-As a result, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland receive more public spending per head than England does with Scotland receiving 20% more per head than in England it what could be seen as amounting to an English subsidy of the rest of the UK

-However, it does not take into account the potentially greater needs of each region

Question 12

Impact of Devolution - National identity and Britishness

Answer 12

-British is an umbrella identity that provides a common bond between the people of the UK while maintaining their distinct national identity of English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish - Seen in a 2003 poll where 30% said they were Scottish, whereas, 60% said they were some form of Scottish and British

The number of people identifying as primarily Scottish, Welsh, or English rose during the first decade of devolution but has since stabilised - In the 2011 Census in Scotland 60% identified themselves as Scottish only

-Those with a strong Scottish identity are more likely to favour independence

Question 13

Impact of Devolution - The future of the Union

Answer 13

-Devolution was designed to safeguard the Union and weaken Scottish nationalism

-But the Union looks more fragile than ever and the close results of the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum and the continued SNP push for another independence referendum from Brexit onwards due to them believing they have been forced out of the EU against their will

-The 2016 vote to leave the EU creates new issues as a majority of voters in Scotland and NI voted to remain in the EU and a majority of voters in England and Wales voted to leave the EU

Question 14

Has devolution in the UK been a success - Nationalism and Devolution

Answer 14

-The SNP has come the closest to independence with the 2014 independence referendum, but this ended with a 55% ‘No’ vote - and the SNP dominates the Scottish government

-Sinn Fein became the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly in 2022

-Therefore, the central government have lost control of these two regions to parties that are generally against the central government

Question 15

Has devolution in the UK been a success - Democratic legitimacy

Answer 15

-Problems with Welsh devolution referendum in 1997 as it was 50% yes with a 50% turnout and in 2011 as it had a 35% turnout

-No Welsh Parliament elections have had more than a 45% turnout

-Labour have continuously been in the Welsh government since 1999

Question 16

Devolution within England - Regional Devolution under New Labour

Answer 16

In 1997 so England could benefit from a similar transfer of power, the Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott proposed the idea of devolution to the English regions

-His plan was to devolve a similar amount of power to the English regions as that being transferred to Wales. So administrative, but not legislative or financial devolution

-The necessary legislation was outlined in the Regional Assemblies (Preparations) Act 2003

-The first referendum on regional governance was held in the North East in 2004 and was defeated 80% against

Question 17

Devolution within England - Elected Mayors under New Labour

Answer 17

-There was another strand of devolution of sorts under New Labour. Cities, towns and districts were given the opportunity to elect local authority mayors following a local referendum.

-Of the 38 local referendums held to see who wanted a mayor under the Local Government Act (2000), only 13 cities voted yes.

-The Labour Government expressed disappointment in the 2006 local government white paper, called Strong and Prosperous Communities, that so few local authorities had adopted the ‘strongest leadership model, an elected mayor’.

Question 18

Devolution within England - Devolution to London under New Labour

Answer 18

-However, it wasn’t all failure under New Labour, power was successfully devolved to London

-New Labour in 1997 were determined to restore government to London and this was the first election of a mayor with a considerable degree of executive power

-In 1998 a referendum was held in London on whether there should be a democratically elected London Assembly and a separately elected Mayor for London, it was approved by 70%.

-These institutions were then established by the Greater London Authority Act (1999).

Question 19

Devolution within England - City devolution under the Coalition government

Answer 19

-The coalition government (driven forward by the Conservatives) attempted to kick start Labour’s failed attempt to establish elected mayors.

-The Conservatives’ policy paper Control Shift (2009) first outlined their plan to hold a referendum in each of England’s twelve largest cities outside London and the 2010 Conservative manifesto carried over this commitment

-The Coalition’s Programme for government promised to create directly elected mayors in the 12 largest English cities, City-wide referendums were held in 2012, Voters in nine cities rejected the idea.

Question 20

Devolution within England - Metro Mayors under the Conservatives

Answer 20

-The Cameron Conservative government of 2015-17 was committed to granting more autonomous powers to large cities

-This idea was pushed in particular by George Osborne, the chancellor and the big idea was directly elected ‘metro mayors’.

-Metro-mayors are established under different legislation from local authority mayors and hold powers that are distinct from those of local authorities, relating to matters such as economic development, planning and transport

-While Metro mayors have large powers in theory, they have to have the consent of the boroughs for programmes to be established in that borough

Question 21

English Parliament - The Campaign for an English Parliament

Answer 21

-Campaign for an English Parliament is a pressure group founded in 1998

Arguing the West Lothian Question, that only English MPs should be able to vote on English Laws rather than MPs from the devolved administration

-No major supporters and is crowd funded by public donation

-Pressure group has had little success CEP have held four meetings in the House of Commons since 1998

Question 22

English Parliament - Polls on an English Parliament

Answer 22

-Surveys of public opinion on the establishment of an English parliament have given widely varying conclusions

In the first five years of devolution for Scotland and Wales, support in England for the establishment of an English parliament was low at under 20%, according to successive British Social Attitudes Surveys

-One 2007 (10 years on from devolution) poll carried out for BBC Newsnight, however, found that 60% would support an English Parliament being established

Question 23

English Parliament -Should England gets its own Parliament - YES

Answer 23

-No representatives specifically of English people, failing in that democratic function

-Members of the devolved administrations don’t represent their constituents at Westminster e.g. the MP for Glasgow southside has little role in representing as MSP for Cathcart mostly does this role

-English MPs in the Commons performs a dual role in representing both national and English specific interests

Question 24

English Parliament - Should England gets its own Parliament - NO

Answer 24

-The West Lothian Question is not such a problem as it is made out to be as out of the 650 seats in the Commons, 80% of the seats are English and the other 20% are in all 3 devolved administrations combined

-With 85% of the UK population, England is too large a part of the UK to allow effective devolution as England would still dominate the UK e.g. Brexit
-The significance of the English economy to the UK economy means that decisions made by an English Parliament would affect the rest of the UK

-MPs in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland lacked power in the UK but English MPs don’t have this problem

Question 25

English Parliament - Does EVEL work well? - YES

Answer 25

-System introduced in 2015 that gave English MP’s in the Commons the right to veto any bills that exclusively affect England

-EVEL has ensure that even when this issue does come up, English MPs can veto the bill

-Even where EVEL was not applied, a similar result in an English Parliament is likely e.g. The 2015 consideration of extending Sunday trading laws in England and Wales was not just defeated due to the SNP but also due to English Tories and the opposition of the Labour Party

Question 26

English Parliament - Does EVEL work well? - NO

Answer 26

-Despite EVEL in 2015, there is still a long way to go for parity between England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland

-EVEL only allows English MPs the opportunity to veto a bill in its initial stages - For a bill on England to become law, it still requires a majority of UK MPs to vote in favour, including those in devolved administrations e.g. In 2015, Scottish MPs were able to block Tory proposals to lift the ban on fox hunting by threatening to assemble a majority against it

-What qualifies as an ‘English law’ is decided by the speaker of the Commons, compared to the clear competencies of devolved administrations, and crucially English MPs have no say

-EVEL was abolished in 2021, returning to the previous system with no special mechanism for English laws

Question 27

Arguments for and against devolution being successful/ benefitting the UK - Has lead to the rise of a multi-party system

Answer 27

Has lead to the rise of 3rd parties in the region which better represent the policies that the populace desires to see implemented e.g. The SNP have won a majority of seats within the Scottish Parliament every election since 2007

On the other hand - However, while this rise of a multi-party system should’ve ideally meant that with parties representing their regions issues, these issues would be solved within government But the Union looks more fragile than ever and the close results of the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum and the continued SNP push for another independence referendum from Brexit onwards due to them believing they have been forced out of the EU against their will

Question 28

Arguments for and against devolution being successful/ benefitting the UK - Allowed for more focus governments in each region

Answer 28

allows the countries to impose policies that better represent their nation e.g. Welsh language becoming compulsory in Welsh schools from 1999

On the other hand- Northern Ireland has struggled to run successfully e.g. the Northern Ireland Executive hasn’t formed due to secular divide multiple times, including currently since the 2022 NI elections, meaning their powers have been given back to the UK Government to rule directly

Question 29

Arguments for and against devolution being successful/ benefitting the UK - Devolved areas are a test bed for policy

Answer 29

countries can roll out policies which can then be adopted by the other nations if they think it has been successful e.g. Smoking in public places was banned in Scotland with the Smoking, Health and Social Care Act 2005. Scotland was the first UK nation to do this, would later be introduced in England and Wales in 2007

On the other hand -It leads to others in the UK feeling as though it is unfair on them for one of the other nations to provide a benefit that is not universal to the whole country as devolved institutions have introduced policies that differ from those pursued by the UK government for England e.g. Tuition fees abolished for Scots in Scotland in 2008, compared to still full fees for English students throughout the UK which trebled under the 2010 coalition government

Question 30

Arguments for and against devolution having a significant impact on the UK government - Policy divergence

Answer 30

Allows countries to impose differing policies based on what the government chooses for their specific nation. This can lead to varying policies on the same matter throughout the UK e.g. Tuition fees abolished for Scots in Scotland in 2008, compared to still full fees for English students throughout the UK which trebled under the 2010 coalition government and became active in 2012

On the other hand - Devolved areas are a test bed for policy as countries can roll out policies which can then be adopted by the other nations if they think it has been successful e.g. Smoking in public places was banned in Scotland with the Smoking, Health and Social Care Act 2005. Scotland was the first UK nation to do this, would later be introduced in England and Wales in 2007

Question 31

Arguments for and against devolution having a significant impact on the UK government - Creation of a Quasi-federal Parliament

Answer 31

Westminster operates as an English parliament in the sense that it makes domestic law for England but is a federal parliament for the devolved areas because it retains reserved powers on UK-wide matters e.g. EVEL System introduced in 2015 that gave English MP’s in the Commons the right to veto any bills that exclusively affect England, in an attempt to get around the West-Lothian Question which is a result of Parliament becoming Quasi-federal (was abandoned in 2021)

On the other hand - De jure, Westminster remains sovereign because it can overrule or abolish the devolved bodies, De facto, Westminster is no longer sovereign over domestic matters in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland as Westminster has accepted that it will not impose legislation in devolved areas e.g. The Scotland Act 2016 established in statute that Westminster cannot legislate over devolved areas without consent, and recognised that the devolved institutions are permanent features of the UK’s constitution

Question 32

Arguments for and against devolution having a significant impact on the UK government - Multi-party system

Answer 32

Has lead to the rise of 3rd parties in the region which better represent the policies that the populace desires to see implemented in the UK Parliament e.g. The SNP have won a majority of Scottish seats in the UK Parliament every election since 2015

On the other hand - Westminster remains as a two-party system as only the Labour and Conservative Party have formed a government since post-WW2 highlighting that minor parties have a limited impact on the UK government

Question 33

Arguments for and against devolution undermining unity in the UK - Increasing calls for independence

Answer 33

Scotland has an increased desire for independence as devolution has provided proof to the populace that Sctoland can rule effectively without the UK government forcing decisions upon them e.g. the close results of the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum and the continued SNP push for another independence referendum from Brexit onwards due to them believing they have been forced out of the EU against their will

On the other hand - despite calls for independence this has not been actioned e.g. the 2014 referendum saw 55% not wanting Scotland to become an independent country and the UK government has been able to deny a second referendum

Question 34

Arguments for and against devolution undermining unity in the UK - Decrease in British national identity

Answer 34

The number of people identifying as primarily Scottish, Welsh, or English rose during the first decade of devolution e.g. In the 2011 Census in Scotland 60% identified themselves as Scottish only, those with a strong Scottish identity are more likely to favour independence

On the other hand - British is an umbrella identity that provides a common bond between the people of the UK while maintaining their distinct national identity of English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish e.g. Seen in a 2003 poll where 30% said they were Scottish, whereas, 60% said they were some form of Scottish and British

Question 35

Arguments for and against devolution undermining unity in the UK - Policy divergence

Answer 35

Allows countries to impose differing policies based on what the government chooses for their specific nation. This can lead to varying policies on the same matter throughout the UK e.g. Tuition fees abolished for Scots in Scotland in 2008, compared to still full fees for English students throughout the UK which trebled under the 2010 coalition government and became active in 2012

On the other hand - Devolved areas are a test bed for policy as countries can roll out policies which can then be adopted by the other nations if they think it has been successful e.g. Smoking in public places was banned in Scotland with the Smoking, Health and Social Care Act 2005. Scotland was the first UK nation to do this, would later be introduced in England and Wales in 2007

Question 36

Arguments for and against devolution benefiting each of the 4 nations - England

Answer 36

England does not need a separate parliament e.g. English interests are already represented by the UK parliament and so England does not need a separate parliament or assembly and there is limited popular support for it. Metro Mayors are covering an increasing percentage

On the other hand - There has only been very limited devolution within England e.g. Moves towards more devolved powers for Metro Mayors and the GLA have been piecemeal and insufficient, especially when compared to the changes in Scotland and Wales.

Question 37

Arguments for and against devolution benefiting each of the 4 nations - Wales

Answer 37

generally perceived as successful as The Welsh assembly has established itself and is popular amongst the populus. It has successfully changed laws at national level to suit the needs of the Welsh electorate e.g. in 1999 studying the Welsh language in schools in order to keep the language and culture of Wales alive which is not needed in the other nations

On the other hand - The Welsh parliament has fewer powers than the Scottish parliament e.g Scotland and Northern Ireland have both retained separate legal systems unlike Wales is still a part of the English legal system. Also, devolution is not entrenched meaning Wales could easily lose its powers it has been granted by Westminsiter taking them back.

Question 38

Arguments for and against devolution benefiting each of the 4 nations - Scotland

Answer 38

The Scottish government has benefitted from asymmetric-devolution as they have gained additional powers in comparison to the other devolved governments e.g. Scotland Act 2016 granted the Scottish government taxation powers making them the only devolved body with this power

On the other hand - Devolution has not satisfied demands for Scottish independence e.g. despite Scotland being able to govern over more policy areas than the other nations it is the only nation so far to have an independence referendum and despite not being successful in 2014 there having been continuing efforts by Nicola Sturgeon in 2022 which have continued into 2023 over asking for another one

Question 39

Arguments for and against devolution benefiting each of the 4 nations - Northern Ireland

Answer 39

Devolving powers to the Northern Irish government and the establishment of a power-sharing structure to deal with the secular divide has brought peace to Northern Ireland and ended The Troubles e.g. Good Friday agreement 1998

On the other hand - Northern Ireland has struggled to successfully establish a working government, showing that while fighting has ended, healthy political debate has not been fostered e.g. Stormont has been suspended for long periods, including between January 2017-January 2020 meaning it’s power has reverted back to direct rule from Westminsiter

Question 40

Arguments for and against England having its own devolved body - Lack of representation

Answer 40

No representatives specifically of English people, failing in that democratic function e.g. One 2007 (10 years on from devolution) poll carried out for BBC Newsnight found that 60% would support an English Parliament being established

On the other hand - The Lib Dems, Labour, and Conservative party are the only parties that have been in government in recent years, all of which get the vast majority of their votes and seats from England, thus representing these English voters views e.g. the government has always been a Labour or Conservative majority since post-WW2 (1945)

Question 41

Arguments for and against England having its own devolved body - MPs of devolved regions can vote on English matters

Answer 41

For a bill on England to become law, it still requires a majority of UK MPs to vote in favour, including those in devolved administrations, English MPs don’t get a say on Welsh, NI, Scottish domestic policy due to devolution e.g. In 2015, Scottish MPs were able to block Tory proposals to lift the ban on fox hunting by threatening to assemble a majority against it

On the other hand - The West Lothian Question is not such a problem as it is made out to be as out of the 650 seats in the Commons, 80% of the seats are English and the other 20% are in all 3 devolved administrations combined

Question 42

Arguments for and against England having its own devolved body - English MPs in the UK Parliament have to play a dual role

Answer 42

English MPs in the Commons performs a dual role in representing both national and English specific interests, meaning they have to split their time between English and UK-wide issues, whereas as in the devolved regions the two roles are split

On the other hand - With 85% of the UK population, England is too large a part of the UK to allow effective devolution as England would still dominate the UK e.g. The 2016 Brexit Referendum passed with only a majority of English and Welsh votes

Question 43

Arguments for and against devolution in England being successful - Failure - Regional Devolution under New Labour

Answer 43

In 1997 so England could benefit from a similar transfer of power, the Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott proposed the idea of devolution to the English regions but this failed as the first referendum on regional governance was held in the North East in 2004 and was defeated 80% against

Question 44

Arguments for and against devolution in England being successful - Failure - Elected mayors

Answer 44

Under New Labour. Cities, towns and districts were given the opportunity to elect local authority mayors following a local referendum but off the 38 local referendums held to see who wanted a mayor, only 13 cities voted yes and when the Conservatives in the Coalition government attempted to kick start Labour’s failed attempt the Coalition’s Programme for government promised to create directly elected mayors in the 12 largest English cities, City-wide referendums were held in 2012, Voters in nine cities rejected the idea

Question 45

Arguments for and against devolution in England being successful - Success - Devolution to London under New Labour

Answer 45

However, it wasn’t all failure under New Labour, power was successfully devolved to London
-New Labour in 1997 were determined to restore government to London and this was the first election of a mayor with a considerable degree of executive power
-In 1998 a referendum was held in London on whether there should be a democratically elected London Assembly and a separately elected Mayor for London, it was approved by 70%.