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A Brief History of the Formation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain 

Prior to 1707, Scotland and England were independent, sovereign kingdoms, each with their own Parliaments. The Commonwealth period of 1649 to 1659 saw the forced union of Scotland and England. However, with the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, the two Parliaments of Scotland and England became independent once more. In 1688, King James II (in England) and VII (in Scotland) was deposed and William of Orange ascended the throne of England in the Glorious Revolution. The Scottish throne was vacated until the Parliament of Scotland offered the Crown to William and Mary of Orange. However, relations between England and Scotland began to deteriorate. Scots, excluded from England’s foreign trade, grew resentful. The 1701 Act of Settlement passed by the English Parliament stated that Princess Sophia, Electress of Hanover, was to succeed to the English throne. This meant that Scots who supported the Union of the Crowns would have to accept the English choice, and those that did not would have to look to the descendants of King James II and VII. This Act soured relations between the two kingdoms, leading Queen Anne to take action. She directed that commissioners should be selected from each country to negotiate a complete union of the kingdoms. The Scottish commissioners were in favor of this, so long as the Scots had equality in trade with England, but negotiations collapsed. The Scottish Parliament reacted by passing the 1703 Act of Security, which stated that, “the Queen’s successor in Scotland would not be the same person as that in England, unless Scotland was guaranteed the independence of its Crown, the freedom and power of its Parliament, and the liberty of its religion and trade from outside intrusion.” The 1705 Alien Act was passed in retaliation by the English Parliament, making Scots in England aliens, and limiting trade between Scotland and England. Queen Anne began negotiations again in 1706, nominating commissioners herself and ensuring that a majority were in favor of uniting the two kingdoms under one Parliament. Over the next few months, the articles of union were debated in both Scotland and in England. The Union With England Act was ratified by the Scottish Parliament in January 1707, and in March, the Union with Scotland Act 1706 was ratified by the English Parliament. On April 28, 1707, the Scots Privy Council dissolved the Scottish Parliament, however, there was no corresponding dissolution of the English Parliament. The United Kingdom of Great Britain came into being on May 1, 1707, and the new parliament of the United Kingdom met for the first time in October of that year.

Devolution in Scotland

The twentieth century saw a “de-concentration” of the executive power of the United Kingdom with regard to Scotland. A Scottish Office, under a Secretary for Scotland, was established in 1885. This office was elevated to a Secretary of State in 1926, and then relocated to Edinburgh, the Scottish Capital, in 1939. The Scottish National Party (SNP) was formed in 1934, and the SNP has been a central force in the movement for independence in Scotland. The Hamilton by-election of 1967 marked the beginning of modern Scottish politics. Winnie Ewing was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hamilton, successfully overrunning the Labour majority, and becoming the second SNP MP to be elected to Westminster. The SNP’s victory in the by-election led to the appointment of the Royal Commission on the Constitution in 1969, also known as the Kilbrandon Commission, which was mandated to examine the United Kingdom’s constitution. In 1973, the Commission concluded its report, which advocated for the creation of a Scottish legislature with legislative powers, and for differentiated systems of devolution for different countries in the U.K. according to that country’s needs. The Labour government of James Callaghan put forth the 1978 Scotland Act to create a Scottish Assembly. The Act required 40% of the Scottish electorate to support the Act in order for it to come into force. The Act was defeated in the 1979 referendum: 52% of those voting supported the Act, but this constituted only 33% of the electorate. Following a vote of no confidence in the Labour government in May of that year, the Act was canceled a month later. The new Conservative government, led by Margaret Thatcher, did not support devolution as outlined in the 1978 Act, however not everyone was satisfied with the changes the Conservative government did make, such as devolving further powers to Scotland’s administrative government. After the general election of 1987, these unsatisfied individuals joined together to form the Scottish Constitutional Convention (SCC) in 1989. The SCC published A Claim of Right For Scotland, which advocated for the creation of a Scottish Parliament. Several more reports were published over the years, containing submissions for a devolution arrangement. Tony Blair’s new Labour government was elected in 1997 with a manifesto commitment to legislate for a Scottish Parliament. The government published a white paper, entitled Scotland’s Parliament, and the proposal was put to a referendum in 1997. This referendum, unlike the 1979 referendum, required only a simple majority to pass. The referendum was held on September 11, 1997, and contained two questions–one regarding whether a Scottish Parliament should be established, and the second, if that Parliament should have tax-varying powers. 74.3% of voters on the first question supported the formation of a Scottish Parliament, and 63.5% of voters on the second question agreed that the Parliament should have tax-varying powers. The Scotland Act 1998 resulted from this referendum and it “provide[d] for the establishment of a Scottish Parliament and Administration and other changes in the government of Scotland…” The devolution of power was based on a reserved powers model, with certain competencies being reserved to the U.K. Parliament. This devolution settlement was reviewed in 2008 and 2009 in an independent commission, the Commission on Scottish Devolution (also known as the Calman Commission), created by the U.K. Parliament and Scottish Parliament in 2008. The report, Serving Scotland Better: Scotland and the United Kingdom in the 21st Century, was published in June 2009, and it recommended that further powers were devolved to the Scottish Ministers, and that the Scottish Parliament was given greater control over its finances. This Commission resulted in the passage of the Scotland Act 2012, which extended further powers to the Scottish Parliament, such as tax raising powers. However, with the SNP’s unprecedented majority in the Scottish Parliament election of 2011, the question of independence was brought to the forefront of Scottish politics. 

The 2014 Independence Referendum: A Once In a Generation Vote

As a result of the SNP’s victory in the 2011 election, First Minister (FM) Salmond announced that the Scottish Government wanted to hold an independence referendum. It was not clear whether the Scottish Parliament had the legislative competence to pass legislation to hold a referendum, and the government of David Cameron at Westminster was hesitant to permit the holding of such a referendum. However, the U.K. Government decided that the Scottish Parliament would be able to hold the referendum in an agreement between the Scottish and U.K. Governments known as the Edinburgh Agreement. As a result, the Scottish Independence Referendum Act 2013 was passed, giving the Scottish Parliament the power to hold a referendum and control how such a referendum would take place. The Scottish Independence Referendum (Franchise) Act 2013 set out who would be able to vote in the referendum. A simple majority in the referendum was all that was needed for Scotland to achieve independence. As the election date drew nearer, a “Yes” vote became a clear possibility. This prompted the U.K. Government and the unionist parties to come together and issue “the Vow,” which guaranteed that in the event of a “No” vote, the Scottish Parliament and Government would be made permanent institutions and further powers would be devolved to the Scottish Parliament. 55% voted “No” in the referendum, and 45% voted “Yes,” keeping Scotland in the Union. The Smith Commission, established by the U.K. Government because of the referendum results, worked to delegate further powers to the Scottish Parliament, resulting in the Scotland Act 2016. This Act devolved powers such as the devolution of tribunals in reserved areas, some social security powers, and the arrangements for elections to the Parliament of Scotland. 

Indyref2?

While both the Scottish and U.K. Governments stated they would abide by the referendum results, the SNP has continued its pursuit for Scottish independence. In 2016, the SNP called for a second independence referendum, known as indyref2, because the U.K. had voted to leave the European Union (EU). In Scotland, 62% of people voted “Remain” in the “Brexit” referendum, and, in 2014, the “No” campaign argued that Scottish membership in the EU was a result of the United Kingdom’s membership. The SNP argued that the U.K. was taking Scotland out of the EU against its will, and this, therefore, justified a second referendum. In 2022, the then FM Nicola Sturgeon proposed a date for another independence referendum: October 19, 2023. She wrote to Prime Minister Boris Johnson asking for an agreement similar to the Edinburgh Agreement in order for the Scottish Parliament to hold such a referendum, and the Prime Minister responded, rejecting the FM’s request. The Lord Advocate, Scotland’s highest law officer, referred the case to the United Kingdom Supreme Court (UKSC). On November 23, 2022, the UKSC issued a unanimous ruling stating that the Scottish Government is not able to  hold an independence referendum without the consent of the Westminster Government. Lord Reed, the president of the court, explained that the Scotland Act 1998, which created the Scottish Parliament a year later, reserved certain powers, such as the power to legislate on the constitution, to Westminster, and therefore, the Scottish Parliament could not hold an independence referendum without the approval of the U.K. Government. The UKSC also rejected the Scottish Government’s claim that an independence referendum would be advisory. The SNP planned to host a special conference in 2023 in order to decide how to move forward on the issue of independence. 

“Difficult Days”

Recent political events have made Scottish independence appear unlikely. Nicola Sturgeon resigned as the First Minister of Scotland after more than eight years in the role on February 15, 2023. Humza Yousaf was elected as leader of the SNP on March 27, and following the election, he promised that “We will be the generation that delivers independence for Scotland.” On March 28, Yousaf was confirmed as First Minister following a vote in the Scottish Parliament. FM Yousaf appointed Jamie Hepburn as the first “Minister for Independence” with responsibilities including “independence strategy.” A “difficult day” for the SNP turned into the SNP’s “biggest crisis in fifty years” in early April. Peter Murrell, former chief executive of the SNP and the husband of former FM Sturgeon, was arrested on April 5 in connection to a formal investigation into the SNP’s finances following complaints regarding how donations were used. He was released later that day. Murrell resigned as the SNP’s chief executive, a post he had held since 1999, in March after taking responsibility for misleading statements regarding a dip in party membership. Murrell and Sturgeon’s Glasgow home, as well as SNP headquarters, were also searched. Two days later, it was revealed that the SNP’s accountants had resigned after working with the party for a decade. In an interview with The Herald newspaper, SNP President Mike Russell stated, “I don’t think independence can be secured right now; we need to work towards some coordinated campaigning. But I think this is achievable.” With no clear path to independence and a party facing its biggest crisis in fifty years, Scottish independence remains doubtful.