Arjun Dhillon (U6G)
What is Devolution?:
Devolution is the delegation of power from the UK parliament in Westminster to assemblies in Scotland, Wales & Northern Ireland. In 1997 the Labour Party held a referendum in Scotland & Wales over devolution and 74% of Scottish voters and 50% of Welsh voters voted in favour of devolution. By 1998 the Good Friday Agreement had led to a ceasefire and paved the way for a Northern Ireland Assembly too.
In the Scottish Parliament, there are 129 members and it is currently led by Humza Yousaf. It uses the AMS voting system and has key powers, particularly in Policing, Transport, Health, and Education.
In the Welsh Senedd, there are 60 members; it is currently led by Vaughan Gething. It uses the AMS voting system and has key powers, particularly in the Fire & Rescue services, Transport, Agriculture, and the Environment.
In the Northern Ireland Assembly, there were 90 members; it is currently vacant. It used the STV voting system and had key powers, particularly in Trade, Transport & Health.
Has Devolution worked?:
Devolution can be said to have strengthened the union- for example, Scotland voted to remain in the UK in the 2014 referendum. This referendum had a higher turnout than several others at 84%. Some critics argue that this referendum was marginal, with 45% still having voted to Leave. What critics may have been concerned about is the sovereignty of the English Parliament being able to infringe on Scottish matters, which was evident in 2024 when Rishi Sunak rejected a bill from Scotland to extend transgender rights by lowering the age to change your gender identity. This was the first time since powers were devolved to Scotland in 1999 that a bill was rejected which led to many LGBTQ+ campaigners feeling that their rights to equality and opportunity which are protected under the Equality Act 2010 had been violated.
Conclusion:
Whilst the possibility of a government putting their party's own beliefs before the request of a devolved body is in theory possible due to the sovereignty concentrated in Westminster. It is important to acknowledge the numerous successes of devolution; such as the 2012 Scotland Act which devolved income tax-raising power to the Scottish parliament as well as allowing it to borrow up to £2 billion a year and the 2017 Wales Act which allowed the renaming of the Welsh Assembly to Senedd Cymru. In Northern Ireland politicians from Westminster have attended reconciliation meetings since 2018 regarding the suspended parliament, which shows how its sovereignty over the devolved bodies can be useful.