Scottish Parliament and Government

Scottish devolution has taken place primarily as a result of the 1998 Scotland Act and 2016 Scotland Act.

Scotland Act 1998

The Scotland Act was passed following a referendum which voted in favour of devolution to Scotland.

The Act established a Scottish Parliament which had powers of its own over education, policing, criminal and civil law, the health service, public transport and income tax rates.

Scottish Parliament

The Scottish Parliament held its first elections in 1999. They use an Additional Member System (AMS) for voting members into parliament. Similarly to the UK, the government is formed by the largest party, or a coalition of parties if a majority is not elected.

Scotland Act 2016

The 2016 Scotland Act was Scotland’s second stage of devolution after demands grew for more powers following the 2014 independence referendum. While the referendum did not succeed, it showed that Scottish residents wanted more devolution.

Powers transferred to Scotland included income tax rates, some business taxes and control over half of VAT receipts. Other powers devolved included the regulation of the energy industry, control over welfare services, air passenger duty and the widening of areas where the Scottish Parliament could pass laws.

Devolution in England

Devolution refers to the divisions of powers among regions of the UK whilst supreme legal power remains in parliament in Westminster. There has been devolution of powers to regions and cities in England.

English Votes for English Laws (EVEL)

In 2015, English Votes for English Laws (EVEL) was introduced to address the issue of MPs representing Scotland being able to vote on issues that only affect England (and/or Wales). It meant that some parliamentary votes can only be attended by MPs from England (and/or Wales) in areas of education, criminal and health legislation.

Decentralisation of power to cities

Granting powers to cities is a form of devolution. These powers include granting city mayors with greater financial responsibility over their city and being able to control its budget. These powers also include being able to keep revenue from business rates, which are local taxes on commerce businesses, so that they can be invested in city projects.

Devolution deals have involved Manchester, Cornwall, Liverpool, Yorkshire, the West Midlands and North of Tyne.

Changes to Devolution since 1997

Referendums were held in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales in 1997-8 in which people voted for powers to be devolved to new regional assemblies.

In 1998, the Scotland Act, Northern Ireland Act and Government of Wales Act established the Scottish Parliament, Northern Ireland Assembly and Welsh Assembly.

There had been a growing demand for Scottish independence and a need to unite the unionist and nationalist parties in Northern Ireland.

Has Devolution been successful?

YES

NO

– The Good Friday agreement and devolution to the Northern Ireland Assembly transformed the situation in Northern Ireland. Until the collapse of the power-sharing agreement in January 2017, the two main parties had been working together. – Although there are more calls for devolution to England, when a referendum was held on the idea of an elected regional assembly for the North East, the idea was overwhelmingly rejected.

– There have been multiple pieces of legislation devolving further powers to Wales in 1998, 2006, 2014 and 2017. One of the reasons for this increased demand was the imbalance in the powers given in 1998 when Wales gained fewer powers than Scotland. The Welsh nationalist movement has been growing and demand for further devolution continues. – Devolution did not stem the demand for Scottish independence. The 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum was only narrowly won by the Unionists. The Scottish National Party are now more popular and electorally successful than in 1998. There has also been further devolution to Scotland since 2016. – Since the 2016 EU referendum, there have been ongoing discussions over how Brexit will work for Northern Ireland, as it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland (an EU member). The Northern Ireland Act of 1998 will need to be amended as part of the Brexit process, causing possible conflict in Ireland. – It is argued that more devolution of powers to England is needed.

Debates on Devolution in England

There is a debate on whether to further extend devolution to the regions in England.

For further devolution	Against further devolution
– Further devolution would improve accountability by bringing the government closer to people and communities. – More devolution would prevent significant differences in living standards between different parts of the UK. – Devolution may increase political participation – Having devolved governments would ensure regional problems are better addressed.	– Devolution could promote divisions in England by promoting disunity. – Further devolution could result in too many elections taking place which causes voter apathy. – There is no significant demand for further devolution in the England.