In the United Kingdom, devolved matters are the areas of public policy where the Parliament of the United Kingdom has devolved its legislative power to the national assemblies of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, while reserved matters and excepted matters are the areas where the Parliament retains exclusive power to legislate. The devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have been granted power by the Parliament under their respective legislators in all areas except those which are reserved (or excepted in the case of Northern Ireland). However, because the Parliament acts with sovereign supremacy, it is still able to pass legislation for all parts of the United Kingdom, including in relation to devolved matters.

Devolution of powers within the United Kingdom

The devolution of powers are set out in three main acts legislated by the UK Parliament for each of the devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The acts also include subsequent amendments, which devolved further powers to the administrations: * Northern Ireland Act 1998 amended by the Northern Ireland Act 2006. * Scotland Act 1998 amended by the Scotland Act 2012 and the Scotland Act 2016. * Government of Wales Act 1998 amended by the Government of Wales Act 2006, the Wales Act 2014 and the Wales Act 2017 In Northern Ireland, the powers of the

Northern Ireland Assembly sco-ulster, Norlin Airlan Assemblie , legislature = 7th Northern Ireland Assembly, Seventh Assembly , coa_pic = File:NI_Assembly.svg , coa_res = 250px , house_type = Unicameralism, Unicameral , hou ...

do not cover reserved matters or excepted matters. In theory, reserved matters could be devolved at a later date, but excepted matters were not supposed to be considered for further devolution. In practice, the difference is minor as Parliament is responsible for all the powers on both lists and must give its consent to devolve them. In Scotland, a list of reserved matters is explicitly listed in the Scotland Act 1998 (and amended by the Scotland Acts of 2012 and 2016). Any matter not explicitly listed in the Act is implicitly devolved to the

Scottish Parliament The Scottish Parliament ( gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba ; sco, Scots Pairlament) is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. Located in the Holyrood area of the capital city, Edinburgh, it is frequently referred to by the metonym Holyro ...

. In Wales, a list of reserved matters is explicitly listed under the provisions of the Wales Act 2017. Any matter not explicitly listed in the Act is implicitly devolved to the

Senedd The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees certain taxes and scrutinises the Welsh Gove ...

. Before 2017, a list of matters was explicitly devolved to the then known National Assembly for Wales and any matter not listed in the Act was implicitly reserved to Westminster.

Devolution in Scotland and Wales

Map of Scotland within the United Kingdom

The devolution schemes in Scotland and Wales are set up in a similar manner. The Parliament of the United Kingdom has granted legislative power to the

and the

through the Scotland Act 1998 and the Government of Wales Act 2006 respectively. These Acts set out the matters still dealt with by the UK Government, referred to as ''reserved matters''. Anything ''not'' listed as a specific reserved matter in the Scotland Act or the Wales Act is devolved to that nation. However, the UK Parliament still has the power to legislate over devolved areas if it chooses. The legal ability of the Scottish Parliament or Senedd to legislate (its "legislative competence") on a matter is largely determined by whether it is reserved or not.

List of devolved matters

* agriculture,

fisheries Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life; or more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a. fishing ground). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farms, both ...

, forestry and rural development * culture * economic development * education and training * environment * fire and rescue services and promotion of fire safety *

food Food is any substance consumed by an organism for nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or fungal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals. The substance is inge ...

* health and health services * housing * justice and policing (in Scotland only) * local government * public administration * social welfare * sport and recreation * tourism * town and country planning * water and flood defence

List of reserved matters

Reserved matters are subdivided into two categories: General reservations and specific reservations. General reservations cover major issues which are always handled centrally by the Parliament in Westminster: * the Crown * the constitutional matters listed in Schedule 5 of the 1998 Act * the UK Parliament * registration and funding of

political parties A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or pol ...

* the making of peace or war * international relations and treaties * international development * international trade * the

Civil Service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

of the United Kingdom * defence * treason Additionally, in Wales, all matters concerning the single legal jurisdiction of England and Wales are reserved, including courts, tribunals, judges and legal proceedings. An exception allows the Senedd to create Wales-specific tribunals that are not concerned with reserved matters. Specific reservations cover policy areas which can only be regulated by Westminster, listed under 'heads': The reserved matters continue to be controversial in some quarters and there are certain conflicts or anomalies. For example, in Scotland, the funding of Scottish Gaelic television is controlled by the Scottish Government, but broadcasting is a reserved matter, and while energy is a reserved matter, planning permission for power stations is devolved.

Previously transferred matters in Wales

Prior to the passage of the Wales Act 2017, issues were only devolved if outlined in the Government of Wales Act 1998 or the Government of Wales Act 2006.

Government of Wales Act 1998

The Government of Wales Act 1998 lists the following fields to be transferred to the National Assembly for Wales: * agriculture, forestry,

and

* ancient monuments and historic buildings * culture (including museums, galleries and libraries) * economic development * education and training * the environment * health and health services * highways * housing * industry * local government *

social services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...

* sport and recreation * tourism * town and country planning * transport * water and flood defence * the Welsh language

Government of Wales Act 2006

The Government of Wales Act 2006 updated the list of fields, as follows: * agriculture,

, forestry and rural development * ancient monuments and historic buildings * culture * economic development * education and training * environment * fire and rescue services and promotion of fire safety *

* health and health services * highways and transport * housing * local government * the National Assembly for Wales * public administration * social welfare * sport and recreation * tourism * town and country planning * water and flood defence * the Welsh language Schedule 5 to the 2006 Act may be amended to add specific matters to the broad subject fields, thereby extending the legislative competence of the Assembly.

Devolution in Northern Ireland

Map of Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom

Government of Ireland Act 1920

Devolution in Northern Ireland was originally provided for in the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which stated that the Parliament of Northern Ireland could not make laws in the following main areas: * the Crown * the Union with England, Scotland and Wales * the making of peace or war * the

armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

* treaties or any relations with foreign states or dominions *

naturalization Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the in ...

* external trade * navigation (including merchant shipping) * submarine cables * wireless telegraphy * aerial navigation * lighthouses * currency * copyright This was the first practical example of devolution in the United Kingdom and followed three unsuccessful attempts to provide home rule for the whole island of Ireland: * Government of Ireland Bill 1886 * Government of Ireland Bill 1893 * Government of Ireland Act 1914 Irish unionists initially opposed home rule, but later accepted it for Northern Ireland, where they formed a majority. (The rest of the island became independent as what is now the Republic of Ireland.)

Direct rule

The Parliament of Northern Ireland was suspended on 30 March 1972 by the Northern Ireland (Temporary Provisions) Act 1972, with Stormont's legislative powers being transferred to the Queen in Council.

Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973

The Parliament of Northern Ireland was abolished outright by the Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973; legislative competence was conferred instead on the

. The 1973 Act set out a list of excepted matters (sch. 2) and "minimum" reserved matters (sch. 3). The new constitutional arrangements quickly failed, and the Assembly was suspended on 30 May 1974 having only passed two Measures.

Direct rule again

The Assembly was abolished under the Northern Ireland Act 1974, which transferred its law-making power to the Queen in Council once again. The 1974 framework of powers continued in place until legislative powers were transferred to the present

under the Northern Ireland Act 1998, following the Belfast Agreement of 10 April 1998.

Northern Ireland Act 1998

List of key excepted matters

Excepted matters are outlined in Schedule 2 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998: * the Crown * Parliament * international relations *

international development International development or global development is a broad concept denoting the idea that societies and countries have differing levels of economic or human development on an international scale. It is the basis for international classifications ...

* defence * weapons of mass destruction * honours * treason * immigration and nationality * taxation * national insurance * elections * currency *

national security National security, or national defence, is the security and defence of a sovereign state, including its citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of government. Originally conceived as protection against military atta ...

nuclear energy Nuclear energy may refer to: *Nuclear power, the use of sustained nuclear fission or nuclear fusion to generate heat and electricity * Nuclear binding energy, the energy needed to fuse or split a nucleus of an atom *Nuclear potential energy ...

* space

List of key reserved matters

Reserved matters are outlined in Schedule 3 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998: * navigation (including merchant shipping) * civil aviation * The foreshore, sea bed and

subsoil Subsoil is the layer of soil under the topsoil on the surface of the ground. Like topsoil, it is composed of a variable mixture of small particles such as sand, silt and clay, but with a much lower percentage of organic matter and humus, and it ...

and their natural resources * postal services * import and export controls, external trade * national minimum wage *

financial services Financial services are the Service (economics), economic services provided by the finance industry, which encompasses a broad range of businesses that manage money, including credit unions, banks, credit-card companies, insurance companies, acco ...

* financial markets * intellectual property * units of measurement * telecommunications, broadcasting, internet services * The National Lottery * xenotransplantation *

surrogacy Surrogacy is an arrangement, often supported by a legal agreement, whereby a woman agrees to delivery/labour for another person or people, who will become the child's parent(s) after birth. People may seek a surrogacy arrangement when pregnan ...

* human fertilisation and embryology * human genetics * consumer safety in relation to goods

Devolution of policing and justice

After the suspension of the Parliament of Northern Ireland, policing and justice powers transferred to the UK Parliament and were subsequently administered by the Northern Ireland Office within the UK Government. These powers were not devolved after the Belfast Agreement. The Hillsborough Castle Agreement on 5 February 2010 resulted in the following reserved powers being transferred to the

on 12 April 2010: *

criminal law Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It prescribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and moral welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal law i ...

policing The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...

* prosecution * public order * courts *

prisons A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correcti ...

and probation Some policing and justice powers remain reserved to Westminster: * the

prerogative of mercy In the English and British tradition, the royal prerogative of mercy is one of the historic royal prerogatives of the British monarch, by which they can grant pardons (informally known as a royal pardon) to convicted persons. The royal prerogat ...

in terrorism cases * drug classification * the Serious Organised Crime Agency * accommodation of

prisoners A prisoner (also known as an inmate or detainee) is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement, captivity, or forcible restraint. The term applies particularly to serving a prison sentence in a prison. ...

in separated conditions * parades * security of

explosives An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An expl ...

A number of policing and justice powers remain excepted matters and were not devolved. These include: * extradition (as an international relations matter) *

military justice Military justice (also military law) is the legal system (bodies of law and procedure) that governs the conduct of the active-duty personnel of the armed forces of a country. In some nation-states, civil law and military law are distinct bodie ...

(as a defence matter) * immigration *

(including intelligence services)

Parity

Northern Ireland has parity with Great Britain in three areas: * social security * child support *

pensions A pension (, from Latin ''pensiō'', "payment") is a fund into which a sum of money is added during an employee's employment years and from which payments are drawn to support the person's retirement from work in the form of periodic payments ...

Policy in these areas is technically devolved but, in practice, follows policy set by the Westminster Parliament to provide consistency across the United Kingdom.

References

External links

Legislation

* * * *

Official guidance (published by the Cabinet Office)

Devolution GuidanceDevolution settlement: ScotlandNorthern Ireland: What is Devolved?Wales: What is Devolved?

Analysis

Constitution Unit, University College LondonDevolution and Constitutional Change Programme
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reserved And Excepted Matters Government of the United Kingdom Government of Scotland Government of Northern Ireland Government of Wales Constitution of the United Kingdom Devolution in the United Kingdom