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Scotland
| COUNTRY |
ELECTION TYPE |
DATE |
| Scotland, United Kingdom |
Referendum |
September 11, 1997 |
At stake
in this election:
- Whether the national government
will pursue legislation for a unicameral Scottish Parliament
|
Details of the Referendum:
- The government has published a
White Paper that details a proposal for a unicameral Scottish Parliament.
- Voters will vote either in
favor of or against the proposal for a Scottish Parliament, as detailed in the White Paper, and on whether or not this Scottish Parliament should have tax-varying powers.
- The national government in
London will introduce legislation if the proposals are approved.
- The Scottish Parliament will be
composed of 129 members.
- 73 directly elected members
will gain seats through a simple majority and 56 additional members will be elected
through proportional representation.
- If the referendum for a parliament is
approved, voters will have two votes in the election for the Scottish Parliament. One vote will be for a constituency member and the second vote will be for an additional member.
- The vote for an additional
member will be in the form of a vote for a party, not a specific candidate.
|
Powers of the Scottish
Parliament:
- The Scottish Parliament would be able
to make binding laws, only in areas devolved to it, without the consent of the national government in London.
- The Scottish Parliament will be
able to repeal legislation passed by the national Parliament only as it affects Scotland.
- The Scotland bill will contain
a list of reserved powers that the national government asserts are better handled on a nationwide basis. Everything not on the list of powers reserved for the national
government will be handled by the Scottish Parliament.
- The Scottish Parliament would,
if approved in the referendum, be able to increase or decrease the basic rate of income tax set by the United Kingdom by up to three percent.
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When was the last referendum?
- The last referendum for a
Scottish Assembly occurred on March 1, 1979.
- While 51.6% of those
participating in the vote wanted a Scottish Parliament, voter turnout was less than the 40% required for the act to be approved. Therefore, devolution legislation was not enacted by the Parliament in London.
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Population
and number of registered voters:
- Population of the United
Kingdom: 58,489,975 (1995)
- Population of Scotland:
5,200,000
- Number of eligible voters in
this referendum: Approximately 4,000,000
|
Results:
- The proposal for the creation
of a Scottish Parliament was approved with 1,775,045 votes (74.3%) in favor of the
parliament and 614,400 votes (25.7%) against it.
- The proposal to grant this
Scottish Parliament tax-varying powers also passed with 1,512,889 votes (63.5%) in favor
of such powers and 870,263 votes (36.5%) against the proposal.
- Voter turnout: 60.4%
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| SOURCE: INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR ELECTION SYSTEMS (IFES) |
| For additional information:
IFES ElectionGuide Online |
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