The Royal Commission on Local Government in Scotland, usually called the Wheatley Commission or the Wheatley Report (Cmnd. 4150), was published in September 1969 by the chairmanship of
Lord Wheatley. Its recommendations led to a new system of
regional
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...
and district councils, introduced in 1975 by the
Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973
The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c. 65) is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom that altered local government in Scotland on 16 May 1975.
The Act followed and largely implemented the report of the Royal Commission on Local Gove ...
.
Background
By the 1960s there was general agreement that the system of
local government in Scotland
Local government in Scotland comprises thirty-two local authorities, commonly referred to as councils. Each council provides public services, including education, social care, waste management, libraries and planning. Councils receive the majori ...
was in need of reform. There were more than four hundred local authorities: 33 county councils (4 of which were paired as "joint county councils" for most purposes), 4 county of city corporations, 197 town councils (administering 21
large burgh
Large burgh was a type of municipal structure in Scotland, which existed from 1930 to 1975.
In 1930, the Scottish burghs were split into two types, large and small burghs. The councils of large burghs had more responsibilities and power than ...
s and 176
small burghs) and 196 district councils.
[ These structures had mainly been introduced in the late 19th century, and were largely based on units that dated back to the ]Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
. There was also no clear division of functions between counties, burghs and districts.[
The ]Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
government published a white paper
A white paper is a report or guide that informs readers concisely about a complex issue and presents the issuing body's philosophy on the matter. It is meant to help readers understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision. A white paper ...
in June 1963 entitled ''The Modernisation of Local Government in Scotland'' (Cmnd.2067). They proposed a reduction in the number of units by the amalgamation of existing authorities. The number of counties would be reduced to between 10 and 15, and they would be given responsibility for major services such as police, education and water supply. Below the counties would be a second tier of councils (which were not named) formed by merging burghs and districts exercising powers over purely local services. It was envisaged that these council areas would have a population of not less than 40,000. The four counties of cities would continue as unitary authorities
A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...
with enlarged boundaries where appropriate.
Following a change of government, William Ross, the Secretary of State for Scotland
The secretary of state for Scotland ( gd, Rùnaire Stàite na h-Alba; sco, Secretar o State fir Scotland), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the Unit ...
in the new Labour Party administration, indicated in March 1965 that he did not intend to follow the policy of his predecessor. In February 1966 the Prime Minister, Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, (11 March 1916 – 24 May 1995) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from October 1964 to June 1970, and again from March 1974 to April 1976. He ...
, announced to the Commons
The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons ...
that a royal commission would be appointed to review local administration in Scotland.
Membership of the commission
The royal commission was appointed in May 1966, and had nine members:
*Lord Wheatley, former Solicitor General for Scotland
, body =
, insignia = Crest of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg
, insigniasize = 110px
, image = File:Official Portrait of Ruth Charteris QC.png
, incumbent = Ruth Charteris KC
, incumbentsince = 22 June 2021
, department = Crown Office and ...
and Lord Advocate
, body =
, insignia = Crest of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg
, insigniasize = 110px
, image = File:Official Portrait of Dorothy Bain QC.png
, incumbent = Dorothy Bain KC
, incumbentsince = 22 June 2021
, appointer = Monarch on the advice ...
, Labour Party member of parliament for Edinburgh East
Edinburgh East is a burgh constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
In present form, the constituency was first used at t ...
1947 – 1954.
*Betty Harvie Anderson
Margaret Betty Harvie Anderson, Baroness Skrimshire of Quarter, (12 August 1913 – 7 November 1979) was a British Conservative Party politician. She was the first woman to become a Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, which she served as ...
, Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
MP for East Renfrewshire
East Renfrewshire ( sco, Aest Renfrewshire; gd, Siorrachd Rinn Friù an Ear) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. Until 1975, it formed part of the county of Renfrewshire for local government purposes along with the modern council areas of ...
and a former member of Stirling County Council.
*Henry Ballantyne, chairman and managing director of Ballantyne's Knitwear, and a member of the Scottish Economic Planning Council and a former provost of Innerleithen
Innerleithen ( gd, Inbhir Leitheann) is a civil parish and a small town in the committee area of Tweeddale, in the Scottish Borders. It was formerly in the historic county of Peeblesshire or Tweeddale.
Etymology
The name "Innerleithen" comes ...
.
* Thomas Fraser, Labour MP for Hamilton Hamilton may refer to:
People
* Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname
** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland
** Lord Hamilt ...
and former Secretary of State for Transport
The Secretary of State for Transport, also referred to as the transport secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the policies of the Department for Transport. The incumbent i ...
.
*Ames Lyell Imrie, City Chamberlain of Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
.
*Russell Johnston
David Russell Russell-Johnston, Baron Russell-Johnston (born David Russell Johnston; 28 July 1932 – 27 July 2008), usually known as Russell Johnston, was a leading Scottish Liberal Democrat politician and was the Leader of the Scottish Libera ...
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
MP for Inverness
Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...
.
*James McBoyle, vice-president of the Royal Institute of Public Administration
The Royal Institute of Public Administration (RIPA) was a British professional public service institution and civil service training organisation that operated in the United Kingdom and overseas from its founding in 1922 to its closure in 1992.Shel ...
and former county clerk for Midlothian
Midlothian (; gd, Meadhan Lodainn) is a historic county, registration county, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh, ...
.
*H T MacCalman, Chairman of the Clyde Valley
The River Clyde ( gd, Abhainn Chluaidh, , sco, Clyde Watter, or ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde in Scotland. It is the ninth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third-longest in Scotland. It runs through the major cit ...
Regional Planning Committee, senior partner in a Glasgow legal firm and an ex-member of Glasgow Corporation
The politics of Glasgow, Scotland's largest city by population, are expressed in the deliberations and decisions of Glasgow City Council, in elections to the council, the Scottish Parliament and the UK Parliament.
Local government
As one o ...
*Patrick Connor, regional officer for Scotland for the Amalgamated Engineering Union
The Amalgamated Engineering Union (AEU) was a major United Kingdom, British trade union. It merged with the Electrical, Electronic, Telecommunications and Plumbing Union to form the Amalgamated Engineering and Electrical Union in 1992.
History
...
and member of the Scottish Economic Planning Council.
Evidence heard
The Commission heard evidence from a number of interested parties. There was general agreement that there needed to be a reduction in the number of local authorities, and that a new two-tier structure should be formed. Among the bodies that gave evidence were:
*The National Association of Local Government Officers
The National and Local Government Officers' Association was a British trade union representing mostly local government "white collar" workers. It was formed in 1905 as the National Association of Local Government Officers, and changed its full ...
suggested a system of five regional councils and 60 local councils. The regions would have responsibility for education and social welfare, with other services provided at the local level. The councils would be empowered to levy a local income tax to finance their activities. There should also be a permanent local government advisory council, with the duty of reviewing the structures and functions of the authorities on an ongoing basis. An ombudsman
An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...
should also be appointed to address disputes.
*The Confederation of British Industry
The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) is a UK business organisation, which in total claims to speak for 190,000 businesses, this is made up of around 1,500 direct members and 188,500 non-members. The non members are represented through the 1 ...
also supported a two-tier structure.
*The Council of Scottish Chambers of Commerce envisaged the new upper tier having responsibility for major services such as police, fire services, planning and education. They stressed the importance of maintaining a number of independent police forces in Scotland, rejecting a centralised system as "undesirable and even dangerous".
The report
The commission published its report on 25 September 1969. In the report it was recognised that were four levels of community in Scotland:
*The ''region''
*The ''district'' or ''shire''
*The ''locality'' (of which there were 100 to 150)
*The ''parish'' (of which there were about 800)
Division of functions
The majority of the commissioners, as expected, recommended a two-tier structure, split between the regional and district level. However, they also suggested that the locality and parish levels could be given a "voice". This would be done by regional authorities choosing to establish "local committees" and by the creation of non-statutory community council
A community council is a public representative body in Great Britain.
In England they may be statutory parish councils by another name, under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, or they may be non-statutory bodies. In ...
s where there was demand. Community councils might be permitted to operate some local services on an agency basis on behalf of district or regional councils.
Regions were to have powers over major planning, social services, housing, police and education; districts over local planning, planning applications, building control, libraries and licensing.[
]
Membership and finance
All members of the proposed councils were to be directly elected, with a four-year term of office. It would be permissible to be a member of both a regional and district council, but an employee of the authority would be ineligible for election. There was to be no upper age limit for candidates. Elections were to be held every two years at either the regional or district level. Councillors were to receive payment for their services, as it was felt that local representatives often made considerable financial sacrifices, and there was no allowance for secretarial or administration costs. Both levels of council were to levy taxes to fund their activities, as this would make them more directly accountable to their electorates.[
]
Local government areas
The report divided Scotland into seven regions, subdivided into thirty-seven districts. They are described in the table below in terms of the existing counties
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
and counties of cities.[
]
Minority report
Two members of the commission (Anderson and Johnston) dissented on the number of districts that should be created and on the division of powers, feeling that local planning should be a regional function and that the second tier should be formed at the "locality" level with as many as 101 authorities.
They also felt that Shetland, Orkney and the Western Isles should have a special status between that of region and district.
Reaction and subsequent legislation
Following the publication of the report there was a twelve-week period in which the existing local authorities could give their response. The report was debated in the House of Commons on 14 October 1969. The Secretary of State stated that following the receipt of the councils' observations the government would produce a white paper with final decisions on structures, boundaries and functions.[
Following the 1970 general election the Conservatives returned to power, and in February 1971 produced a white paper ''Reform of Local Government in Scotland'' (Cmnd. 4583). This broadly accepted the report's recommendations but increased the number of regions to eight by separating the ]Borders
A border is a geographical boundary.
Border, borders, The Border or The Borders may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* ''Border'' (1997 film), an Indian Hindi-language war film
* ''Border'' (2018 Swedish film), ...
from the South East region. There were some changes in regional boundaries while the districts of Shetland and Orkney were to become "special areas", with the Highlands and Islands region renamed "Highlands". The number of remaining districts was increased by 14 from 35 to 49.
Local authorities were asked to make their observations on the proposals by 30 April 1971.
On 22 December 1971 the Secretary of State, Gordon Campbell
Gordon Muir Campbell, (born January 12, 1948) is a retired Canadian diplomat and politician who was the 35th mayor of Vancouver from 1986 to 1993 and the 34th premier of British Columbia from 2001 to 2011.
He was the leader of the British Co ...
, made a parliamentary statement outlining the government's response to the observations received.
The main points that had been raised were:
*The West Region was too large.
*Residents of Fife, which was divided between three regions, wanted it to form a separate region.
*The Western Isles comprising Lewis
Lewis may refer to:
Names
* Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name
* Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname
Music
* Lewis (musician), Canadian singer
* "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...
, Harris
Harris may refer to:
Places Canada
* Harris, Ontario
* Northland Pyrite Mine (also known as Harris Mine)
* Harris, Saskatchewan
* Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316, Saskatchewan
Scotland
* Harris, Outer Hebrides (sometimes called the Isle of ...
, the Uists and Barra
Barra (; gd, Barraigh or ; sco, Barra) is an island in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland, and the second southernmost inhabited island there, after the adjacent island of Vatersay to which it is connected by a short causeway. The island is name ...
should be a special area with status similar to Orkney and Shetland.
The government accepted the formation of a Western Isles islands area, but rejected the creation of a Fife region. The number of districts on the mainland were to be unchanged, although there were 19 changes to district boundaries, including the transfer of
Newport, Tayport and adjacent parishes transferred from Dundee district to North Fife. In addition there were to be six changes to regional boundaries. The number and boundaries of the new authorities were confirmed in a circular, along with suggested names. Among changes to regional names were Forth (South East), Strathclyde (West) Dumfries and Galloway (South West).
The Local Government (Scotland) Bill was introduced to the Commons on 17 November 1972. During the passage of the Bill through parliament a number of changes were made:
*Fife became a separate region.
*The Forth region, having lost an area to the new Fife region was renamed Lothian.
*Strathclyde was increased in size.
*The number of districts in Strathclyde was increased from 13 to 19: 4 were broken off from Glasgow District, while 2 were formed in Ayrshire.
*There were a number of boundary changes to districts.
The Bill received the royal assent
Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in other ...
on 25 October 1973, and on 16 May 1975 the system of nine regions, 53 districts and 3 islands areas came into existence.
References
{{Authority control
Geography of Scotland
History of local government in Scotland
British Royal Commissions
1966 establishments in Scotland
1969 disestablishments
Government agencies established in 1966
Scottish commissions and inquiries