West Lothian question
Encyclopedia
The West Lothian question refers to issues concerning the ability of Members of Parliament from constituencies in Northern Ireland
, Scotland
and Wales
to vote on matters that only affect people living in England
. This has occurred because of the devolution of power
from Westminster
to the Welsh and Northern Irish Assemblies and Scottish Parliament
.
The question was first posed on 14 November 1977, by Tam Dalyell
, Labour
Member of Parliament
(MP) for the Scottish constituency of West Lothian
. During a British House of Commons
debate over Scottish and Welsh devolution
he said:
He illustrated his point by pointing out the absurdity of a Member of Parliament for West Lothian being able to vote on matters affecting the English town of Blackburn, Lancashire
but not Blackburn, West Lothian
in his own constituency, due to the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973
and its effects on Scottish local government.
The name "West Lothian question" was coined by the Ulster Unionist
MP Enoch Powell
in his response to Dalyell's speech: "We have finally grasped what the Honourable Member for West Lothian is getting at. Let us call it the West Lothian question."
In September 2011 it was announced that the UK government was to set up a commission to examine the West Lothian Question.
, and is thus a creation of Westminster
. No sovereign status on the Scottish Parliament is conferred, and the act has not changed the status of the Westminster Parliament as the supreme legislature of Scotland, with Westminster retaining the ability to override, or veto, any decisions taken by the Scottish Parliament. The Westminster Parliament remains the sovereign body; power is devolved rather than transferred to the Scottish Parliament.
As a consequence, the ability of all Westminster MPs to vote on Scottish legislation has not been legally diminished by devolution, as made clear by Section 28(7) of the Scotland Act 1998, which states that the legislative powers of the Scottish Parliament do ...not affect the power of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to make laws for Scotland.
During devolution
, a convention was created to manage the power of Westminster to legislate on matters within the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament. This is known as the Sewel Convention, and the related Scottish parliamentary motions are now known as Legislative Consent Motions (previously Sewel Motions). These motions (of which there are around a dozen per year) allow all English, Welsh, Northern Irish, and Scottish MPs to vote on issues, which among other things, are within the Scottish Parliament's legislative competence. The Sewel Convention states that the Westminster Parliament will not normally legislate on devolved matters in Scotland without first obtaining the consent of the Scottish Parliament.
, national security
, foreign affairs
and monetary and economic issues are voted on by all the MPs at Westminster to ensure consistency across the whole of the United Kingdom
. The Scottish Parliament is not able to pass laws on these issues itself, as they were not devolved. The West Lothian question is not involved in this situation, as all parts of the Union have a say roughly proportional to their population and all are equally affected.
that legislated for Northern Ireland
, but Northern Ireland continued to send MPs to Westminster, who could vote on matters affecting only Great Britain
.
However, during this period Northern Ireland had disproportionately fewer MPs than would be expected from the relative populations, with the numbers cut from the 29 elected at the 1918 general election
to 13 from the 1922 general election
and later to 12 with the abolition of university constituencies in 1950.
In establishing foundation hospitals and agreeing student tuition fees — both controversial policies which do not affect Scotland — Scottish votes were decisive in getting the measures through. The vote on foundation hospitals in November 2003 only applied to England – had the vote been restricted to English MPs then the government would have been defeated. Had there been a vote by English MPs only on tuition fees in January 2004, the government would have lost because of a rebellion on their own benches. Students at English universities are required to pay top-up fees
, but students from Scotland attending Scottish universities are not. The legislation imposing top-up fees on students in England passed by a small majority of 316 to 311. At the time, the opposition education secretary Tim Yeo
argued that this low majority made the passing of the law due to Scottish MPs voting to introduce tuition fees that Scottish students attending university in Scotland would not have to pay. However, a small part of the bill did relate directly to Scotland which is often omitted from the arguments that it was carried by Scottish MPs voting on an English and Welsh-only bill.
said that "English MPs should have exclusive say over English laws ... People will become increasingly resentful that decisions are being made in England by people from other parts of the UK on matters that English people did not have a say on elsewhere ... I think it is a dangerous thing to allow resentment to build up in a country. We have got to make the rules fair now."
, David Cameron
established a "Democracy Taskforce" chaired by Kenneth Clarke
. The taskforce's final report "Devolution, The West Lothian Question and the Future of the Union" proposed a possible solution to the West Lothian question. The proposals called for changes in procedures in the House of Commons for the passage of bills relating only to England. Under the new procedures, all MPs would participate in the first and second readings of these bills, but only English MPs would participate in the committee stage consideration of the bill. All MPs would vote on the final bill at report stage. An amendment proposed by Sir Malcolm Rifkind suggested that the second reading and report stages of would require a "double majority" of both the House as a whole and of English MPs.
, along the lines of the Scottish
and Welsh
Grand Committees (made up of all the MPs from the relevant nation) to be formed to debate on the effects of legislation on England. Described as the "East Lothian answer", the plan would allow English MPs to discuss "England only" bills in a grand committee that would then vote on the bill. A new convention would be established so that the whole House would not overrule the committee's decisions. Rifkind claimed that his solution would prevent the creation of two classes of MPs that English votes on English laws could result in.
, with full legislative powers, akin to the Scottish Parliament
is seen by some as a solution to this problem, with full legislative powers also being conferred on the existing Welsh Assembly
. The Westminster (United Kingdom) Parliament would continue to meet and legislate on matters of UK-wide competence such as Defence, Foreign Affairs and economic matters with the parliaments of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland legislating locally.
However, opponents of this proposal argue that it would simply add another layer of government and an 'expensive talking shop
'. Scottish Lord Falconer of Thoroton
, the former Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs
, has stated that he believes that an English Parliament would "dwarf all other institutions." South African-born MP Peter Hain
, who campaigned for a Welsh Assembly, warned creating an English parliament or trying to stop Scottish and Welsh MPs from voting on England-only matters would break up the Union.
with no legislative powers. Originally, it was planned that these would be directly elected. The London Assembly
was the first of these, established following a referendum
in 1998, in which public and media attention was focused principally on the post of Mayor of London
. Ken Livingstone
was the first directly elected Mayor of London. He started his victory speech with "As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted 14 years ago", making it clear he saw the London Assembly as a recreation of a similar London wide authority to that of the Greater London Council
, which he had led before it was abolished in the 1980s.
Further progress was thwarted when a referendum
in the North East
rejected the proposal for an elected assembly in November 2004 leading to the shelving of similar proposals for other English regions. The Regional Development Agencies are due to be scrapped in March 2012 with their powers and functions being transferred either to local government or in the case of London, The London Authority.
leading to some or all of the constituent countries (England, Northern Ireland
, Scotland
, and Wales
) becoming independent sovereign states.
The principal party that campaigns for a dissolution of the Union is the Scottish National Party
(SNP), which won an outright majority in the 2011 election. The SNP are likely to pass a referendum bill during this term, resulting in a referendum on Scottish independence held within Scotland. Since decisions made at Holyrood
concerning major constitutional issues are not binding on Westminster, an independence bill passed in the Scottish Parliament would not be legally valid unless endorsed by Westminster.
Labour politician Jack Straw
has speculated: "I say to the Conservatives that if they start to take a mechanical approach, this so-called 'English votes for English laws' approach, then they will break the Union."
In Wales
, Welsh Nationalist party Plaid Cymru
holds Welsh Independence
as a long-term aim. In Northern Ireland
there are no mainstream political parties calling for an independent Northern Irish state
, but parties calling for the reunification of Ireland
include Sinn Fein
and the SDLP.
Scottish Parliament
, National Assembly for Wales
and Northern Ireland Assembly
would also fundamentally address the anomaly created by their establishment.
It would be highly controversial in Scotland, where the referendum
passed by a large margin, and was passed in all 32 council areas of the country. Recent opinion polls have shown that support for abolishing the Scottish Parliament is running below 10%, which is far lower than the figure that voted No in 1997. While the Welsh Assembly was formed as a result of a very slim majority in the 1997 referendum
, support has since grown for the Welsh Assembly, and in favour of Wales having an Assembly. In the 2011 referendum on devolving law-making powers to the Welsh Assembly, a clear majority for further powers was seen to affirm public support for devolution.
Another consideration would be the potential implications that abolishing the Northern Ireland Assembly would have for the nascent peaceful settlement
to the Troubles
.
All the main political parties have stated that devolution cannot be reversed without the consent of the electorate in the country concerned. The trend among the three bodies is towards further or full independence and not towards being drawn back into the union further as the various referenda and votes on devolution have shown.
when the number of MPs from Northern Ireland seated at Westminster was below the standard ratio of MPs compared with the rest of the UK. It is argued that Scotland would trade a reduced voice for Scotland in exchange for Scottish MPs being able to vote on English matters, which therefore may form an acceptable solution. However, while such a solution would have attraction to England, it is difficult to see how accepting reduced voting strength on major issues affecting Scotland in exchange for a say in matters not applying to Scotland could be an attractive trade from a Scottish perspective.
and the Liberal Democrats
provides that a commission will be established to consider the West Lothian question.
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
to vote on matters that only affect people living in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. This has occurred because of the devolution of power
Devolution in the United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, devolution refers to the statutory granting of powers from the Parliament of the United Kingdom to the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly and to their associated executive bodies the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government...
from Westminster
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
to the Welsh and Northern Irish Assemblies and Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
.
The question was first posed on 14 November 1977, by Tam Dalyell
Tam Dalyell
Sir Thomas Dalyell Loch, 11th Baronet , known as Tam Dalyell, is a British Labour Party politician, who was a Member of Parliament in the House of Commons from 1962 to 2005, first for West Lothian and then for Linlithgow.-Early life:...
, Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for the Scottish constituency of West Lothian
West Lothian (UK Parliament constituency)
West Lothian was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post voting system....
. During a British House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
debate over Scottish and Welsh devolution
Devolution
Devolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to government at a subnational level, such as a regional, local, or state level. Devolution can be mainly financial, e.g. giving areas a budget which was formerly administered by central government...
he said:
For how long will English constituencies and English Honourable members tolerate ... at least 119 Honourable Members from Scotland, Wales and Northern IrelandNorthern IrelandNorthern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
exercising an important, and probably often decisive, effect on English politics while they themselves have no say in the same matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland?
He illustrated his point by pointing out the absurdity of a Member of Parliament for West Lothian being able to vote on matters affecting the English town of Blackburn, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
but not Blackburn, West Lothian
Blackburn, West Lothian
Blackburn is a town in West Lothian, Scotland next to Bathgate and five miles from Livingston. It is situated about from Edinburgh along the old A8 road between Edinburgh and Glasgow.- History :...
in his own constituency, due to the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973
Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973
The Local Government Act 1973 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, that reformed local government in Scotland, on May 16, 1975....
and its effects on Scottish local government.
The name "West Lothian question" was coined by the Ulster Unionist
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...
MP Enoch Powell
Enoch Powell
John Enoch Powell, MBE was a British politician, classical scholar, poet, writer, and soldier. He served as a Conservative Party MP and Minister of Health . He attained most prominence in 1968, when he made the controversial Rivers of Blood speech in opposition to mass immigration from...
in his response to Dalyell's speech: "We have finally grasped what the Honourable Member for West Lothian is getting at. Let us call it the West Lothian question."
In September 2011 it was announced that the UK government was to set up a commission to examine the West Lothian Question.
Executive power hierarchy
The Scottish Parliament was formed by statute, the Scotland Act 1998Scotland Act 1998
The Scotland Act 1998 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is the Act which established the devolved Scottish Parliament.The Act will be amended by the Scotland Bill 2011, if and when it receives royal assent.-History:...
, and is thus a creation of Westminster
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. No sovereign status on the Scottish Parliament is conferred, and the act has not changed the status of the Westminster Parliament as the supreme legislature of Scotland, with Westminster retaining the ability to override, or veto, any decisions taken by the Scottish Parliament. The Westminster Parliament remains the sovereign body; power is devolved rather than transferred to the Scottish Parliament.
As a consequence, the ability of all Westminster MPs to vote on Scottish legislation has not been legally diminished by devolution, as made clear by Section 28(7) of the Scotland Act 1998, which states that the legislative powers of the Scottish Parliament do ...not affect the power of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to make laws for Scotland.
During devolution
Devolution
Devolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to government at a subnational level, such as a regional, local, or state level. Devolution can be mainly financial, e.g. giving areas a budget which was formerly administered by central government...
, a convention was created to manage the power of Westminster to legislate on matters within the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament. This is known as the Sewel Convention, and the related Scottish parliamentary motions are now known as Legislative Consent Motions (previously Sewel Motions). These motions (of which there are around a dozen per year) allow all English, Welsh, Northern Irish, and Scottish MPs to vote on issues, which among other things, are within the Scottish Parliament's legislative competence. The Sewel Convention states that the Westminster Parliament will not normally legislate on devolved matters in Scotland without first obtaining the consent of the Scottish Parliament.
Reserved matters
Legislation relating to reserved issues such as defenceDefense (military)
Defense has several uses in the sphere of military application.Personal defense implies measures taken by individual soldiers in protecting themselves whether by use of protective materials such as armor, or field construction of trenches or a bunker, or by using weapons that prevent the enemy...
, national security
National security
National security is the requirement to maintain the survival of the state through the use of economic, diplomacy, power projection and political power. The concept developed mostly in the United States of America after World War II...
, foreign affairs
Foreign Affairs
Foreign Affairs is an American magazine and website on international relations and U.S. foreign policy published since 1922 by the Council on Foreign Relations six times annually...
and monetary and economic issues are voted on by all the MPs at Westminster to ensure consistency across the whole of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The Scottish Parliament is not able to pass laws on these issues itself, as they were not devolved. The West Lothian question is not involved in this situation, as all parts of the Union have a say roughly proportional to their population and all are equally affected.
Parliament of Northern Ireland
A situation akin to that presented by the West Lothian question did exist between 1921 and 1972, when there was a Parliament of Northern IrelandParliament of Northern Ireland
The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended...
that legislated for Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, but Northern Ireland continued to send MPs to Westminster, who could vote on matters affecting only Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
.
However, during this period Northern Ireland had disproportionately fewer MPs than would be expected from the relative populations, with the numbers cut from the 29 elected at the 1918 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1918
The United Kingdom general election of 1918 was the first to be held after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which meant it was the first United Kingdom general election in which nearly all adult men and some women could vote. Polling was held on 14 December 1918, although the count did...
to 13 from the 1922 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1922
The United Kingdom general election of 1922 was held on 15 November 1922. It was the first election held after most of the Irish counties left the United Kingdom to form the Irish Free State, and was won by Andrew Bonar Law's Conservatives, who gained an overall majority over Labour, led by John...
and later to 12 with the abolition of university constituencies in 1950.
Controversy
The West Lothian question causes controversy in British politics. Polls suggest that Scottish voters are agreed that the situation is unfair.In establishing foundation hospitals and agreeing student tuition fees — both controversial policies which do not affect Scotland — Scottish votes were decisive in getting the measures through. The vote on foundation hospitals in November 2003 only applied to England – had the vote been restricted to English MPs then the government would have been defeated. Had there been a vote by English MPs only on tuition fees in January 2004, the government would have lost because of a rebellion on their own benches. Students at English universities are required to pay top-up fees
Top-up fees
Tuition fees were first introduced across the entire United Kingdom in September 1998 as a means of funding tuition to undergraduate and postgraduate certificate students at universities, with students being required to pay up to £1,000 a year for tuition...
, but students from Scotland attending Scottish universities are not. The legislation imposing top-up fees on students in England passed by a small majority of 316 to 311. At the time, the opposition education secretary Tim Yeo
Tim Yeo
Timothy Stephen Kenneth Yeo is an English Conservative politician, Member of Parliament for South Suffolk and the current Chairman of the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee.-Early life:...
argued that this low majority made the passing of the law due to Scottish MPs voting to introduce tuition fees that Scottish students attending university in Scotland would not have to pay. However, a small part of the bill did relate directly to Scotland which is often omitted from the arguments that it was carried by Scottish MPs voting on an English and Welsh-only bill.
English votes on English laws
It has been suggested that Scottish MPs should be barred from voting on matters that do not affect Scotland. In July 1999, the then-Conservative leader William HagueWilliam Hague
William Jefferson Hague is the British Foreign Secretary and First Secretary of State. He served as Leader of the Conservative Party from June 1997 to September 2001...
said that "English MPs should have exclusive say over English laws ... People will become increasingly resentful that decisions are being made in England by people from other parts of the UK on matters that English people did not have a say on elsewhere ... I think it is a dangerous thing to allow resentment to build up in a country. We have got to make the rules fair now."
Kenneth Clarke's Democracy Taskforce
Following his election as Leader of the Conservative PartyConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
, David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
established a "Democracy Taskforce" chaired by Kenneth Clarke
Kenneth Clarke
Kenneth Harry "Ken" Clarke, QC, MP is a British Conservative politician, currently Member of Parliament for Rushcliffe, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice. He was first elected to Parliament in 1970; and appointed a minister in Edward Heath's government, in 1972, and is one of...
. The taskforce's final report "Devolution, The West Lothian Question and the Future of the Union" proposed a possible solution to the West Lothian question. The proposals called for changes in procedures in the House of Commons for the passage of bills relating only to England. Under the new procedures, all MPs would participate in the first and second readings of these bills, but only English MPs would participate in the committee stage consideration of the bill. All MPs would vote on the final bill at report stage. An amendment proposed by Sir Malcolm Rifkind suggested that the second reading and report stages of would require a "double majority" of both the House as a whole and of English MPs.
English Grand Committee
As a slight variation on the proposal for English votes on English laws, Sir Malcolm Rifkind proposed that an English Grand CommitteeGrand committee
- In Finland :The Grand Committee is a committee of the Parliament of Finland. It has special tasks related to Finland's membership in the European Union. It formulates the opinion of the parliament in questions of EU legislation...
, along the lines of the Scottish
Scottish Grand Committee
The Scottish Grand Committee is a committee of the House of Commons. It is not a select committee , but rather a grand committee composed of all 59 Scottish MPs ....
and Welsh
Welsh Grand Committee
The Welsh Grand Committee is a committee of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
Grand Committees (made up of all the MPs from the relevant nation) to be formed to debate on the effects of legislation on England. Described as the "East Lothian answer", the plan would allow English MPs to discuss "England only" bills in a grand committee that would then vote on the bill. A new convention would be established so that the whole House would not overrule the committee's decisions. Rifkind claimed that his solution would prevent the creation of two classes of MPs that English votes on English laws could result in.
English parliament
The creation of a devolved English parliamentDevolved English parliament
A devolved English parliament or assembly, giving separate decision-making powers to representatives for voters in England similar to the representation given by the National Assembly for Wales, Scottish Parliament and the Northern Ireland Assembly, is currently a growing issue in the politics of...
, with full legislative powers, akin to the Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
is seen by some as a solution to this problem, with full legislative powers also being conferred on the existing Welsh Assembly
National Assembly for Wales
The National Assembly for Wales is a devolved assembly with power to make legislation in Wales. The Assembly comprises 60 members, who are known as Assembly Members, or AMs...
. The Westminster (United Kingdom) Parliament would continue to meet and legislate on matters of UK-wide competence such as Defence, Foreign Affairs and economic matters with the parliaments of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland legislating locally.
However, opponents of this proposal argue that it would simply add another layer of government and an 'expensive talking shop
Talking shop
A talking shop or debating society is an organisation or place where discussion is the main activity, with no decisions or actions necessarily arising from the discussion. Talking shops may be considered unproductive, bureaucratic or self-serving and so may lack respect and power...
'. Scottish Lord Falconer of Thoroton
Charles Falconer, Baron Falconer of Thoroton
Charles Leslie Falconer, Baron Falconer of Thoroton, PC is a British Labour politician, who became the Lord Chancellor and the first Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs in 2003...
, the former Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs
Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs
The Secretary of State for Justice is a senior position in the cabinet of the United Kingdom. It was created in 2007 replacing the abolished Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs, which was originally intended to fulfil those functions of the office of Lord Chancellor which related to the...
, has stated that he believes that an English Parliament would "dwarf all other institutions." South African-born MP Peter Hain
Peter Hain
Peter Gerald Hain is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for the Welsh constituency of Neath since 1991, and has served in the Cabinets of both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, firstly as Leader of the House of Commons under Blair and both Secretary of State for...
, who campaigned for a Welsh Assembly, warned creating an English parliament or trying to stop Scottish and Welsh MPs from voting on England-only matters would break up the Union.
Regional assemblies
The Labour government has attempted to address the West Lothian question by introducing English regional assembliesRegional Assemblies in England
The Regional Assemblies of England were a group of indirectly elected regional bodies established originally under the name Regional Chambers by the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998. They were abolished on 31 March 2010 and replaced by Local Authority Leaders’ Boards...
with no legislative powers. Originally, it was planned that these would be directly elected. The London Assembly
London Assembly
The London Assembly is an elected body, part of the Greater London Authority, that scrutinises the activities of the Mayor of London and has the power, with a two-thirds majority, to amend the mayor's annual budget. The assembly was established in 2000 and is headquartered at City Hall on the south...
was the first of these, established following a referendum
London referendum, 1998
The Greater London Authority referendum of 1998 was a referendum held in Greater London on 7 May 1998 asking whether there was support for the creation of a Greater London Authority, composed of a directly elected Mayor of London, and a London Assembly to scrutinise the Mayor's actions...
in 1998, in which public and media attention was focused principally on the post of Mayor of London
Mayor of London
The Mayor of London is an elected politician who, along with the London Assembly of 25 members, is accountable for the strategic government of Greater London. Conservative Boris Johnson has held the position since 4 May 2008...
. Ken Livingstone
Ken Livingstone
Kenneth Robert "Ken" Livingstone is an English politician who is currently a member of the centrist to centre-left Labour Party...
was the first directly elected Mayor of London. He started his victory speech with "As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted 14 years ago", making it clear he saw the London Assembly as a recreation of a similar London wide authority to that of the Greater London Council
Greater London Council
The Greater London Council was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council which had covered a much smaller area...
, which he had led before it was abolished in the 1980s.
Further progress was thwarted when a referendum
Northern England referendums, 2004
The Northern England devolution referendums were referendums starting with the North East region of England, in the United Kingdom, on 4 November 2004. Dubbed by the government the Great North Vote, the referendum proposed that the region should have an elected regional assembly...
in the North East
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
rejected the proposal for an elected assembly in November 2004 leading to the shelving of similar proposals for other English regions. The Regional Development Agencies are due to be scrapped in March 2012 with their powers and functions being transferred either to local government or in the case of London, The London Authority.
Dissolution of the Union
Another solution might be the dissolution of the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
leading to some or all of the constituent countries (England, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, and Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
) becoming independent sovereign states.
The principal party that campaigns for a dissolution of the Union is the Scottish National Party
Scottish National Party
The Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom....
(SNP), which won an outright majority in the 2011 election. The SNP are likely to pass a referendum bill during this term, resulting in a referendum on Scottish independence held within Scotland. Since decisions made at Holyrood
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
concerning major constitutional issues are not binding on Westminster, an independence bill passed in the Scottish Parliament would not be legally valid unless endorsed by Westminster.
Labour politician Jack Straw
Jack Straw
Jack Straw , British politician.Jack Straw may also refer to:* Jack Straw , English* "Jack Straw" , 1971 song by the Grateful Dead* Jack Straw by W...
has speculated: "I say to the Conservatives that if they start to take a mechanical approach, this so-called 'English votes for English laws' approach, then they will break the Union."
In Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, Welsh Nationalist party Plaid Cymru
Plaid Cymru
' is a political party in Wales. It advocates the establishment of an independent Welsh state within the European Union. was formed in 1925 and won its first seat in 1966...
holds Welsh Independence
Welsh independence
Welsh independence is a political ideal advocated by some people in Wales that would see Wales secede from the United Kingdom and become an independent sovereign state. This ideology is promoted mainly by the Welsh nationalist party, Plaid Cymru.-History:...
as a long-term aim. In Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
there are no mainstream political parties calling for an independent Northern Irish state
Ulster nationalism
Ulster nationalism is the name given to a school of thought in Northern Irish politics that seeks the independence of Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom without becoming part of the Republic of Ireland, thereby becoming an independent sovereign state separate from England, Scotland and Wales...
, but parties calling for the reunification of Ireland
United Ireland
A united Ireland is the term used to refer to the idea of a sovereign state which covers all of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. The island of Ireland includes the territory of two independent sovereign states: the Republic of Ireland, which covers 26 counties of the island, and the...
include Sinn Fein
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
and the SDLP.
Abolishing the devolved bodies
The abolition of the devolvedDevolution
Devolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to government at a subnational level, such as a regional, local, or state level. Devolution can be mainly financial, e.g. giving areas a budget which was formerly administered by central government...
Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
, National Assembly for Wales
National Assembly for Wales
The National Assembly for Wales is a devolved assembly with power to make legislation in Wales. The Assembly comprises 60 members, who are known as Assembly Members, or AMs...
and Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
would also fundamentally address the anomaly created by their establishment.
It would be highly controversial in Scotland, where the referendum
Scotland referendum, 1997
The Scottish devolution referendum of 1997 was a pre-legislative referendum held in Scotland on 11 September 1997 over whether there was support for the creation of a Scottish Parliament with devolved powers, and whether the Parliament should have tax-varying powers. The referendum was a Labour...
passed by a large margin, and was passed in all 32 council areas of the country. Recent opinion polls have shown that support for abolishing the Scottish Parliament is running below 10%, which is far lower than the figure that voted No in 1997. While the Welsh Assembly was formed as a result of a very slim majority in the 1997 referendum
Wales referendum, 1997
The 1979 referendum had been such a resounding defeat that it killed off any prospects of devolution for Wales for a generation. Although the Welsh Liberal Party and Plaid Cymru became committed to a Welsh parliament by 1983 it was not until 1992 that a Welsh Assembly with executive powers was put...
, support has since grown for the Welsh Assembly, and in favour of Wales having an Assembly. In the 2011 referendum on devolving law-making powers to the Welsh Assembly, a clear majority for further powers was seen to affirm public support for devolution.
Another consideration would be the potential implications that abolishing the Northern Ireland Assembly would have for the nascent peaceful settlement
Northern Ireland peace process
The peace process, when discussing the history of Northern Ireland, is often considered to cover the events leading up to the 1994 Provisional Irish Republican Army ceasefire, the end of most of the violence of the Troubles, the Belfast Agreement, and subsequent political developments.-Towards a...
to the Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
.
All the main political parties have stated that devolution cannot be reversed without the consent of the electorate in the country concerned. The trend among the three bodies is towards further or full independence and not towards being drawn back into the union further as the various referenda and votes on devolution have shown.
Reducing the number of Scottish MPs
There is also the option of cutting the number of Scottish MPs even further, as happened to Northern Irish representation during the existence of the Parliament of Northern IrelandParliament of Northern Ireland
The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended...
when the number of MPs from Northern Ireland seated at Westminster was below the standard ratio of MPs compared with the rest of the UK. It is argued that Scotland would trade a reduced voice for Scotland in exchange for Scottish MPs being able to vote on English matters, which therefore may form an acceptable solution. However, while such a solution would have attraction to England, it is difficult to see how accepting reduced voting strength on major issues affecting Scotland in exchange for a say in matters not applying to Scotland could be an attractive trade from a Scottish perspective.
Future developments
The May 2010 coalition agreement between the Conservative PartyConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
and the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
provides that a commission will be established to consider the West Lothian question.
See also
- Barnett formulaBarnett formulaThe Barnett formula is a mechanism used by The Treasury in the United Kingdom to adjust the amounts of public expenditure allocated to Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales automatically to reflect changes in spending levels allocated to public services in England, England and Wales or Great...
- BritishnessBritishnessBritishness is the state or quality of being British, or of embodying British characteristics, and is used to refer to that which binds and distinguishes the British people and forms the basis of their unity and identity, or else to explain expressions of British culture—such as habits, behaviours...
- Cornish self-government movementCornish self-government movementCornish nationalism is an umbrella term that refers to a cultural, political and social movement based in Cornwall, the most southwestern part of the island of Great Britain, which has for centuries been administered as part of England, within the United Kingdom...
- English nationalismEnglish nationalismEnglish nationalism refers to a nationalist outlook or political stance applied to England. In a general sense, it comprises political and social movements and sentiment inspired by a love for English culture, language and history, and a sense of pride in England and the English people...
- Proportional representationProportional representationProportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
- Scottish independenceScottish independenceScottish independence is a political ambition of political parties, advocacy groups and individuals for Scotland to secede from the United Kingdom and become an independent sovereign state, separate from England, Wales and Northern Ireland....
- Scottish mafiaScottish mafiaThe Scottish mafia, Scottish Labour mafia, tartan mafia or Scottish Raj, is a term used in politics in the United Kingdom.-Political use:...
- Welsh nationalismWelsh nationalismWelsh nationalism emphasises the distinctiveness of Welsh language, culture, and history, and calls for more self-determination for Wales, which may include more Devolved powers for the Welsh Assembly or full independence from the United Kingdom.-Conquest:...
Further reading
- Devolution: the end of Britain?', Tam Dalyell, Jonathan Cape, London, 1977
- Devolution in Britain Today, Russell Deacon, Manchester University Press, 2006
- Report on devolution and the governance of England, House of Commons Justice Committee, 24 May 2009
- A Stronger or Weaker Union? Public Reactions to Asymmetric Devolution in the United Kingdom, Professor John CurticeJohn CurticeJohn Curtice is an academic who is currently Professor of Politics at the University of Strathclyde. He is particularly interested in electoral behaviour, researching political and social attitudes, and is an acknowledged expert on the call for Scottish independence.- External links :*...
, University of Strathclyde, Publius — the journal of federalism, Volume 36, Number 1, Winter 2006, Oxford University PressOxford University PressOxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
(PDF file) - The West Lothian Question, Oonagh Gay, House of Commons Library SN/PC/2586, 26 June 2006 (PDF file)
External links
- House of Commons Scotland Bill Debate, 14 November 1977
- Talking Politics: The West Lothian Question, BBC News OnlineBBC News OnlineBBC News Online is the website of BBC News, the division of the BBC responsible for newsgathering and production. The website is the most popular news website in the United Kingdom and forms a major part of BBC Online ....
, June 1, 1998 - The West Lothian spectre, Parliamentary sketch by Simon HoggartSimon HoggartSimon David Hoggart is an English journalist and broadcaster. He writes on politics for The Guardian, and on wine for The Spectator. Until 2006 he presented The News Quiz on Radio 4...
], The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, November 7, 2001 - Hansard text of a debate on the subject in 1998 (scroll down for the start, and continue on to subsequent pages)