Redesigning Democracy: The Making of the Welsh Assembly

by Kevin Morgan, Geoff Mungham

In making this narrative, the authors have carried out extensive interviews with key figures in Welsh political life and have drawn on a wide range of published and unpublished materials on the making of the Welsh Assembly. Redesigning Democracy weaves together two important political stories, the long and often derisive campaign for a Welsh Assembly, and the previously untold story of the devolution battle inside the Labour Party, from the 1997 referendum through to the fall of Alum Michael. The book is also about twenty-first century British politics, as seen through the prism of Wales, showing the value of viewing the whole from the periphery. In the new era of democratic devolution, the UK needs to step beyond the metropolitan provincialism which infects Westminster's world view.

246 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2000

About the author

Kevin Morgan is an Australian author and researcher renowned for his investigative work into historical legal injustices. His notable book, "Gun Alley: Murder, Lies and Failure of Justice," delves into the 1921 wrongful conviction and execution of Colin Campbell Ross for the murder of 12-year-old Alma Tirtschke in Melbourne. Morgan's meticulous research played a pivotal role in posthumously pardoning Ross in 2008, marking Australia's first pardon of a judicially executed individual.
Beyond "Gun Alley," Morgan has authored several other works, including a biography of Ramsay MacDonald, reflecting his diverse interests and commitment to uncovering historical truths.

Reviews

[Alasdair MacCaluim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Redesigning Democracy is a great introduction to the Welsh home rule movement and to the successful referendum campaign back in 1997, looking mainly at the issue within the Labour Party. After a potted history of home rule campaigns in the late nineteenth, and early twentieth century and the Labour Party's movement away from home rule in the 20s and 30s, it goes on to look at the foundation of Plaid Cymru and the growing movement for devolution in the 1960s and 70s.

Following the strong defeat of a Welsh Assembly in the 1979 referendum, the reasons for the growth in support for devolution is discussed, Thatcherism, the Miners' Strike, factory and pit closures and the growth of quangos being key factors.

While appetite was growing amongst the Welsh public, as Morgan points out, there was still strong division within the Labour party on the issue which made it more difficult to get devolution on the table in the first place, for a form of devolution to be agreed and to get it through the all important referendum in 1997.

In Scotland, there was a decisive vote to establish a Scottish Parliament on 11 September 1997 but in Wales, just one week later, the vote was very close indeed. What was the difference? There were many reasons, but a key factor identified by Morgan is that there was no equivalent to the Scottish Constitutional Convention where various parties and civic society groups got together to work up and publicise devolution proposals meaning that there was more or less an "off the shelf" blueprint to start working from. In Wales, this simply didn't happen meaning that the proposals had to be put together rather quickly in a situation where the main political party was deeply divided on the issue and where there was a lower level of public awareness of what was being proposed.

The book then goes on to look at the aftermath of the referendum, looking at the Labour leadership race and choosing of candidates, and the first election before looking at the first year or so of the Assembly's operation. The author is concerned about the legitimacy and public perceptions of the National Assembly given the closeness of the referendum and what he sees as a lacklustre performance in its first year of operation. In hindsight, he seems to be unduly worried as seen by the strong Yes vote in the 2011 referendum in Wales and the Senedd becoming a Parliament.

All in all, this is an interesting book, though perhaps some of the analysis about the performance of the Assembly in its first session has been overtaken by events.

One fascinating thing I learned through the book is the origin of the fact that Government proposals for devolution in the 1970s were for legislative devolution for Scotland but executive devolution for Wales. According to Morgan, the Labour Party in Scotland and in Wales were asked to agree devolution proposals. Legislative devolution proposals were put forward by the Welsh party for Wales. In Scotland, however, the Labour Party came out against devolution at all and the Welsh party were therefore encouraged to water down their proposals. Subsequently, however, their colleagues in Scotland changed their mind, and decided to support a legislative assembly for Scotland after all.

It's interesting to speculate whether a more powerful legislative assembly would have fared better or worse in the 1979 referendum than the executive assembly on offer did!