The Evolution of Devolution: English Devolution

Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 22 Sep 2020 Closed: 1 May 2023 Parliament page
Devolution has become an established part of the UK constitutional architecture, but while legislative and executive devolution has been established and evolved in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, there has been no equivalent devolution in England, creating asymmetry in the UK governance arrangements. Since 2014, there have been a number … Read more
5 Recommendations
13 Conclusions
2 Reports
4 Oral sessions
5 Letters
4 Events
Activity timeline 15 events
1 Mar
2023
Report published
1 Mar
2023
Correspondence
1 Mar
2023
Correspondence
1 Mar
2023
Correspondence
1 Mar
2023
Correspondence
31 Oct
2022
Report published
7 Sep
2021
Correspondence
15 Jul
2021
Oral evidence
15 Jul
2021
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 16, Palace of Westminster
6 Jul
2021
Oral evidence
6 Jul
2021
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 15, Palace of Westminster
2 Feb
2021
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 4 sessions
15 Jul 2021
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The Evolution of Devolution: English Devolution
Ben Houchen · Tees Valley Combined Authority Tracy Brabin MP · West Yorkshire Combined Authority
6 Jul 2021
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The Evolution of Devolution: English Devolution
Alderman Roy Perry · South East Councils (SEC) Councillor John Fuller OBE · District Councils Network Councillor Martin Tett · Buckinghamshire Council Jamie Driscoll · North of Tyne Combined Authority Rt Hon Andy Burnham · Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA)
2 Feb 2021
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The Evolution of Devolution: English Devolution
Cllr David Williams · County Councils Network Cllr Julian German Cllr Sir Richard Leese Professor John Denham The Rt Hon the Lord Heseltine CH
20 Oct 2020
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The Evolution of Devolution: English Devolution
Dr Arianna Giovannini Professor Michael Kenny Professor Richard Wyn Jones · Cardiff University Professor Sarah Ayres
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Fifth Report - Governing England: Follow up to the Government's … HC 1139 1 Mar 2023 0
Third Report - Governing England HC 463 31 Oct 2022 18
Recommendations & Conclusions
18 results
1 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
The Committee has significant concerns about current governance arrangements for England.
The Committee has significant concerns about current governance arrangements for England. The evidence we received suggests that even those working within the different parts of local government are not always clear on how the system works, where decisions are made, … Read more
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2 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
The evidence is clear both practically and democratically that the overly centralised arrangements of government...
The evidence is clear both practically and democratically that the overly centralised arrangements of government in England are problematic. We were convinced by the evidence presented to us that the current balance of decisions is weighted too much to the … Read more
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3 Recommendation
Third Report - Governing England
It is clear from our evidence that the current funding structures for local government and...
It is clear from our evidence that the current funding structures for local government and combined authorities reflects the instinct in Whitehall to maintain control of the levers of power and the purse strings. It is beyond the scope of … Read more
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4 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
It is widely recognised that there is considerable geographical inequity within the governance arrangements of...
It is widely recognised that there is considerable geographical inequity within the governance arrangements of England. This is the area that the Government have clearly identified and prioritised in producing the Levelling Up White Paper. We note, however, the concerns … Read more
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5 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
Successive Governments, far from putting in place careful reforms to nurture and develop decentralised and...
Successive Governments, far from putting in place careful reforms to nurture and develop decentralised and durable governance structures for England, have adopted a piecemeal and uncoordinated approach. This is simply not good enough.
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6 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
The long-term viability of governance arrangements in England is a significant and pressing problem that...
The long-term viability of governance arrangements in England is a significant and pressing problem that has been neglected by successive governments for too long. It is clear that those in local government want a system that enables them to deliver … Read more
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7 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
There is an urgent and pressing need for significant reform of the governance arrangements of...
There is an urgent and pressing need for significant reform of the governance arrangements of England, so that they not only work effectively, but can be seen to work effectively, in order to strengthen and restore the public trust in … Read more
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8 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
As a consequence of the establishment and subsequent development of devolved institutions in Northern Ireland,...
As a consequence of the establishment and subsequent development of devolved institutions in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, there is now a legitimate degree of uncertainty about how England fits into the UK ‘s constitutional arrangements. This is in many … Read more
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9 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
The introduction of the English Votes for English Laws procedure was a recognition of the...
The introduction of the English Votes for English Laws procedure was a recognition of the need to address this problematic situation. As such its removal could be seen as a step backwards. However, as our evidence indicates, it was an … Read more
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10 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
While it may not seem immediately pressing, the question of England’s place in the Union...
While it may not seem immediately pressing, the question of England’s place in the Union is a significant one that cannot be left unanswered indefinitely. While the Secretary of State’s approach of ignoring the issues underlying the so-called West Lothian … Read more
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11 Recommendation
Third Report - Governing England
The Committee also notes the difficulties inherent in UK Ministers also being Ministers for England...
The Committee also notes the difficulties inherent in UK Ministers also being Ministers for England when discharging their duties. It is entirely conceivable that situations may arise where the interests of England and of the UK will be divergent, and … Read more
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12 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
More broadly, while it is clear that the interests of England and the UK are...
More broadly, while it is clear that the interests of England and the UK are generally likely to be aligned, this may not always be the case, and it is important that proper consideration is given to the interest both … Read more
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13 Recommendation
Third Report - Governing England
The question of England’s place in the Union cannot continue to be ignored.
The question of England’s place in the Union cannot continue to be ignored. We recommend that the Government bring forward proposals for how the distinct interests of England can be represented effectively both within the legislative process and within Government … Read more
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14 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
The task of reforming the governance arrangements for England is not an easy one.
The task of reforming the governance arrangements for England is not an easy one. There are strong historical, cultural, geographic and economic reasons to pursing a range of different approaches. We have identified three main reasons why meaningful and sustained … Read more
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15 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
If any reform is to take place it must address all of these issues, otherwise...
If any reform is to take place it must address all of these issues, otherwise it is likely only to be another short term and partial measure. For a reform of the governance systems to successfully be implemented and invested … Read more
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16 Recommendation
Third Report - Governing England
The Government should be commended for its willingness to openly identify many of the issues...
The Government should be commended for its willingness to openly identify many of the issues that we have also found with the current governance arrangements for England through the course of our inquiry. The publication of the White Paper Governing … Read more
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17 Conclusion
Third Report - Governing England
There are no easy answers to the question as to what model(s) of reform to...
There are no easy answers to the question as to what model(s) of reform to the governance arrangements for England would be successful or would satisfactorily address all the issues that we touched on during our inquiry, given the range … Read more
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18 Recommendation
Third Report - Governing England
The Government should bring forward, and opposition parties should support, a Bill to establish a...
The Government should bring forward, and opposition parties should support, a Bill to establish a cross-party Commission on the governance of England. This Commission should be funded through and responsible to Parliament. The remit of the Commission should be to … Read more
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Correspondence 5 letters
1 Mar 2023 From committee Letter to Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on the PACAC Report - Governing England, dated 23.2.23
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1 Mar 2023 From committee Letter to Rt Hon Ed Davey MP, Leader of the Liberal Democrats Party on the PACAC Report - Governing England, dated 23.2.23
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1 Mar 2023 From committee Letter to Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer KC MP, Leader of His Majesty's Official Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party on the PACAC Report - Governing England, dated 23.2.23
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1 Mar 2023 From committee Letter to to Stephen Flynn MP, Leader of the Scottish National Party in the House of Commons on the PACAC Report - Governing England, dated 23.2.23
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7 Sep 2021 To committee Letter from Professor Sir Ian Diamond, National Statistician on making more use of UK wide data for better comparisons of devolved policy, dated 2.8.21
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