Constitutional Change, Social Investment and Prevention Policy in Scotland

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Cairney ◽  
Malcolm Harvey ◽  
Emily St Denny
Keyword(s):  
Government Policy ◽  
Constitutional Change ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Policy Agenda ◽  
Social Investment ◽  
Prevention Policy ◽  
Social Democratic ◽  
Service Demand ◽  
Scottish Government ◽  
Scottish Independence

The prospect of Scottish independence allowed commentators the chance to reconsider the Scottish Government’s social policy choices. The idea of ‘social investment’ grew in importance since it fits well with the vague notion that Scottish independence is a social democratic project, offering an alternative to ‘austerity politics’ and ‘neoliberalism’. It also complements an existing Scottish Government agenda to reduce inequalities and address its decreasing budget by reducing acute public service demand through ‘early intervention’ and ‘prevention’ policies. However, this chapter identifies a limited impact of such developments on government policy. Social investment is rarely properly defined, and prevention often describes a broad aspiration rather than a specific policy agenda. Policymakers are pursuing a vague solution to an unclear problem. This chapter discusses how key actors can take forward this agenda, to learn from international experience and from domestic experiments with ‘evidence based policymaking’.

scholarly journals Making politics educational: the experience of the Scottish referendum on independence

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 163 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jim Crowther
Keyword(s):  
Political Process ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Constitutional Change ◽  
Ordinary People ◽  
Opting Out ◽  
Mainstream Media ◽  
Scottish Government ◽  
Scottish Independence ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Unusual Situation

<p class="Body1">In 2014 the issue of constitutional change in the UK brought about by an agreement between the UK and Scottish Government, for a referendum on Scottish independence, created the motivation for widespread political engagement with the formal political process. Scottish citizens – including newly enfranchised 16 and 17 year olds – were debating, discussing and disagreeing about opting out of one of the world’s richest countries. This was an unusual situation and one that nearly happened despite a hostile corporate, political and mainstream media response to the demand for independence. It would be a mistake, however, to assume that this movement for change was the result of narrow-minded nationalism. Although the Referendum result was that Scotland should remain in the UK the process also produced widespread politicization of ordinary people. The cultural politics of communities had engaged with the political culture of the state and the dialectic between the two generated educational experiences and opened up new political possibilities.</p><div><p class="Body1"> </p></div>

The Role of Threat and Economic Uncertainty in Support for Scottish Independence

2014 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Kopasker
Keyword(s):  
Economic Consequences ◽  
Perceived Threat ◽  
Constitutional Change ◽  
Lack Of Information ◽  
Economic Expectations ◽  
Scottish Independence ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Levels Of Support

Existing research has consistently shown that perceptions of the potential economic consequences of Scottish independence are vital to levels of support for constitutional change. This paper attempts to investigate the mechanism by which expectations of the economic consequences of independence are formed. A hypothesised causal micro-level mechanism is tested that relates constitutional preferences to the existing skill investments of the individual. Evidence is presented that larger skill investments are associated with a greater likelihood of perceiving economic threats from independence. Additionally, greater perceived threat results in lower support for independence. The impact of uncertainty on both positive and negative economic expectations is also examined. While uncertainty has little effect on negative expectations, it significantly reduces the likelihood of those with positive expectations supporting independence. Overall, it appears that a general economy-wide threat is most significant, and it is conjectured that this stems a lack of information on macroeconomic governance credentials.

The ‘Modernisation’ of Scotland and its Impact on Glasgow, 1955–1979: ‘Unwanted Side Effects’ and Vulnerabilities

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 294-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chik Collins ◽  
Ian Levitt
Keyword(s):  
Side Effects ◽  
Government Policy ◽  
Regional Policy ◽  
Excess Mortality ◽  
Policy Agenda ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Uk Government ◽  
1960S And 1970S ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
The Impact

This article reports findings of research into the far-reaching plan to ‘modernise’ the Scottish economy, which emerged from the mid-late 1950s and was formally adopted by government in the early 1960s. It shows the growing awareness amongst policy-makers from the mid-1960s as to the profoundly deleterious effects the implementation of the plan was having on Glasgow. By 1971 these effects were understood to be substantial with likely severe consequences for the future. Nonetheless, there was no proportionate adjustment to the regional policy which was creating these understood ‘unwanted’ outcomes, even when such was proposed by the Secretary of State for Scotland. After presenting these findings, the paper offers some consideration as to their relevance to the task of accounting for Glasgow's ‘excess mortality’. It is suggested that regional policy can be seen to have contributed to the accumulation of ‘vulnerabilities’, particularly in Glasgow but also more widely in Scotland, during the 1960s and 1970s, and that the impact of the post-1979 UK government policy agenda on these vulnerabilities is likely to have been salient in the increase in ‘excess mortality’ evident in subsequent years.

Moving an Evidence-Based Policy Agenda Forward: Leadership Tips From the Field

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 158-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teresa Garrett
Keyword(s):  
Change Process ◽  
Nursing Profession ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Policy Agenda ◽  
Policy Changes ◽  
The Public ◽  
Leverage Point ◽  
Evidence Based Policy ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Improve Health

Advancing evidence-based policy change is a leadership challenge that nurses should embrace. Key tips to ensure that evidence-based policy changes are successful at the individual, community, and population levels are offered to help nurses through the change process. The public trust in the nursing profession is a leverage point that should be used to advance the use of evidence, expedite change, and improve health for students and across communities.

scholarly journals GLOBAL MANAGEMENT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: SUCCESS OR FAILURE?

2021 ◽  
Vol 228 (2) ◽  
pp. 82-97
Author(s):  
LANE DAVID ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Government Policy ◽  
Government Policies ◽  
Reserve Capacity ◽  
Skilled Workers ◽  
Healthcare Facilities ◽  
Social Democratic ◽  
Global Management ◽  
State Management ◽  
Policy Failure ◽  
Better Than

The paper summarises the extent and incidence of the Covid-19 pandemic and evaluates government policies in different countries. The consequences of lock-down policy are discussed. The most negatively affected groups of the population are the low-skilled workers and self-employed. Psychological welfare has seriously declined and provision of health services have deteriorated. Population density, age structure and state management strongly influence the spread and containment of the disease. State coordinated economies and social-democratic countries have managed the effects of the disease better than market coordinated economies, though there are important exceptions. A failure of some governments to provide sufficient reserve capacity of healthcare facilities indicates government policy failure. The paper suggests that a more focused policy of social isolation of people susceptible to coronavirus with less stringent lockdown measures would have significantly reduced social costs and increased public health benefits.

Getting to a Wealthier and Fairer Scotland

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Keating ◽  
Robert Liñeira
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Public Services ◽  
Public Spending ◽  
Social Investment ◽  
Division Of Powers ◽  
Scottish Government

Scotland has some of the prerequisites for a social investment state. Yet the division of powers between the Scottish and UK levels in relation to taxation and welfare is not optimal. The Scottish Government has reformed its policy-making structures but still has shortcomings in planning for the long term. While public opinion in Scotland supports spending on public services from which citiziens benefit, it is only slightly more favourable to redistribution than in England. The experience of other counrties shows that citizens will support public spending and the resultant taxes if they know that they will get good services.

Epilogue

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Hearn
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Constitutional Change ◽  
Social Changes ◽  
Political Events ◽  
Scottish Independence ◽  
The Uk

The epilogue pulls back from the study presented to place it in the context of general patterns of national identity and recent and on going constitutional change in the UK. It explores how this case study relates to recent political events that have happened since the time of fieldwork, including the Scottish Independence Referendum of 2014, the UK Brexit Referendum of 2016, and the changing compositions of party systems in Scotland and the UK as a whole. It suggests that these events, like the formation of HBOS and its crisis, reflect deep and rapid economic, political and social changes, and illustrate the human struggle to make sense of and act towards an often imponderable future.

Conclusion: Revisiting the Prevention Puzzle

2020 ◽  
pp. 221-240
Author(s):  
Paul Cairney ◽  
Emily St Denny
Keyword(s):  
Policy Outcomes ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Prevention Policy ◽  
Political Will ◽  
Policy Problem ◽  
New Generation

Prevention is the ultimate example of a policy problem with an intuitively appealing, but ultimately elusive, solution. There is a profound gap between policymaker expectations and policy outcomes. Governments describe a high commitment to radical changes in prevention policy and preventive policymaking, but fail to deliver. We reject the idea that this puzzle can be explained primarily with reference to insincere politics or low political will. The danger with such conclusions is that they encourage a cycle of failure. Each new generation of policymakers will think that it will perform differently, and make a difference, simply because it exhibits high and sincere commitment. Or, each new generation of advocates will think that they just have to get the evidence, strategy, and language right, to inspire politicians to make the kinds of ‘evidence-based’ decisions whose value they take for granted. Advocates will struggle to understand their failure to close an ‘evidence–policy gap’, and policymakers will fall into the same basic trap that we describe in this chapter. Instead, our explanation helps policymakers and practitioners solve the puzzle of prevention policy by facing up to its ever-present challenges.

After the Scottish Independence Referendum

2019 ◽  
pp. 275-291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Tierney
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Constitutional Change ◽  
National Party ◽  
Constitutional Democracy ◽  
Parliamentary Elections ◽  
Scottish National Party ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Scottish Independence ◽  
Independent Country

This chapter examines the independence referendum in Scotland, held on September 18, 2014, and its implications for the federal direction of the United Kingdom. The referendum saw 55 percent of Scots say “No” to the question: “Should Scotland be an Independent Country?”. Despite this result, the referendum has sparked a further process of decentralization. The chapter first describes the context that led to the Scottish independence referendum, focusing in particular on the success of the Scottish National Party (SNP) in the parliamentary elections of May 2011 and why the referendum emerged from—and was organized within—the normal contours of constitutional democracy. It then considers the period of constitutional engagement and the outcome of the referendum before concluding with an analysis of some of the lessons that can be drawn from it with regard to constitutional change and the issue of secession.

Scottish government launches fresh independence push

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Intent To Stay ◽  
National Party ◽  
Single Issue ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Migrant Communities ◽  
Scottish National Party ◽  
Scottish Parliament ◽  
Scottish Government ◽  
Scottish Independence ◽  
European Family

Subject Scottish independence drive. Significance Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon launched a fresh independence drive on April 28. Speaking at the spring conference of her Scottish National Party (SNP) in Edinburgh, she said it was “Scotland’s intent to stay part of the European family of nations”. The conference saw delegates back plans for an independent Scottish currency, the declaration of a climate emergency and the establishment of a non-party Citizens’ Assembly to generate debate about Scotland’s future. Impacts The SNP’s anti-Brexit stance and efforts to help EU citizens will bolster migrant communities’ support for both the party and independence. A major non-party, grassroots march in Glasgow on May 4 kicked off a new programme of demonstrations to raise independence support. The 20-year anniversary of the opening of the Scottish Parliament in July will drive further debate and reflection on Scotland’s future. Unionist parties will focus increasingly on the single issue of rejecting independence to galvanise their support.

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