ABSTRACT

This volume addresses the issues arising from the recent devolution referenda by exploring the historical development of the proposals, the importance of national and regional identities, the changing policies of the political parties and the approaches of business and other major groups towards devolution. It also looks at the impact on electoral reform coming from the proposal that proportional representation be used to elect the regional assemblies and how the new assemblies are to be financed. Finally the book discusses the implications of a devolved British state where different countries and regions achieve different levels of autonomy at different paces.

chapter |9 pages

Also cited as reasons are the decline of indigenously owned Scottish industry, and the very low rate of self-employment. The working-class support which the Conservatives used to enjoy in west-central Scotland has been dissipated by the decline of religious motives in politics: the party’s support used to be strong among the Protestant working class, but religion has become a matter of political indifference for most Scots, and is far less strongly associated with vote than is social class (Brown et al., 1996: 148). the election will have reinforced the English the intermediate bodies of civil society a very general problem for the welfare states -

ByRunning through all the social groups, moreover, has been a sense that the Conservatives are an essentially English party which does not have Scotland’s interests at heart: according to one poll conducted during the 1997 general election campaign, 73 per cent of all voters agreed that ‘the Conservative Party is a mainly English party with little relevance to

part |2 pages

be wrong for us to enter into a political campaign when we have members who, if not supporters, lean towards Labour’s policy.’ (The Scotsman, 21 March 1996). Significantly, the IoD remained aloof from the constitutional debate after 1996 and its qualified opposition to devolution brought no campaigning or publicity. The Scottish Chambers of Commerce did not adopt a formal position on devolution , but its survey of members generated some interesting findings about business opinion on constitutional change. The Chamber’s survey offered four choices to business: more government decentralization to Scotland (administrative devolution), devolution without taxation powers; devolution with tax powers; and independence. The Chamber received 650 responses from its members and the exercise provided some interesting results (see Table 1). The principal finding was that business found taxation powers too hard to swallow. While business was neutral or enthusiastic about more administrative devolution or the establishment of a Scottish Parliament on the 1978 scheme, support for change fell away when confronted with taxation powers and independence (The Journal, December firms viewed decentralization and non-tax devolution as

part |1 pages

Strategies of Autonomist Agents in Wales

chapter |18 pages

English Regionalism and New Labour

ByJOHN MAWSON

chapter |16 pages

provincial electorates. A similar process is at work in Belgium. More serious is the argument between those who favour autonomy and those, in other territories, who prefer a centralized regime. Here it might be argued that it is unfair to thrust home rule onto people who do not want it. Yet this depends on their motivation. If, say, the English, or anglophone Canadians, favour a centralized system because it gives them effective control of the whole, then they can be accused of a wish for domination (as in the case of a principled preference for centralized government because of the to the European Convention, and the Irish Accord the European Courts (of Justice and

ByDicey) and reasonably told to look to their own affairs. Alternatively, they may have opportunities it gives for redistribution or radical policy making. In that case, the argument flows into that about fiscal equalization and social solidarity.

part |1 pages

institutions of British government develop as a result of the growing importance of regionalism within the European Union, the demands of national (and increasingly international) efficiency must not be allowed to overrule community sentiment to the extent that popular hostility provokes further change in order to dismantle unpopular government structures. What’s Wrong with Asymmetrical Government? Michael Keating Proposals for devolution in Scotland and Wales will create an asymmetrical constitution. This raises a number of issues in principle and practice and has been a focus of opposition. Yet asymmetrical features are common in devolved systems, as the experience of Canada and Spain shows, and the existing UK constitution also contains marked asymmetries. No symmetrical solution could satisfy the varied demands from the nations and regions of the UK. In any case asymmetry may be less of a problem in practice than it is in theory.

chapter |3 pages

Notes on Contributors

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