Devolution vs Federalism; the UK vs the US. The UK and the US have different ways of running their countries. The US government is characterised by federalism, whilst the UK has devolved powers. But what exactly do we mean by this? What are the similarities and differences between the two? Let's find out!
Before reading this explanation, be sure to take a look at the separate explanations on Devolution and US Federalism for more.
Federalism and devolution of power
Federalism and devolution are pretty big words. So let's define what it means when we are talking about federalism and the devolution of power.
What is federalism?
Federalism is a system whereby two levels of power exist. There is a national governing body, that governs a larger area. Then, in smaller areas (like states), there are other governing bodies. Typically, federalism is seen in countries that have bigger populations; Germany, the UAE, and the US offer more famous examples.
Federalism in the US
In the US, Federalism means that state governments can make their own laws, and these are protected by the US Constitution, alongside every state’s laws being equal to each other. Yet, the Federal government still exists, creating the idea of dual sovereignty.
The US Constitution is the laws of the nation of the United States.
Dual sovereignty is when two sovereign powers exist. In the context of the US, this is the Federal Government and each individual state government.
The Federal Level (US Congress) is in charge of higher-level issues, such as going to war, whilst states may make decisions about things like the death penalty or abortion.
The founding fathers believed this was a way in which power was not centred on a single source, but rather, decentralised. As a result, federalism has become a very important concept within US politics.
Fig. 1 - Each state in the United States of America has its own governing body.
What is the devolution of power?
Not every country follows the pathway of federalism like the United States. Some countries follow the process of devolution.
Devolution is a system whereby centralised power is moved to a regional or local level. This creates devolved governments.
Does the UK have devolved powers?
The UK is a textbook example of devolution. In the 1990s, the parliament of Westminster moved or devolved its powers to Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The UK government also has devolved powers within England, with different cities having mayorship and other responsibilities. The different countries within the UK have their own parliament and leader (first ministers of their country). For example, Nicola Sturgeon is the current First Minister of Scotland. The UK government overall, however, still has national authoritative power over things like defence or immigration, for example.
Fig. 2 - Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish First Minister
Devolved government meaning
When discussing devolution, the term devolved government may appear. A devolved government is a result of the process of devolution. In the UK, the devolved governments are:
- The Scottish Parliament
- The Welsh Assembly
- The Northern Ireland Assembly
- Devolved powers within England e.g., The Greater London Assembly.
Fig. 3 - map of UK devolution. Red is England, Yellow is Wales, Green is Northern Ireland, and Blue is Scotland. This is where the devolved governments of the UK are seen.
Federalism and devolution differences
So, devolution vs federalism? What are the differences between the two? Let's explore how federalism and devolution are different from each other.
Power
In the US context, federalism applies to all 50 states in America. This was written in the constitution by the Founding Fathers to ensure there is no centralisation of power. Therefore, since the establishment of America, there has always been a defined separation of powers between the State Government and the Federal Government. So, in general, federalism can be seen to be much more powerful than devolution; different states have the independent authority to deal with particular policies, for example, the death penalty is still practised in some states but forbidden in others. This is all protected by a codified and entrenched constitution.
It is important to note, all decisions made by the US Supreme Court apply to all states. The US Supreme Court is the highest legal court in the US, upholding the Constitution and the laws of the whole nation.
The UK has what is called asymmetrical devolution; this means that the different devolved nations have different amounts of power. This can be exampled by devolved power and reserved power. Devolved power is when the UK government's power is given to the devolved nation. Reserved powers are those still upheld by the UK government. A great example is the Police; in Scotland and Northern Ireland, policing policies are devolved, whereas, in Wales, it is reserved. These differences of power have caused tensions; the call for Scottish Independence represents this. It is also important to note that devolution was established solely through the legislature. Therefore, it is not entrenched and easily amendable.
Rules
The United States has its own constitution (governing laws of the country), whereas there are no particular rules or guidance that the UK government must follow in relation to its devolved powers. In the US federal system, power for each of the states is protected by law. In the devolved UK, the UK government can essentially involve itself in anything in each of the devolved nations.
The Sewel Convention requires the UK government to receive consent to be involved in matters of the devolved governments. This means that if the UK government wants to be involved, the Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, and Northern Ireland Assembly must consent to this. It was officially recognised by the Scotland Act in 2016, and the Wales Act in 2017. However, it is not legally binding, meaning it is merely recognised, and can generally be bypassed by the UK government. In reality, though, this could also be limited; the UK government actually has less political power, since the government answers to the people (through general elections). If the UK government wanted to entirely remove devolution, they probably wouldn't succeed, due to public unpopularity.
A constitutional Amendment would be needed if federalism were to be removed. On the other hand, devolution only exists because the UK government has effectively allowed it to occur.
A Constitutional Amendment is a change in the US Constitution. If an amendment is proposed, 75% of the states would have to agree.
New or old?
Federalism is relatively deep-rooted and can be traced as far back as the founding of the United States and the 10th Amendment. In comparison, devolution in the UK is a new concept, really only coming into effect in the UK in the 1990s.
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.1
- The Tenth Amendment, 1791
Federalism and devolution similarities
Federalism and devolution could be confused, as they do have quite a few similarities. Let's explore these.
Individuality
In general, both systems allow for policies to reflect specific regions, instead of a whole country policy. This means that local traditions, practices and viewpoints, can be embedded and will appeal to the citizens of the particular state. In addition, it is a way in which the power and responsibility of politics would be shared amongst smaller communities instead of having one body that makes rules on the general opinion of millions. In the US, we can see this in nearly all areas of politics such as public services, health laws, taxes and election systems and this does vary from state to state.
For example, in the southern states of America, there are stricter laws on abortion yet more relaxed laws on gun rights, and this could be because the citizens from those particular states are in favour of these, and have political ideologies and social viewpoints. In the UK, Scotland has a much more liberal government (the Scottish National Party), whereas England has a much more Conservative government, for example.
Federalism has been seen to have widened its boundaries by also being involved in policies such as education, which were usually traditionally made by the government. This is similar to the UK, where a devolved nation like Scotland has the power to decide their education system; they have exams known as ‘National’, ‘Highers’ and ‘Advanced Highers’, which are completely different to the exams taken in England, like GCSEs or A Levels.
Structure
Both federalism in the US and devolution in the UK have similar structures. They both have two forms of governance; the national or federal governing body, and then the devolved governments of the UK are similar to the governing bodies of the states in the US.
In reality, they are similar. Interestingly, it has been said that the UK has become quasi-federal. Since devolution occurred, more power and policy are being given to the devolved nations. This means that the UK's devolution is starting to become more similar to the federalism seen in the United States.
Federalism vs Devolution - Key takeaways
- Federalism is a system in the US where state governments can make their own laws, which are protected by the US constitution. The Federal Government still exists (US Congress), which deals with national issues.
- Devolution is a system in the UK, whereby the different countries within the UK have their own parliament and leader, yet the UK parliament still has authority.
- There are many differences between federalism and devolution; federalism is considered as being more powerful than devolution, it is protected by law and is significantly older.
- On the other hand, there are similarities between the two; they both allow states and nations to reflect different identities and make individual decisions.
- Devolution has also been described as quasi-federalism, due to the growing similarities.
References
- The Tenth Amendment, Constitution of the United States, 1791.
- Fig. 1: state map of the US (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Map_of_USA_with_state_names_2.svg) by Wapcaplet (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Wapcaplet) with recent edits by Andrew c (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Andrew_c), Licensed by CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/).
- Fig. 2: Nicola Sturgeon (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Minister_-_Reform_Scotland_20_years_of_devolution_speech_(48088469103).jpg) by Scottish Government (https://www.flickr.com/people/26320652@N02) Licensed by CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/).
- Fig. 3: UK map dividing the nations (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Uk_map_home_nations.png), by UKPhoenix79 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:UKPhoenix79), Licensed by CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/).
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Three examples of federalism are Germany, the UAE and the US.