devolution good for scotland and wales not NI and england

Question 1

successes for scotland

Answer 1

-more representative and responsive form of government, reflects Scotland’s left wing political culture e.g. university is free
-due to AMS the two party system has been shattered, Scotland enjoys a pluralistic parliament
-Scottish governments have mainly been coalitions, currently it is between the SNP and the Greens, two parties outside the duopoly

Question 2

failures for scotland

Answer 2

-nationalism has been strengthened, rising nationalism has increased calls for IndyRef2 which may lead to political fragmentation and the end of the union
-new ‘tyranny of the majority’ has been created of left wing views in Scotland, right wing viewpoints are not considered
-devolution has failed to solve some entrenched problems in Scotland e.g. it has the highest proportion of drug addicts in Europe

Question 3

successes for wales

Answer 3

-proved to be a laboratory of democracy, introduced 5p carrier bag charge
-proved popular enough for powers to expand, since 2017 Wales can regulate income tax and transport policies
-nationalism has remained at low levels
-devolution has allowed for experimentation with the franchise, 16&17 year olds can vote in Welsh parliament elections

Question 4

failures for wales

Answer 4

-in 2021 voter turnout was 46% and has never been above 50% in its history, lack of democratic legitimacy
-regional inequalities have arguably increased under devolution, cancer survival rates are slightly lower than in England

Question 5

successes for NI

Answer 5

-devolution is the bedrock for peace, powersharing after the troubles keeps nationalists and unionists happy
-the introduction of STV has strengthened the democratic nature of voting systems in the UK
-STV has allowed non-sectarian parties to hold power in Northern Ireland, key to holding stability

Question 6

failures for NI

Answer 6

-power sharing doesn’t always work and Stormont has to be suspended enacting rule from Westminster e.g. 2017-20
-the political culture is largely socially conservative and up until 2019 abortion was still illegal
-the rate of invalid ballots is high under STV (1.2% in 2022)