8.3b Devolution in Wales & Northern Ireland Flashcards
Government of Wales Act 1998
The Act established a Welsh National Assembly which would have an executive drawn from it to be led by the first minister.
In 1998 the Welsh Assembly had no law making or financial powers, but the Welsh government was granted the power to run many public services and to decide how to allocate the funding it receives from central government to those services.
The areas which the Welsh government were granted powers to run included health, public transport, education, local authority service and agriculture.
Government of Wales Act 2014
The 2006 Government of Wales Act devolved a small number of powers to Wales, but the 2014 Government of Wales Act devolved more significant powers.
The Act gave powers to the Welsh government over stamp duty and business taxes.
The Act stated a referendum would be held to decide whether Wales could have some control over the income tax of its citizens.
In 2015 the Welsh government was granted powers over income tax up to £3 billion per year without a referendum taking place.
Good Friday Agreement
The 1998 Good Friday Agreement restored devolved powers to Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland had various powers and controls in place until 1972, when its parliament was dissolved.
The 1998 agreement established an assembly which was to be elected using proportional representation (PR).
PR was used so that all sections of Northern Ireland’s society would be represented.
All major parties in Northern Ireland were guaranteed ministerial positions because the executive in Northern Ireland was based on power sharing.
Powers devolved
Powers were devolved over healthcare, transport, agriculture, policing and education.
The Northern Ireland Assembly was granted the power to pass laws not reserved to the Westminster Parliament.
Dissolved parliament
The Northern Ireland Assembly was dissolved in 2002 following tensions between the Loyalist and Republican communities.
The Assembly was re-opened in 2007.
