New Labour and the Devolution of Power in the United Kingdom
The Conflict
Ever since England and Scotland joined to form the Kingdom of Great Britain a tension has existed in Scotland, driven by its strong sense of national identity and its pride in its unique national institutions on the one hand, and on the other a sense that it was under the domination of England, its partner to the south. This has led to demands ranging from a greater degree of self-determination to full Scottish independence.
Political
- The Conservative Party opposes devolution, claiming that it would lead to the dissolution of the United Kingdom. The Labour Party favors it, maintaining that more home rule for Scotland and Wales is the only way to defuse nationalist movements and prevent a threat to the UK such as the Provisional IRA in Northern Ireland.
- The Scottish political parties hope to achieve very different ends by means of devolution. For the Labour Party it is a way of maintaining the UK in its fundamental form; for the Liberal Democrats it is a way to transition to a full federal system, with a division of authority between the regions and central government similar to that in the United States; the Scottish National Party sees it as a step to full independence for Scotland.
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