SBC and Holyrood
The Scottish Parliament and Devolution
Devolution refers to the transfer of powers from the UK Parliament at Westminster to a subordinate regional body. In Scotland these powers were transferred to the Scottish Parliament.
The first elections to the Scottish Parliament took place on 6 May 1999, with its first sitting on 12 May of that year. The Parliament was officially opened by the Queen on 1 July 1999 and took up its full powers on that date.
The main functions of the Parliament are:
- hold the Scottish Government to account
- to debate important topical issues
- to conduct Inquiries and publish reports
- to make laws on devolved matters.
A devolved matter is an issue on which the Scottish Parliament has been given powers to pass legislation and is in contrast to a reserved matter which the UK Parliament at Westminster still has the sole power to legislate over. The Scotland Act 1998 specifies certain issues in relation to which the Scottish Parliament cannot pass legislation.
The Scottish Parliament also has the power to raise or lower the basic rate of income tax by up to 3p in the £ (pound).
The Scottish Government
The Scottish Government is the government in Scotland for all devolved matters. It is formed from the party or parties holding the majority of seats in the Parliament. Members of the Scottish Government collectively are referred to as "the Scottish Ministers" and comprise of:
- The First Minister;
- The Lord Advocate and Solicitor General for Scotland;
- Other ministers appointed by the First Minister.
The Scottish Government is accountable to the Scottish Parliament, with the Scottish Parliament and Government being both accountable to the people of Scotland. This mirrors the relationship between the UK Parliament at Westminster and the UK Government, as the UK Parliament scrutinises the work of Government Departments and Ministers, similar to the Scottish Parliament scrutinising the work of the Scottish Government.
Local Government
Local Government is created by statute and must only do what is permitted by statute. This leads to it being generally described as a "creature of statute".
Local Government in Scotland is concerned with the provision of local services by Authorities constituted by the United Kingdom Parliament with its membership being popularly elected locally to meet the needs of their defined areas.
Since 1999 all constitutional matters relating to Local Government, except the Local Government franchise, have been devolved to the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament.
The powers of a local authority are subordinate to central government and ultimately to Parliament. However the powers of local authorities are also subject to Judicial Review and control through the application of the ultra vires principle in that the local authority can not act outwith its powers.
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