| Review of: | Birth of Welsh Democracy: the First Term of the National Assembly for Wales edited by John Osmond, J. Barry Jones |
|---|---|
| Reviewed By: | Martin Laffin |
| Reviewed in: | Public Administration |
| Date accepted online: | 27/07/2004 |
| Published in print: | Volume 82, Issue 2, Pages 525-545 |
Reviews
The main issues the book addresses concern the Assembly's powers, its status as a corporate body not a parliament and its democratic credentials, and the emerging policy divergence between England and Wales. Firstly, most contributors see the case for the Assembly acquiring primary powers as an unassailable one in terms of greater democratic accountability and governing effectiveness, and as inevitable (the Assembly appointed the Richard Commission to review the case for additional powers and a different electoral system and their report was published in March 2004. Hazell, in particular, argues that proposed Welsh legislation loses out in the competition for legislative time in Westminster and that this legislation has not been well scrutinized to date; but he does not consider the issue of English criticism that the Welsh enjoy a 'privileged' status compared with English regions.
Secondly, several authors point to how the Assembly has shifted from its original corporate body design, which combined legislative and executive functions, and towards a greater separation of these functions (similar to the Scottish separation of Parliament and Executive). Osmond and Jones detail these changes. Richardson considers that the Assembly has not realized the original aspiration to create a 'new politics' characterized by consensus. Nevertheless, she does see the Assembly as offering greater openness and accessibility for pressure groups than is found in central government. Lang and Storer track how the Assembly committees' role has shifted away from policy development to policy scrutiny, but they doubt the Assembly has enough members to make its committee system work as an effective accountability mechanism. On the electorate, Jones and Scully conclude that the low turnout in the 1999 Welsh elections resulted from voter apathy about politics in general as well as towards the Assembly, but not towards the principle of devolution.
Thirdly, Welsh devolution has led to some significant policy divergence between England and Wales (although arguably much of this divergence reflects an Assembly unwillingness to follow central government initiatives). Egan and James point to how Wales has not followed the 'post-comprehensive', English, specialist school route but, more positively, how it is developing a new, distinctive approach to schooling for 3-7 year olds. Edwards shows how the Assembly has been more cautious than England in using the Public Finance Initiative in health. Adamson and Johnston find some policy divergence in the 'Communities First' programme as a distinctive, Welsh approach to community regeneration. But Bristow shows that Wales still largely follows UK central government spending priorities on health and education. She also gives a good overview of how the Barnett Formula (a population-based formula for calculating public spending) shapes Welsh spending, noting that Welsh ministers have made a strategic decision not to risk pushing for a reform of the Formula.
Policy divergence, of course, is mostly driven by politicians. Taylor points to how Welsh ministers have not always followed Blairite, New Labour, and, despite the apparent 'control-freakery' evident in early London-Cardiff relations, Blair himself has publicly acknowledged the prerogative of the Assembly to use its powers as it will. Thomas notes that the Liberal Democrats played a key role in pushing policies such as maintenance support for students and the appointment of the Richard Commission. McAllister looks at the dilemmas that Plaid [Plaid Cymru] is facing as the nationalist party, perhaps taking an over-optimistic view of Plaid's future electoral prospects.
In summary, this book is an invaluable and extremely comprehensive snapshot of Welsh devolution after the first four years, an essential addition to the library of anyone interested in UK devolution.