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Crowther Commission
The Royal Commission on the Constitution, also referred to as the Kilbrandon Commission (initially the Crowther Commission) or Kilbrandon Report, was a long-running royal commission set up by Harold Wilson's Labour government to examine the structures of the constitution of the United Kingdom and the British Islands and the government of its constituent countries, and to consider whether any changes should be made to those structures. It was started under Lord Crowther on 15 April 1969, Lord Kilbrandon took over in 1972, and it finally reported on 31 October 1973. Various models of devolution, federalism and confederalism were considered, as well as the prospect of the division of the UK into separate sovereign states. Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man were dealt with separately from the core issue of Scotland and Wales. A total of 16 volumes of evidence and 10 research papers were published between 1969 and 1973. The final report was delivered to Ed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Commission
A royal commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue in some monarchies. They have been held in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Malaysia, Mauritius and Saudi Arabia. In republics an equivalent entity may be termed a commission of inquiry. Such an inquiry has considerable powers, typically equivalent or greater than those of a judge but restricted to the terms of reference for which it was created. These powers may include subpoenaing witnesses, notably video evidences, taking evidence under oath and requesting documents. The commission is created by the head of state (the sovereign, or their representative in the form of a governor-general or governor) on the advice of the government and formally appointed by letters patent. In practice—unlike lesser forms of inquiry—once a commission has started the government cannot stop it. Consequently, governments are usually very careful about framing the terms of reference a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heath Ministry
Edward Heath of the Conservative Party formed the Heath ministry and was appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom by Queen Elizabeth II on 19 June 1970, following the general election of the previous day. The Heath ministry ended after the February 1974 general election, which produced a hung parliament, leading to the formation of a minority government by Harold Wilson of the Labour Party. Heath had been elected Leader of the Conservative Party in 1965 – succeeding Alec Douglas-Home – within a few months of the party's election defeat after 13 years in government. In the following year, his first general election as Leader resulted in defeat as Wilson's Labour government increased its majority. The Conservatives enjoyed a surge in support over the next two years as the British economy went through a period of deflation that culminated in a devaluation, at the same time that the merging of businesses was encouraged. Unemployment rose significantly, but when W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Winnie Ewing
Winifred Margaret Ewing (; 10 July 1929 – 21 June 2023) was a Scottish lawyer and politician who figured prominently in the Scottish National Party. Born and raised in Glasgow, Ewing studied law at the University of Glasgow, where she joined the university's Scottish Nationalist Association. After graduating, she worked as a lawyer, serving as secretary of the Glasgow Bar Association from 1962 to 1967. Ewing was elected to the House of Commons in the 1967 Hamilton by-election and her presence at Westminster led to a rise in membership for the SNP. Although she lost her seat in the 1970 election, she was re-elected in February 1974, this time for the Moray and Nairn constituency. Ewing lost her seat in the 1979 election and, after making numerous attempts to seek re-election, failed to do so. Ewing was elected to the European Parliament in the 1979 elections, representing the Highlands and Islands. In Europe, she acquired the nickname ''Madame Écosse'' because of her ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scottish National Party
The Scottish National Party (SNP; ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic party. The party holds 61 of the 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament, and holds 9 out of the 57 Scottish seats in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons. It is represented by 419 of the 1,227 local councillors across Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom and for Scotland's membership in the European Union, with a platform based on progressive social policies and civic nationalism. Founded in 1934 with the amalgamation of the National Party of Scotland and the Scottish Party, the party has had continuous parliamentary List of Scottish National Party MPs, representation in Westminster since Winnie Ewing won the 1967 Hamilton by-election. With the establishment of the devolved Scottish Parliament in 1999, the SNP became the second-largest party, serving two terms as the Opposition (parliamentary), opposition. The SNP gaine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1966 Carmarthen By-election
The 1966 Carmarthen by-election, was held in Carmarthen, Wales, on 14 July 1966. The contest was significant in that it resulted in the election of Gwynfor Evans, the first ever Plaid Cymru member of parliament. Plaid Cymru's victory in the Carmarthen constituency, a seminal moment for Welsh nationalism, was part of a wider process toward Welsh devolution which eventually led to the establishment of the Welsh Assembly in 1999. The election was caused by the death of Labour Party member of parliament Megan Lloyd George. Gwynfor Evans' surprise win is credited with laying the foundations for Winnie Ewing's victory for the Scottish National Party at the 1967 Hamilton by-election, an event of equal significance for Scottish nationalism. Results See also * 1882 Carmarthen Boroughs by-election * 1924 Carmarthen by-election * 1928 Carmarthen by-election * 1941 Carmarthen by-election * 1957 Carmarthen by-election * Carmarthen (UK Parliament constituency) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gwynfor Evans
Gwynfor Richard Evans (1 September 1912 – 21 April 2005) was a Welsh politician, lawyer and author. He was President of the Welsh political party Plaid Cymru for thirty-six years and was the first member of Parliament to represent it at Westminster, which he did twice, from 1966 to 1970, and again from 1974 to 1979. On entering the House of Commons, he famously failed in his attempt to obtain permission to take the oath in the Welsh language. He was the first MP to attempt to do so, but the right to take the oath in any of the UK's non-English native languages was not granted until 1974. His most notable achievement was his successful campaign for the creation of a Welsh-language television channel. Early life Gwynfor Evans was born in Barry, near Cardiff, to Dan Evans and Catherine Richard. He had a brother named Alcwyn, and a sister named Ceridwen. His father ran a chain of shops in Barry, and his mother a china shop. His mother was a fluent Welsh speaker. As a boy, he wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plaid Cymru
Plaid Cymru ( ; , ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, and often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left, Welsh nationalist list of political parties in Wales, political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. It campaigns on a platform of social democracy and civic nationalism. The party is a supporter of the European Union and is a member of the European Free Alliance (EFA). The party holds 4 of 32 Welsh seats in the UK Parliament, 12 of 60 seats in the Senedd, and 202 of 1,231 principal local authority councillors. Plaid was formed in 1925 under the name ''Plaid Genedlaethol Cymru'' (English: The National Party of Wales) and Gwynfor Evans won the first Westminster seat for the party at the 1966 Carmarthen by-election. In 1999 National Assembly for Wales election, 1999 (in the first devolved Senedd, Welsh Assembly election), Plaid Cymru gained considerable ground in traditionally Labour heartlands. These breakthroughs were pa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Home Rule
Home rule is the government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been decentralized to it by the central government. Home rule may govern in an autonomous administrative division; in contrast, though, there is no sovereignty separate from that of the parent state, and thus no separate chief military command nor separate foreign policy and diplomacy. In the British Isles, it traditionally referred to self-government, devolution or independence of the countries of the United Kingdom—initially Ireland, and later Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. In the United States and other countries organised as federations of states, the term usually refers to the process and mechanisms of self-government as exercised by municipalities, counties, or other ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Professor Alan Peacock
Sir Alan Turner Peacock DSC, FBA, FRSE (26 June 1922 – 2 August 2014) was a British economist. Early life Alan Turner Peacock was born in Ryton-on-Tyne (then part of County Durham) in 1922. He was the son of the scientist Alexander David Peacock, who in 1926 became Professor of Natural History at University College, Dundee (then part of the University of St Andrews). On his father's appointment, the family moved to Broughty Ferry. He was educated at Grove Academy, the High School of Dundee and the University of St Andrews, where he completed a war-shortened degree in economics and history. Career Having completed correspondence courses in economics while serving with the Royal Navy during the Second World War, upon being demobilised Peacock resumed his studies at St Andrews, graduating with another degree in economics and political science in 1947. He then taught at St Andrews, the London School of Economics (where he also conducted the LSE Orchestra), the University of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lord Crowther-Hunt
Norman Crowther Crowther-Hunt, Baron Crowther-Hunt (; 13 March 1920 – 16 February 1987) was a British scholar and Labour politician. He served as a Minister of State in Harold Wilson's 1974–1976 government, and became Rector of Exeter College, Oxford in 1982. Early life and education Hunt was born in Bradford in 1920. He was educated at Belle Vue High School in Bradford, and studied history at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, before becoming a research fellow there in 1949. He gained a Commonwealth Fund Fellowship studied American politics at Princeton University and in 1952, he was elected to a tutorial fellowship in politics at Exeter College, Oxford. Career Hunt appeared regularly on BBC television and radio, and hosted the weekly ''People and Politics'' on the BBC World Service. In 1986, his work with the corporation lead to his appointment as chairman of its General Advisory Council. Through his friendship with Harold Wilson, Hunt was able to promote reform of the c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Deliberative Assembly
A deliberative assembly is a meeting of members who use parliamentary procedure. Etymology In a speech to the electorate at Bristol in 1774, Edmund Burke Edmund Burke (; 12 January ew Style, NS1729 – 9 July 1797) was an Anglo-Irish Politician, statesman, journalist, writer, literary critic, philosopher, and parliamentary orator who is regarded as the founder of the Social philosophy, soc ... described the British Parliament as a "deliberative assembly", and the expression became the basic term for a body of persons meeting to discuss and determine common action. Merriam-Webster's definition excludes legislatures. Characteristics '' Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'' by Henry Martyn Robert describes the following characteristics of a deliberative assembly: * A group of people meets to discuss and make decisions on behalf of the entire membership. * They meet in a single room or area, or under equivalent conditions of simultaneous oral communication. * Each member ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
