Federalism in the United Kingdom aims atconstitutional reform to achieve afederal United Kingdom[1] or aBritish federation,[2] where there is a division oflegislative powers between two or more levels of government, so thatsovereignty isdecentralised between afederal government andautonomous governments in afederal system.[3]
TheUnited Kingdom is currently aconstitutional monarchy[4] governed viaparliamentary democracy. It is constitutionally organized as aunitary state withsome elements of autonomy granted to subnational units through the process ofdevolution.[5] It comprises thecountries ofEngland,Scotland andWales, as well asNorthern Ireland.[4][6] The UK also operates a system ofdevolution from a centralUK parliament andprime minister ashead of government, to the devolved legislatures of theScottish Parliament,Senedd andNorthern Ireland Assembly withfirst ministers. In England, onlyGreater London andcombined authorities currently have varying degrees ofdevolved powers, withproposals for an England-wide orregional devolution.[7][8] While this system of devolved powers, with separate legislatures and different regulatory jurisdictions, resembles and often functions similarly to a federal state, it is not a true federation as all devolved powers ultimately derive from the authority of the central government. The central government can modify or revoke most devolved laws, regulations, and government bodies through anAct of Parliament passed by a simple majority in the House of Commons, of which over 80% of members are from a single country (England).
Compared to the current system of devolution, in a true federal system, autonomy as well as devolved powers would be considered constitutionally protected, requiring more than anAct of Parliament to modify or revoke powers. Autonomy could also potentially be applied uniformly across the entire United Kingdom, compared to the varying levels of devolution at present. TheScotland Act 2016 and theWales Act 2017 made the Scottish Parliament and Senedd permanent parts of the British constitution, requiring a referendum in each respective country to remove the legislatures, although the UK parliament still retains the sovereign right to adjust devolved powers.[9][10]
Federalism was first proposed in the late 19th century to address increasing calls forIrish Home Rule, the awarding of autonomy for Ireland within theUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The proposals failed and theIrish Free State was formed instead. Since a system of devolution was implemented in the late 20th century, some have proposed that a transition be made towards a federation or confederation, as an effort byunionists to combatseparatism.
The United Kingdom is aconstitutional monarchy and aparliamentary democracy. The UK Parliament is composed of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the UK government is led by the Prime Minister,Keir Starmer, and the head of state isKing Charles III.[11][12]
The UK is anasymmetrically decentralisedunitary state, where Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland havedevolved governments operating under authority delegated by the UK Parliament, butsupreme authority is held by the UK parliament.[11] The "UK is a unitary state, not a federation or a confederation." according toLord David Frost.[13] However, it is arguable that the UK is instead a 'union state', and that it is more politically/nationally diverse than even some federal states.[14]
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries,Irish home rule was a divisive political issue. TheFirst andSecond Home Rule Bills failed to pass the UK Parliament. The Third Home Rule Bill was introduced in 1912 by Prime MinisterH. H. Asquith, intended to provide home rule in Ireland, with some additional proposals for home rule in Scotland, Wales, and areas of England.[15][16] The implementation of the Bill was delayed by the outbreak of theFirst World War. At war's end the UK parliament, responding toNorthern Irish Protestant lobbying, passed theFourth Home Rule Bill which divided Ireland into a six-countyNorthern Ireland and a twenty-six countySouthern Ireland, each with its own parliament and judiciary. TheSouthern Parliament only met once: London acknowledged the sovereignty of southern Ireland as theIrish Free State, within theBritish Commonwealth, at the end of 1921. TheNorthern Ireland Parliament remained until 1972 when it was abolished due to sectarian conflict inthe Troubles.[17]
TheScotland Act 1978 became law on 31 July 1978, requiring 40% of the Scottish electorate to support the formation of an assembly. Although 52% of those who voted supported an assembly, this amounted to 33% of the total electorate and so an assembly was not formed. In 1997 a referendum was held in Scotland on a Scottish parliament which was supported by 74.3% of Scots.[citation needed] In 1998 the Scotland Bill was introduced in the UK Parliament and became law as theScotland Act 1998 later that year. The Scottish parliamentary elections were held in 1999 and were followed by the re-establishment of the Scottish parliament.[18]
In Wales, a referendum on a Welsh assembly was held, also in 1997, and resulted in a 50.3% majority in favour.[19] TheGovernment of Wales Act was passed in the UK parliament in 1998 and the National Assembly for Wales was formed in 1999 in Cardiff. The National Assembly for Wales was renamed Senedd Cymru/Welsh Parliament, with the Presiding Officer,Elin Jones, saying that its renaming represented the increased powers and responsibilities of the Senedd.[20]
In 2014,Scotland voted to remain in the UK, though a plurality of Scots wanted greater autonomy within the UK.[21] This culminated in theScotland Act of 2016 which declared that Scotland's devolved institutions were permanent, and granted the Scottish Parliament andgovernment powers over taxation and welfare.[22]
TheWales Act 2017 defined the National Assembly and devolved institutions to be a permanent component of the UK constitution, and any abolition of such institutions would require a referendum. The act also changed the model of operation of the devolved institutions from a "conferred powers model" to a "reserved powers model". The Assembly was given the power to decide its own name and voting system of members.[19]
There have been proposals for the establishment of a singleDevolved English Parliament to govern the affairs of England as a whole. This has been supported by groups such as English Commonwealth, theEnglish Democrats andCampaign for an English Parliament, as well as theScottish National Party andPlaid Cymru who have both expressed support for greater autonomy for all four nations while ultimately striving for a dissolution of the Union. Without its own devolved Parliament, England continues to be governed and legislated for by the UK Government and UK Parliament which gives rise to theWest Lothian question. The question concerns the fact that, on devolved matters, Scottish MPs continue to help make laws that apply to England alone, although no English MPs can make laws on those same matters for Scotland. Since the2014 Scottish independence referendum there has been a wider debate about the UK adopting a federal system with each of the fourHome Nations having its own, equal devolved legislatures and law-making powers.[23]
In September 2011 it was announced that theBritish government was to set up a commission to examine the West Lothian question.[24] In January 2012 it was announced that this six-member commission would be named theCommission on the consequences of devolution for the House of Commons, would be chaired by formerClerk of the House of Commons,Sir William McKay, and would have one member from each of the devolved countries. The McKay Commission reported in March 2013.[25] Following the election of aConservative majority government in the2015 general election, new parliamentary procedures and aLegislative Grand Committee were enacted to bring it into effect.[26] The measures were subsequently abolished in 2021.[27]
Federalism was proposed in the 1870s byIsaac Butt and hisHome Rule party. Federalism was also proposed byJoseph Chamberlain in the mid-1880s. It gained significant support during the constitutional and home rule crisis in Ireland in particular.[28]
A UK federation government was proposed in 1912 byWinston Churchill,Member of Parliament for Dundee, which also included proposals for English regions governed by a regional parliament as part of a UK federation. Potential areas includedLancashire, Yorkshire,the Midlands and London.[15][16]
David Lloyd George campaigned forWelsh devolution, beginning with the devolution of theChurch in Wales which finally came about in 1920.[29] Lloyd George felt that disestablishment, land reform and other forms of Welsh devolution could only be achieved if Wales formed its own government within a federal imperial system. Lloyd George's Government of 1918 also gave considerable thought to a federal government to relieve tensions in Ireland, particularly in combination with conscription for the First World War.[30]
In 1977,Tam Dalyell, then MP forWest Lothian, raised the "West Lothian question" on the issue of an English parliament during a debate on devolution of powers to Scotland and Wales.[31]
In September 2013, ConservativeMS forSouth Wales Central,David Melding produced a book for the Institute of Welsh Affairs (IWA) discussing federalism. He suggested that parliaments in a federal UK should all be sovereign and that a balance of powers between a central parliament and the national parliaments would emerge following a new "Act of Union". He suggests that disputes could be resolved in the Supreme Court.[32]
Since March 2014, the Liberal Democrats have been committed to a policy of UK federalism.[33] Their proposal for a federal UK originally included:
In 2021 the Liberal Democrats updated their stance on a federal UK with a policy motion and a background paper calling for regional assemblies throughout England whose powers would approach those of the Scottish Parliament, representing a near symmetric arrangement in which the regions of England would be constitutionally equivalent to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as states of the federal union but allowing for a parallel "English National Chamber" for English-only affairs, England remaining as a single legal jurisdiction. The policy specifically calls for the House of Lords to be replaced by a federal Senate with representatives from the nations and/or regions and calls for significant fiscal decentralisation: a target of 50% of public spending to be controlled by the subnational governments. Party policy also retains the prior call for a Constitutional Convention with the aim of building a consensus for the drafting of a federal constitution.[35][36]
The think-tank IEA produced a report in 2015 that suggested that the UK should become a federal country. It concluded that responsibilities by and large should be transferred to Scotland and England, Wales and Northern Ireland or Scotland and Rest of UK. It suggested that federal government should have very few functions which would include defence, border control and foreign affairs.[37]
An English parliament as part of a federal UK was suggested by Labour politicianChuka Umunna in July 2015.[38]
The Constitutional Reform Group is a group made up of politicians from all parties. Its Steering Committee is composed ofRobert Gascoyne-Cecil, 7th Marquess of Salisbury;Robert Rogers, Baron Lisvane; former First Minister of WalesCarwyn Jones; former first minister of ScotlandLord Jack McConnell; andLord David Trimble, the first and former First Minister of Northern Ireland, among others. The group produced their first draft of a new Act of Union Bill in July 2016. AnAct of Union Bill 2018 was subsequently introduced as a Private Members' Bill in the House of Lords on 9 October 2018.[39]
On 24 April 2021, an "Act of Union Bill 2021" was published.[40] This includes:
Central matters to include:
In April 2018,Isobel Lindsay, a board member of Scotland's economic and political think-tank,Common Weal, suggested the following two models:
England is by far the largest single unit in the United Kingdom by population (84%) and by area (54%) and thus contributes to the justification for a "Three Nations plus English regions" model.[42][17]
TheFederal Union is a pressure group that supports a codified federal constitution for the United Kingdom, arguing that governance remains too centralised. In October 2018, Andrew Blick, of King's College London and the Federal Union, proposed a Federalist Constitution for the UK. He also suggests that a singleEnglish parliament would not be effective and that regional federalism of England would be more effective;[11] and that the regions of England, created for statistical purposes, are included in one proposed model for a UK federation.[11] The Federal Trust has also proposed a UK Federation as a potential option for the UK's constitutional future.[43]
In February 2020, political analystJohn Curtice suggested that the UK's decision toleave the European Union, which was supported by a majority inEngland and Wales but not in Scotland and Northern Ireland, may have strengthened theScottish independence movement and proved problematic for theGood Friday Agreement.[44][45] As such, some people such as the former head of theDepartment for Exiting the European Union,Philip Rycroft, have proposed federalism as a way of ensuring the Union continues.[46]
A report commissioned by theUK Labour Party during the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn was published in February 2021. The report, titledRemaking the British State: For the many Not the few, proposed constitutional reform of the devolved governments of the UK and establishment of a federal UK system.[47][48]
The report recommended the following:
The Welsh Labour Government produced a report update for the reformation of the United Kingdom in June 2021. This report summary outlined a proposed 20 key changes to devolution in the UK. This proposed reform of the structure of devolution for the countries of the UK would build a stronger and more durable UK, according toMark Drakeford.[49]
The Welsh Labour proposal for "far reaching federalism"[50] are summarised as follows:
Keir Starmer stated in January 2022 that a Labour government would pursue rapid constitutional reform, including further devolution of power.[52] He also promised a "radical devolution of power" which would include a written constitution. More specific details in Starmer's radical devolvement or federalisation plans were said to be lacking.[53] Starmer also taskedGordon Brown with heading a "Constitution Commission" for prospective reform of the UK, a commission which would become active under a Labour government.[54] Brown has suggested federalism as a viable option following Brexit and, according toAdam Tomkins, supported "a reformed Britain, a new federal settlement, and further powers for a supercharged Holyrood". Brown proposed:[55][56]
In September 2022, Gordon Brown's plans were said to include; further devolution of taxation to Scotland, Wales, and England's regions; a new mechanism to "community groups" for the promotion of bills in parliament; constitutional guarantee of social and economic rights; replacement of the House of Lords by an upper house of nations and regions (previously cited in the party's 2015 and 2019 manifestos); minimum of three years' funding to local and devolved governments for longer-term planning.[58] First minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford suggested that Gordon Brown's recommendations would ensure practical ways in which devolution could not be overruled.[59]
In December 2022, a Labour report on the Commission on the UK's Future was published, titled "A New Britain: Renewing our Democracy and Rebuilding our Economy", the following proposals were made:
In March 2022,Glyndwr Jones of theInstitute of Welsh Affairs produced a document "A League-Union of the Isles" discussing constitutional options for the UK with a preface by former first minister of Wales Carwyn Jones. The author presents multiple potential constitutional options for the UK nations including: devolution, federalism, confederalism, confederal-federalism, sovereignty within the EU and independence. The author settles on confederal-federalism, a union of sovereign nations that stands between federalism and a confederation, with an agreed confederal treaty between national parliaments, which jointly form a "Council of the Isles". The proposed union would include the following:
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The Independent Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales is an ongoing commission that will make recommendations about Wales' constitutional future. Having their first meeting on the 25th of November 2021, ProfessorLaura McAllister and DrRowan Williams are co-chairing the commission. Professor McAllister has stated that all options are on the table – including independence.[62] This independent commission was established in 2022 by the Welsh Government and has two broad objectives which include consideration and development of options for reform of constitutional structures of the UK, and progressive principal options to strengthen Welsh democracy and deliver improvements for Wales.[63]
In its interim report of December 2022, The Independent Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales proposes the following as an option for a federal UK:
Aconfederation has also been proposed as a related concept of constitutional reform. Unlike in a federation where the United Kingdom remains asovereign state, a confederation would involve thecountries of the United Kingdom becoming separate sovereign states that pool certain key resources within a central authority. Under the system, the central authority exists with the consensus of the constituent countries which would maintain a right tosecession if they wish.[65]
According to theInstitute of Welsh Affairs, the concept of a confederal UK may include the following:
The independent Constitution Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales identified two questions on a confederal union in the case ofWelsh independence:
"What evidence is there that England and/or other parts of the UK would join in any free association or confederal arrangements with Wales which would constrain their own freedom of action?
If other parts of the UK were unwilling to enter into shared governance arrangements with an independent Wales, how would cross border matters be managed?"[64]
As early as 1892, the concept of a "Britannic Confederation" has been raised which mentioned the possibility of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales entering such a confederation as separate states.[67]
Gerald Holtham, Hodge Professor of Regional Economy atCardiff Metropolitan University, also outlined his support for a confederal UK in an article for the think tankCompass.[68]
ProfJim Gallagher, of the Institute of Legal and Constitutional Research at theUniversity of St Andrews, has produced a paper discussing his support for a confederate UK. Gallagher was the UK government's most senior adviser on devolution and constitutional matters. He worked on the number 10 policy unit underGordon Brown.[69]
In 2019,Nigel Biggar, Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology,University of Oxford, suggested it was time to form a British Isles confederation, also replacing the House of Lords with a senate elected by the assemblies/parliaments of constituent countries.[17]
In March 2022,Glyndwr Jones of theInstitute of Welsh affairs produced a document "A League-Union of the Isles" discussing constitutional options for the UK with a preface by former first minister of WalesCarwyn Jones. The author presents multiple potential constitutional options for the UK/UK nations including:devolution, federalism, confederalism, confederal-federalism, sovereignty within the EU andindependence. The author settles on confederal-federalism, a union of sovereign nations that stands between federalism and a confederation, with an agreed confederaltreaty between national parliaments, which jointly form a "Council of the Isles". The proposed union would include the following:
Former Plaid Cymru leaderGwynfor Evans, advocated for a "Britannic Confederation" that included Wales, and produced a booklet including this proposal in 1988.[71][72]
John Osmond, Welsh political reporter said in 2014 that the constitutional ideas proposed by former Prime MinisterGordon Brown and formerFirst Minister of WalesCarwyn Jones were moving towards a confederation.[73] Jones was reportedly a supporter of a confederal system and worked withGordon Brown on his recommendations for constitutional reform of the UK. Brown’s recommendations did not explicitly propose a confederal model.[74]
Following the 2015 UK general election, then leader of Plaid Cymru,Leanne Wood adapted the party's constitutional stance back to the traditional party position of anindependent Wales within a UK confederation.[75][76]
In 2019, Plaid Cymru leaderAdam Price also advocated for a "Britannic Confederation between Wales, Scotland and England", similarly to theBenelux union between Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg. Price said “I would argue that by pooling their powers within both Benelux and the European Union, the three countries have enlarged and strengthened their sovereignty. By operating closely together they have obtained greater flexibility and reach in the exercise of national power, grown their economies, and enhanced their presence on the world stage.”[77][78]
In 2021, in aHouse of Lords Constitution Committee, "Inquiry into the Future Governance of the UK", Dr Paul Anderson suggested that further research was merited for a federal or confederal UK. He noted that this may, "contrary to the current dominant opinion among pro-Union political elites, create an even looser union". He also suggested that theSNP's campaign for independence prior to the2014 independence referendum included "hallmarks" of a confederal UK.[79]
In 2022,Dafydd Wigley, formerPlaid Cymru MP and member of the House of Lords advocated for a "Britannic Confederation", "in which sovereignty of the three nations and the Province is acknowledged, but they pool their sovereignty for certain purposes—for example, the recognition of the Queen as the head of a Britannic confederation. Plaid Cymru and the SNP currently accept the monarchy as the Head of State, recognising a Britannic dimension to our identity as well as our own national identity." "Secondly, there might be an acceptance of sterling as the currency and a reconstituted Bank of England acting as a central bank for a confederation. Thirdly, there is scope for defence co-operation. The SNP supports an independent Scotland being part of NATO, though this is obviously complicated by the question of nuclear weapons. There is surely a pragmatic solution to enable defence co-operation.”[80][81]
In 2023,First Minister of WalesMark Drakeford said that in reality, “sovereignty exists in four different places”. He added, “What we should do is think of a United Kingdom in which sovereignty rests in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and then we choose voluntarily to pool that sovereignty back for certain important key shared purposes.”[82]
ProfessorBrendan O'Leary of theLondon School of Economics has noted that an element of a confederacy already exists between the Republic of Ireland and UK's Northern Ireland. Following theGood Friday Agreement of 1998, theNorth/South Ministerial Council (of the island of Ireland) was established which is responsible for 12 policy areas.[83]
A report byThe Federal Trust suggested the following potential benefits of a federal UK:
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Members of the UK Labour Party, including their leader Keir Starmer, have supported federalism, but the UK-wide party have not made a commitment.[citation needed] The Liberal Democrats are the only mainstream political party to have formally adopted a policy for a federal United Kingdom which outlines the structure of the proposed federation in line with the "Three Nations plus English Regions" model. Other political parties prefer the status quo or to increase autonomy further thanfederalism via independence.
