English Devolution

Question 1

define devolution

Answer 1

devolution involves delegating power from the UK Parliament to specific regions of the country

such devolved bodies were created in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland under Tony Blair in the late 1990s

but now there is considerable debate over whether further power should be devolved to England too

Question 2

arguments in favour of English devolution

Answer 2

solve the West Lothian question

equalise representation across the UK

could be highly effective in tackling other issues such as rising nationalism

Question 3

arguments against English devolution

Answer 3

the West Lothian question is not a major problem so does not need to be urgently combatted

devolution would lead England to dominate Parliament

the people show no real desire for devolution

Question 4

conclusion

Answer 4

therefore, it seems to be clear that devolving further power to England is not the next logical step after devolution to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Question 5

English devolution would solve the West Lothian question: how would it solve issues relating to the WL question?

Answer 5

it would solve the heavily debated West Lothian question, which essentially asks whether powers should be devolved to England

English devolution would tackle this question by bringing an end to the issue of Scottish MPs being able to vote on purely English matters at Westminster but English MPs having no influence in the Scottish Parliament

it would also finally resolve the issues concerning the Barnett formula, which determines funds for public spending in each region but currently awards Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland more spending per head than England

Question 6

English devolution would solve the West Lothian question: why is England not having a devolved body illogical?

Answer 6

consequently, it seems clear that England should have its own devolved body

especially since England is the most prosperous and heavily populated part of the UK, yet the only one without a devolved body of its own – something that seems highly illogical

Question 7

English devolution would solve the West Lothian question: EVEL has not tackled the question sufficiently

Answer 7

critics would also point to the fact that EVEL (English Votes for English Laws), which supposedly resolves the West Lothian question, does not go far enough because when considering bills which are applicable to England only, English MPs only have the opportunity to veto a bill in its initial stages

for a bill to become a statue, it still requires a majority of affirmative votes from all MPs, including those of non-English constituencies, thereby allowing elected members from the devolved assemblies to vote on bills which affect England only

Question 8

English devolution would solve the West Lothian question: example of non-English MPs voting on a bill that affects England only

Answer 8

in 2015, Scottish MPs were able to block Conservative proposals to lift the existing ban on fox hunting by threatening to vote down any legislation by assembling a coalition of MPs sufficient to block the proposals

this suggests that further devolution to England is necessary to resolve the West Lothian question

Question 9

the West Lothian question is not a major problem, so English devolution is not necessary: why is it not a major problem?

Answer 9

the West Lothian question is not a major problem, which indicates that English devolution is not really necessary

the main reason why the question is of little real concern is that there are only 59 Scottish MPs in Westminster, so they can only alter the outcome of a vote if there is also significant support from English or Welsh MPs

this illustrates that the idea of Scottish MPs encroaching upon the ‘jurisdiction’ of English MPs is not entirely accurate and is not what tends to happen in practice

in fact, the instances where the votes of Scottish MPs have made a discernible difference to the outcome of a vote are actually relatively few

Question 10

the West Lothian question is not a major problem, so English devolution is not necessary: example of Scottish MPs only being able to alter the outcome of a vote if there is also support from English MPs

Answer 10

for example, the defeat of an extension to Sunday trading laws in England and Wales was not just down to the votes of the SNP, but also because several English Conservative MPs and the Labour Party opposed it, suggesting that the result might have been the same in an English Parliament

Question 11

the West Lothian question is not a major problem, so English devolution is not necessary: it has already been tackled by EVEL

Answer 11

moreover, the West Lothian question has arguably been sufficiently tackled via EVEL (English Votes for English Laws) already, which has ensured that a majority of English MPs can veto laws that affect England only

although this is not a perfect system, it needs to be given a chance to operate before further devolution to England is considered seriously

consequently, the establishment of further devolution to England on the basis of a relatively minor problem would be an overreaction, particularly at a time when more pressing issues like Brexit are being discussed

Question 12

English devolution would equalise representation across the UK: why is this important?

Answer 12

perhaps devolving further power to England is the next logical step as it would finally equalise representation across the UK

currently, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have separate forms of representation in their respective parliaments and assemblies

this representative function is vital in a representative democracy whereby MPs act as a clear link between the people and the government, but England lacks this

arguably, to ensure that the UK remains a strong democracy, England should have the same level of representation for issues which affect England only, whether this be managed through Westminster or a separate English Parliament

Question 13

English devolution would equalise representation across the UK: what problem does the absence of a separate English Parliament create for English MPs?

Answer 13

the absence of such a representative function in England places a burden on English MPs in the House of Commons to perform a dual role, representing both national and English specific interests, whereas members of the devolved assemblies do not represent their constituents at Westminster

a federal solution in which England has its own Parliament, like the other regions in the UK, would therefore promote greater equality and uniformity between the different regions

Question 14

English devolution would lead England to dominate: how would it dominate?

Answer 14

further devolution to England would not ‘equalise’ anything, as England would only come to dominate

England’s size, with 84% of the UK population, and wealth would mean that it would ultimately control a federal structure if it becomes devolved, which seems unfair

Question 15

English devolution would lead England to dominate: what problems would English domination cause? and why?

Answer 15

Scotland already feels tyrannised by the English majority over Brexit, so further domination by the English might cause the breakup of the UK or at the very least lead to huge amounts of tension

devolution to England would therefore divide the UK rather than strengthen it because devolution was created to give regions a chance to administer their own affairs as they lack sufficient power in parliament

English MPs do not face this problem due to the overwhelming majority they have in Westminster, so devolution would simply result in further domination by the English and make the votes of Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish MPs redundant for national affairs

Question 16

English devolution would lead England to dominate: why is English devolution therefore not practical?

Answer 16

England is clearly far too large to allow for national devolution and creating an English Parliament would lead to a UK that operated more like the USSR with its domination by Russia rather than a federalised state like the USA where no single state has the power to dominate the national system

Question 17

English devolution could be effective in tackling important issues: why could devolution be successful and effective for England?

Answer 17

further devolution to England could be very effective

devolution has already led to policies that meet the differing needs of the different regions, so it could work for England too

especially since there is strong regional identity in many parts of the UK, such as Cornwall, which could form the basis of regional assemblies that would coordinate local policies

Question 18

English devolution could be effective in tackling important issues: how could devolution help address the problem of rising English nationalism?

Answer 18

devolution could also be effective in addressing the rise of English nationalism in light of the Brexit referendum and it would be pragmatic to introduce further English devolution to prevent future instability at the hands of a disillusioned English majority

in fact, Gordon Brown has argued that further power should be devolved to the English regions to prevent backlashes and social divisions following Brexit

this is important given that it is anticipated that some regions will be worse off following Brexit, not least those that received substantial EU investment

so, further devolution seems to be necessary to help England determine its own political destiny and could prove to be highly effective, as previous devolution has been

Question 19

English devolution is unnecessary and unwanted: why is it not necessary?

Answer 19

further English devolution may be effective in some respects but it is ultimately unnecessary and unwanted

most English people do not make a distinction between England and Britain as a whole, seeing Westminster as their parliament, therefore there is no need for devolution

Question 20

English devolution is unnecessary and unwanted: examples of the people rejecting English devolution

Answer 20

this is also evident in how the 1997-2010 Labour government abandoned attempts to set up regional assemblies in England after public opinion decisively rejected it in 2004

regional devolution, which would be an alternative to full English devolution, was rejected overwhelmingly in the North East, suggesting that the regions of England do not want further devolution

furthermore, in 2012, 10 cities – including Birmingham and Manchester – rejected the idea of directly elected mayors

the fact that turnout in many of these referendums was very low (24% in Manchester and Nottingham) gives further evidence that the English are not interested in further devolution