Beschreibung:
The first comparative study of Scottish devolution over time and the first to analyse the impact of Europe. Rigorously researched and accessibly written. Essential reading for students and scholars of British and European politics.
The first comparative study of Scottish devolution over time and the first to analyse the impact of Europe. Rigorously researched and accessibly written. Essential reading for students and scholars of British and European politics.
This book is the first in-depth comparative study of Scottish devolution and the first to analyse the impact of the European dimension. With focus on the periods leading up to the referendums in 1979 and 1997, it investigates positions and strategies of political parties and interest groups and how these influenced constitutional preferences at mass level and ultimately the referendum results. Based on rigorous analysis of an extensive body of quantitative and qualitative sources, it builds a ground-breaking argument that challenges the widespread thesis that support for devolution was a consequence of Conservative rule between 1979 and 1997. It shows that the decisive factors were changing attitudes to independence and the role of the European dimension in shaping them. The book is essential reading for students and scholars of British, European and comparative politics from 3rd-year courses upwards and will also appeal to lay readers interested in contemporary affairs.
1 IntroductionPart I THE 1970s2 Political parties3 Interest groups4 Public opinion5 Failed Europeanisation in the 1970sPart II THE 1990s6 Political parties7 Interest groups8 Public opinion9 Successful Europeanisation in the 1990sPart III CONCLUSIONS10 Explaining Europeanisation and devolution11 Epilogue: a new Scotland in a changing EuropeBibliographyIndex