The Impact Of Devolution On Civil Society In Post Devolution Wales

Devolution, or home rule, is the transfer of power from a more centralized form of government to one that is of a local or regional nature. This book-length study examines the impact of the devolution from British rule on Welsh civil society during the Welsh Assembly's first term, from 1999 to 2003. Comprehensive theoretical examination is paired with case-based research in order to discuss the relationship between civil society, democracy, and national identity, and to question whether civil society contributes to promoting a stronger sense of Welsh national identity--essential reading for all those interested in contemporary Welsh politics.

The creation of the National Assembly for Wales and Scottish Parliament has altered the democratic landscape of the UK. In assuming many policy and adminstraitve responsiblities previously held by the central government, the Welsh assembly promises innovation in governance and there are high expectations that devolution will bring about significant changes in Welsh life. New Governance - New Democracy? questions whether these expectations are likely to be fulfiled. Drawing on interviews with many of the people who have influenced the devolution experiment, from poltitions to ordinary citizens, this book offers interdisciplinary discussion and analysis of issues ranging from electorial turnout, participation and legitimacy to the involvement of marginalized groups in the process of government. It also examines the developing relationship between the new Welsh legislature and the voluntary sector, the governance of economic development and the regulation and political control of public agencies in Wales.

This book examines the development of Welsh devolution in the context of great economic and political uncertainty. Drawing on research carried out over more than a decade, it explores whether Welsh devolution has developed the capacity to resist internal and external pressures and to continue to pursue a distinctive political and policy agenda.

This book reports a Welsh debate around the key findings of the Carnegie Trusts' Commission of an Inquiry into the Future of Civil Society in the UK and Ireland, published in March 2010. The aim was to ask how the Carnegie findings relate to the emergence of Welsh civil society following a decade of devolution.

Civil Society in Wales provides a critical evaluation of the main themes and points of contention facing discussions of public policy in contemporary Wales. Topics covered include religion and civil society, the voluntary sector, the media, nationalism, community regeneration, young people, and citizenship.

Research Paper (postgraduate) from the year 2011 in the subject Politics - Other International Politics Topics, grade: "-", McGill University, course: Nations and States in the Developed World, language: English, abstract: In the context of devolutionary Britain, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales have all undergone profound administrative and political changes. Particularly in Wales, devolutionary policies have revived Welsh culture and nationalism and taken a politicized standing in advancing concessions from London. This essay will explore the political and socio-economic factors, and consequences of Welsh nationalism, and how grand theories of nationalism studied political theory can help us better comprehend Welsh nationalism.

This thesis is an original contribution to key debates on the politicisation, governance and scale of 'the community' in contemporary society (Etzioni, 1996; Bourdieu, 1989; Giddens, 1984; Taylor, 2003). It contributes to knowledge on constitutional change and community development in three key ways. Firstly, findings from micro-geographical case studies in Wales are situated within global debates on the fragmentation of governance into networks, hierarchies and scales (Rhodes, 1997; Brenner, 2004; Gore, 2008). These complex and contested subjects are used to uncover the relationship between state and civil society using Multi Level Governance (Armstrong & Wells, 2005), theory on territorial rescaling and multi-scalar governance. These theories are encapsulated within one strand of the Strategic Relational Approach (Jessop, 2008) to understand the state. Use of theory in this way ensures that the findings add to wide-ranging and existing knowledge rather than replicating it. Secondly, the research was carried out at a significant time in Welsh political history. Under devolution Communities First is the first national area-based community development programme to be exclusively designed and implemented by Ministers elected to represent the people of Wales. The thesis explores the impact of devolution on community development from the perspective of those involved at different levels of governance; from Ministers with a Wales-wide remit to community groups in neighbourhoods. It also explores the influence of UK regeneration policy and actors during the late 1990s (SEU, 2001; Lawless, 2011). Thirdly, the research questions have developed directly from existing research on Communities First in Wales (Adamson & Bromilley, 2008). Published at the outset of this PhD the research provided an empirical base from which to develop a relevant investigation of the Communities First programme using the theoretical tools noted above. 2.