Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament today is a regional assembly in the United Kingdom created by the Labour Party, with some degree of behind the scenes influence by the European Union, which wanted the United Kingdom broken up into devolved regions.[1]
All of the United Kingdom had been administered by the government based at Westminster Palace in London, to which Members of Parliament were elected from across the UK. There were minority groups, however, who wanted to transfer some of this governmental power to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
A referendum was held in 1979 under a Labour government which stipulated that a Scottish Assembly would come into being if a referendum had been supported by 50% of votes cast, plus a controversial rule whereby at least 40% of the electorate had to vote in favour. Although 51.6% voted in favour, this was only 32.9% of the electorate so the Assembly was not brought into being.
The new referendum was a Labour Party manifesto commitment and it was held in their first term in office after the 1997 General Election, under the provisions of new legislation, the Referendums (Scotland and Wales) Act 1997. This provided for only a simple majority.
Referendums for or against devolution were held on 11 September 1997 in Scotland and Wales; and on both sides of the Northern Ireland border (i.e: also in the Irish Republic) in 1998 as part of the notorious Good Friday Agreement brokered by the Labour Party under their left-wing Leader, Tony Blair.
The question put to the Scottish electorate was: do you believe there should be a Scottish Parliament with devolved powers, and whether the Parliament should have tax-varying powers
- Yes = 1,512,889
- No = 870,263
- Total = 2,391,268
- Invalid = 19,013
- Turnout for the referendum was 60.4%: 3,973,673
This led to the creation of three regionally elected institutions:
- the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh in 1999;
- the National Assembly for Wales (called the Senedd by nationalists) in Cardiff'
- the Northern Ireland Assembly in Belfast.
Certain administrative and legislative powers were devolved to these assemblies. The UK government in Westminster remains responsible for policies which affect just England, as well as overall legislative policy in a number of areas. These include defence and national security, foreign policy, immigration, citizenship, pensions and tax - although Scotland has its own limited powers to increase income tax.
The old Scottish Parliament, which had existed for hundreds of years, voted in 1707 to unite with the government of England and the Scottish body was abolished. This meant that the burghs and the feudal Barons no longer had the right to sit in the Westminster Parliament. The hereditary-created peerage continued to do so.[2][3]
Sources
- ↑ The Maastricht Treaty encouraged the creation of regional boundaries for selection of members for the Committee of the Regions of the European Union: Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland had each constituted a region, but England represented such a large proportion of the population of the United Kingdom that further division was thought necessary.
- ↑ Scott Paul H., The Union of Scotland and England, Chambers Ltd., Edinburgh, 1979, ISBN: 0-550-20265-X
- ↑ Wormald, Jennifer, Lords and Men in Scotland, John Donald Publishers, Edinburgh, 198, ISBN: 0-85976-127-4
- Sutherland, Keith, editor, The Rape of the Constitution?, Imprint Academic, Thorverton, Devon, England, 2000, ISBN: 0-907845-70-3
- Summary: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-54974078
