ORIGINAL plans for devolution to Scotland included a House of Lords and single-party rule from Westminster. New documents unsealed from the National Archives today show discussions between Harold Wilson, then Labour Prime Minister, and his closest advisors about the need to slow down devolution to Scotland and Wales. They also detail how the Prime Minister thought Scotland was “a bit frightening”. The documents dating from 1974 and 1975, before the failed referendum of 1979, describe the establishment of a new constitution unit in Whitehall tasked with researching and preparing for the set-up of Scottish and Welsh assemblies. They detail the need to find “new accommodation” for the unit as well as hiring 24 staff to work on it, alongside other issues such as Lords reform and membership of the European Economic Community (EEC).
Donald Dewar, George Reid and David Steel are pictured at the official opening of the Scottish Parliament in 1999. Is further devolution the answer? GORDON Brown was a wonderful Chancellor. His ambition to be Prime Minister, however, overwhelmed him and unfortunately, like so many others before him, he was not up to that job when eventually he got it. Now it appears he is advising the present Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer on Scottish affairs ( Starmer to warn future of UK at risk without ‘real devolution’ , The Herald, December 21). His idea of some kind of enhanced devolution solving the party’s problems in Scotland is frankly preposterous. We want less devolution, not more.