Devolution Reforms Havent Gone Far Enough And Was Devolution Successul Flashcards
(8 cards)
What are the 3 themes?
1) should there be an English parliament
2) should there be more regional devolution in England
3) should there be more further powers granted to Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Theme 1- should there be an English parliament
FOR
Point-With the success of devolution to Scotland, Wales, NI via the devolution act 1998, it seems odd that there has not yet been a serious attempt to introduce devolution to England. Therefore, 1 key potential further reform to devolution in the uk is the creation of an English parliament to represent and decide on issues that just affect England akin to the Scottish parliament who vote on Scottish issues.
Point for was devolution successful= no it wasn’t because it excludes English civilians from being represented in policy making that only affects England akin to the Scottish parliament.
A problem w the current system of devolution is that there is asymmetric transfer of power, w England lacking the level of democratic representation that S,NI,W have. An English parliament would complete devolution within the uk, making it symmetrical.
Sig- allow for policy preferences of English people to be represented as well as creating a coherent system of devolution, w a federal UK parliament responsible for UK wide issues such as macroeconomic policy as well as each country having a devolved parliament that controls regional issues such as health. Furthermore, this solves the West Lothian question, which questions why Scottish MPs should be able to vote on English matters in the UK parliament when English MPs can’t do the same in Scottish parliament.
Theme 1- should there be an English parliament?
AGAINST
(However, it could be argued that the current system of devolution is successful as )An English parliament would foster greater tensions between the UK parliament and devolved bodies as around 85% of the UK’s pop is in England, which could lead to the English parliament to become very powerful.
Sig as federalism arguably works best when there is no dominant state or region such as the USA.
Moreover, there is little support for an English parliament within England as English voters feel represented by the current uk parliament.
E.g. Brexit was opposed by NI and Scotland but was strongly pursued by Parliament in order to represent the majority of the English population who supported it.
Overall, an English parliament is not the right solution despite the argument that England is underrepresented because it would foster more tensions with the uk parliament and there is little support support for it from English citizens. (Therefore, making the current system of devolution successful)
Theme 2- should there be more regional devolution in England?
FOR
( regional devolution was succcesul because it) Deliver greater representation of local interests which would bring decision making closer to people and address the different interests of each English region.
E.g. the greater Manchester City region under mayor Andy burnham has been successful in using further devolution to make sig changes to healthcare which improved life expectancy in Manchester.
This is sig in (showing that devolution was successful because it )improving democracy and representation as further devolution allows for local mayors to focus on improving social indicators e.g. doctors per capita in order to satisfy the needs of people and boost QoL in that area. Furthermore, by giving locals a mechanism to vote on local issues via these regional bodies, it can solve the issue of participation crisis as locals see their needs being met with urgency and passion without waiting for parliamentary action. Thus, spurring them to vote on future local elections and increase the TO
Theme 2- should there be more regional devolution in England?
AGAINST
No city and regional assemblies because there is little public support for a regional layer of government in England
E.g. a 2012 referendum on whether Birmingham should have an elected major received a 58% no vote on just a 27.6% TO
Sig cuz the results of a 58% no vote provided a clear verdict of rejection by locals, therefore any plan to create a city council should be promptly abandoned,because it would be considered undemocratic and illegitimate if they were to pursue with it.
Overall, regional assemblies are effective in some areas and deliver greater local representation, however, they should only be extended across England if there is support from local populations in referendums.
Theme 3- Should there be further powers granted to Scotland, Wales, and NI?
FOR
Existing devolved bodies have proved that they can run public services and decide policy effectively, particularly during Covid.
E.g. Scotland was granted further powers over transport, welfare and tax policy to get closer towards “devomax”.
In 2022, Scottish gov nationalised rail by bringing Scot rail under public ownership. The Scottish government subsided rail fares, which lead to cheaper rail fares than in England.
Sig- allow Scotland to reflect the more left wing views of the Scottish parliament in policy as well as increasing their ability to to reflect local opinion and address local issues. Furthermore, by granting further devolution to Scotland, wales and NI, it would give them more autonomy and potentially discourage them from voting for independence in the future- which could happen due to increasing nationalism as they wish to break free from the majority culture (English)and be recognised as their own state with a distinct culture.
Theme 3- should there be further powers be granted to Scotland, Wales and NI
AGAINST
Devolved powers have failed to prove their long standing effectiveness in improving key areas as they have significantly fallen behind England in key areas e.g. NHS performance and education despite them having significantly higher per capita spending on these sectors than England.
E.g. according to the guardian 2023, you are twice as likely to be on a year plus waiting list in Scotland than in England. Moreover, according to PISA rankings ( international ranking of education performance), Scotland and wales had fallen behind England with lower levels of past rates in relation to GCSE and A-level equivalents
Overall, further devolution would allow greater representation and prevent an increase in support for independence however, devolved bodies are still lacking behind England despite them tailoring policies to help target these disparities- showing their incapability - an arguemnt for having a Unitarian state where the parliament holds centralise power in UK decision making
Conclusion
Overall, devolution was successful as it prevented an English parliament from becoming too powerful which could further intensify asymmetric transfers of power , it addressed local concerns effectively and maintains the unity of the UK as devolved bodies are less likely to retaliate and demand a referendum to become independent.
Overall, there shouldn’t be further devolution in England due to there being little public support for it, it could risk fracturing the integrity of the UK parliament as it could deter countries from remaining in unity with the UK, and it could improve QoL for citizens albeit some factors falling behind England standards.
