Scotland Decides

by Bochel,Hugh

• ISBN13: 9780714650531
• ISBN10: 0714650536
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-03-30
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Scotland has a parliament for the first time in almost 300 years, and this book is an account of how this came about. The authors trace the origins and history of the demand for home rule in Scotland, focusing particularly on developments following the failure of the first referendum on the issue in 1979, which culminated in a second referendum in September 1997. This major political event attracted national and international interest, and its decisive result was a milestone in Scottish history. This work presents an analysis of the referendum campaign at both national and local levels, including media coverage of the event and the outcome. The reactions of voters are explored on the basis of a large survey of the electorate, and lessons to be learnt about referendums in the UK and elsewhere are discussed. The authors also take a look at the developments in the politics of devolution and examine the new parliament's prospects. In addition to being a study of a significant event in the politics of theUnited Kingdom, this book makes a contribution to the growing literature on the use of referendums both in Britain and the rest of the world.

Author Biography

Charles Pattie is a Reader in Geography at the University of Sheffield.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures	ix
Foreword	xiii
Preface	xv
Scottish Devolution: The Historical Context	1	(26)
Introduction	1	(2)
The political parties and home rule	3	(8)
Social cleavages and political parties	11	(4)
The first devolution referendum, 1979	15	(10)
Conclusion	25	(2)
The Politics of Devolution 1979-97	27	(24)
Home rule and working-class politics	29	(3)
The Constitutional Convention	32	(4)
The Conservative response	36	(5)
The tartan tax and decision to hold a referendum	41	(5)
The Referendum (Scotland and Wales) Bill	46	(2)
Conclusion	48	(3)
The National Campaign	51	(27)
The emergence of Scotland Forward	51	(6)
The late start of Think Twice	57	(3)
SNP involvement	60	(3)
Further campaign research	63	(2)
The campaign proper	65	(1)
Business and devolution	66	(3)
Conservative dilemmas	69	(2)
Diana's death	71	(2)
The last 100 hours	73	(2)
Conclusion	75	(3)
The Scottish Media and the Referendum	78	(23)
Broadcasting	80	(5)
The Scottish morning press	85	(6)
The local weekly press	91	(1)
The media and the public	92	(6)
Conclusion	98	(3)
Local Campaigning in the Referendum	101	(22)
The parties	104	(10)
The ad hoc groups	114	(2)
The death of Diana	116	(1)
The view from the electorate	116	(3)
The impact on the outcome	119	(2)
Conclusions	121	(2)
The Referendum Results	123	(21)
Turnout in the referendum	126	(6)
The vote for the Scottish Parliament	132	(8)
Support for tax-varying powers	140	(2)
A mandate for change	142	(2)
Voting in the Referendum	144	(28)
Voting and non-voting	144	(8)
Voting on the Scottish Parliament	152	(16)
Conclusion	168	(4)
The Referendum in Context	172	(16)
Referendums in the United Kingdom	172	(6)
The United Kingdom referendums in comparative context	178	(8)
Conclusion	186	(2)
The Aftermath of the Referendum	188	(18)
Legislating for the Scottish Parliament	188	(3)
Preparing for the Parliament	191	(3)
The electoral system	194	(2)
Public opinion in Scotland	196	(3)
The future: an expectations gap	199	(7)
Postscript: The First Elections to the Scottish Parliament	206	(9)
Trends in public opinion	206	(2)
The result of the election	208	(1)
List voting	209	(3)
Turnout	212	(1)
Conclusion	213	(2)
Appendix 1: The Referendum Results	215	(4)
Appendix 2: The Survey of Electors	219	(6)
Mechanics of the survey	219	(1)
Response rate	220	(1)
Geographical distribution of respondents	220	(1)
The referendum result	221	(1)
General election vote	221	(1)
Social characteristics of respondents	222	(3)
References	225	(8)
Index	233