Constitutional Reform since 1997 (1)
Political Studies: Edexcel A Level, topic 8.2.1
Demand for Reform
Since 1997 there have been many reforms to the constitution.
Demand for Reform
- Demand for reform came from a broad range of groups who wanted to modernise British institutions and a growing distrust in traditional institutions.
- There were also growing demands for devolution to Scotland and to fix the problems in Northern Ireland.
- When New Labour came to power in 1997 under the leadership of Tony Blair they promised wide ranging constitutional reforms.
- There is still debate about whether these reforms went far enough.
House of Lords Reform
The 1999 House of Lords Act reformed the House of Lords to become a mainly appointed chamber. The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Act 2026 removed the final 92 hereditary peers from the House of Lords.
Reasons behind the reforms
- The House of Lords was seen as undemocratic.
- Membership was based partly on birth.
- The chamber was not elected.
- This created a legitimacy problem.
- Reform aimed to modernise Parliament and reduce hereditary privilege.
- Pressure grew for a more merit-based and representative second chamber.
House of Lords Act 1999
- The House of Lords Act 1999 removed all but 92 hereditary peers.
- The Lords became a mainly appointed chamber, with peers appointed based on merit as opposed to by birth, with the removal of most hereditary peers.
- This reduced hereditary power but did not complete reform.
Reasons for completing reform
- Pressure continued after 1999.
- The remaining hereditary peers were seen as outdated.
- The reform aimed to fully end inherited legislative power and to improve democratic legitimacy and consistency.
- Over time, calls grew for a fully appointed or reformed second chamber.
House of Lords Act 2026
- The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Act 2026 removed the final 92 hereditary peers from the House of Lords.
- This repealed the remaining provisions of the 1999 Act and completed the removal of hereditary membership.
- The Earl Marshal and Lord Great Chamberlain will lose their automatic seats in the Lords but will retain their ceremonial duties.
- As a result, the House of Lords is now made up entirely of life peers and the Lords Spiritual (bishops).
Devolution
Referendums were held in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales in 1997-8 in which the people voted for powers to be devolved to new regional assemblies.
Devolution
- In 1998 the Scotland Act, Northern Ireland Act and Government of Wales Act established the Scottish Parliament, Northern Ireland Assembly and Welsh Assembly.
- There had been a growing demand for Scottish independence and a need to unite the unionist and nationalist parties in Northern Ireland.
Devolution did enough
- The Good Friday Agreement and devolution to the Northern Ireland Assembly transformed the situation in Northern Ireland.
- The power-sharing agreement collapsed in February 2022, when the DUP withdrew over the Northern Ireland Protocol. It was restored in February 2024; Michelle O'Neill (Sinn Féin) became the first nationalist First Minister.
- Although there are calls for more devolution to England, when a referendum was held on a North East regional assembly, the idea was rejected.
More devolution needed: Wales
- There have been multiple pieces of legislation devolving further powers to Wales since 1998, in 2006, 2014, 2017 and 2020.
- One of the reasons for this increased demand is the imbalance in the powers given in 1998 when Wales gained fewer powers than Scotland.
- The Wales Act 2017 introduced a reserved powers model.
- The Senedd and Elections (Wales) Act 2020 extended the voting age to 16.
- The Welsh nationalist movement has been growing, and demand for further devolution continues.
More devolution needed: Scotland
- Devolution did not stem the demand for Scottish independence.
- In 2014 there was a Scottish independence referendum which was only narrowly won by the unionists.
- In 2022, the UK Supreme Court ruled the Scottish Parliament cannot legislate for a referendum without Westminster's consent.
- The Scottish National Party fell from 48 to just 9 Westminster seats at the 2024 General Election.
- There has also been further devolution to Scotland in 2016.
More needed: Northern Ireland
- Brexit created significant tensions in Northern Ireland due to its land border with the Republic of Ireland, an EU member.
- The Northern Ireland Protocol was agreed upon but opposed by unionists.
- In February 2023, the Windsor Framework replaced the Protocol, allowing Northern Ireland access to the EU single market for goods whilst remaining in the UK's customs territory.
More devolution needed
- It is argued that more devolution of powers to England is needed.
- The West Lothian question refers to Scottish MPs voting on matters that only affect England whilst English MPs have no say in devolved Scottish matters.
- English Votes for English Laws (EVEL), introduced in 2015, was abolished by the Commons in July 2021.
- The Barnett formula (devised in 1978) determines per-head funding; Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland receive more per head than England.
Test yourself on Constitutional Reform since 1997 (1)
Which party promised wide-ranging constitutional reforms when they took over government?
Which UK region had problems that urgently needed fixing in 1997?
What was the main reason for completing reform in 2026?
What is the West Lothian question?
Which formula is used to determine the amount of funding per head given to each part of the UK?