The Scottish Parliament
Scotland was once an independent Kingdom, with its own Parliament. That changed in 1707 when the Kingdom of Scotland joined the Kingdom of England, becoming the Kingdom of Great Britain. Since that amalgamation, Scotland's affairs have been decided by the Parliament in Westminster, England. Scotland has, however, always had representation within that Parliament, and has not had to endure effective occupation under English rulers. Nevertheless, the arrangement has lead to a somewhat uncertain National identity for Scotland, and there has always been a large section of the community in Scotland which has demanded the country's independence.
During the politically turbulent twentieth century, demands for an independent Scotland have ebbed and flowed. In the early years of the century, it looked like some kind of semi-independent Parliament would be established, but events emanating from Germany put paid to that. Demand increased again in the inter war years, but once again in 1939 there became more pressing matters to deal with. In the relatively peaceful years that followed, demand grew anew for an independent Scotland, or at least for some kind of self-determination within the British system.
During the 1980s and 90s, the United Kingdom was governed by the Conservative party, yet Scotland was largely anti-Conservative, and very few of the party's Members of Parliament represented Scottish constituencies. This led to an increase in the demand for Scotland to have more control over how its tax money was spent, and even for more control on how much money was raised through taxation in Scotland. When a Labour Government was elected in 1997, the way was paved for change, and, in 1999, a Scottish Parliament sat for the first time since unification.
Limitations of the Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament does not have unlimited powers to pass Acts within Scotland, but is still subservient to the United Kingdom Parliament. They do have a considerable degree of autonomy, however, and voting is carried out in the same way as in most Parliaments. With modern technology, electronic cards submit the votes in a matter of seconds, and there is never much of a delay before the result is known. It does have to be said that the result is all but known in advance anyway, as political parties instruct their members how to vote, and few will go against these instructions.
As with most other Parliaments, much of the work is done in committees. These committees will study the existing laws, and try to find ways they can be amended and improved. These committees are always formed according to the proportion of members from each party. The committees deal with each of the subject areas that the Parliament oversees. Many responsibilities remain with the Westminster parliament. It remains to be seen whether the establishment of the Scottish Parliament will ever lead to a truly independent Scotland. As of now, the Scottish Nationalist Party has the majority, but it is far to small to achieve this kind of monumental feat. Only time will tell.
