About

Remit

The remit of the Commission on Scottish Devolution is:

Origins

The starting point for the Commission was a debate in the Scottish Parliament on 6 December 2007. This resulted in the Parliament formally resolving to support "the establishment of an independently chaired commission to review devolution in Scotland". The Parliament's resolution goes on to set out the Commission's remit (above), and to instruct the Parliament's corporate body to "allocate appropriate resources and funding" for it.

The United Kingdom Government signalled its support for the Commission in January 2008. In a written Ministerial Statement on 25 March, the Secretary of State for Scotland said the UK Government would work with the Scottish Parliament to provide support for the Commission.

The appointment of Sir Kenneth Calman to chair the Commission was announced on 25 March 2008, and the rest of the membership was confirmed on 28 April.

Meetings and work to date

The Commission's first meeting was held in the Scottish Parliament on 28 April. This agreed, in particular, the creation of four initial "task groups" to take forward key elements of the work - looking at functions, principles, financial accountability, and engagement.

A further task group on inter-governmental relations was established following the Commission meeting on 30 May. That meeting also included stimulating presentations by Professor John Curtice and Professor Charlie Jeffery. A third meeting was held on 30 June, at which plans were developed for a programme of meetings and public engagement events during the autumn. The main focus of the Commission's fourth meeting on 24 July was on agreeing key details of this programme, and considering other methods for promoting public engagement, including a printed leaflet and an online questionnaire. Further Commission meetings are planned on a roughly monthly basis, and the task groups are also actively pursuing matters within their remits.

Looking forward

The Commission intends to publish a first report by the end of 2008, and a final report at some point in 2009.

Further details of the Commission's planned activities, including opportunities for consultation and public engagement, are available elsewhere on this website.

Task Groups chairs

The chairs of the five task groups are:

• Principles: Sir Kenneth Calman
• Functions: Professor Sir David Edward
• Engagement: Murdoch MacLennan
• Financial Accountability: Shonaig Macpherson
• Inter-Governmental Relations: Jim Wallace.

Independent Expert Group

There is also an independent expert group, established to advise the Commission on financial accountability. It is chaired by Professor Anton Muscatelli, Principal and Vice Chancellor of Heriot-Watt University. The other members of the expert group are:

• John Aldridge, former Finance Director at the Scottish Executive
• Professor David Bell, Professor of Economics, Stirling University
• Professor Julia Darby, Professor of Economics, University of Strathclyde
• Dr Sandra Eden, senior lecturer in tax law, Edinburgh University
• Professor Clemens Fuest, Professor of Economics, University of Cologne, and Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the German Federal Ministry of Finance
• Professor Andrew Hughes-Hallett, Professor of Economics and Public Policy, George Mason University, Virginia, USA, and Visiting Professor at St Andrews University.
• Professor Charlie Jeffery, Professor of Politics, Edinburgh University
• Iain McLean, Official Fellow in Politics, Nuffield College, Oxford, and Professor of Politics, University of Oxford
• Jeremy Peat, Director of the David Hume Institute, former Group Chief Economist at the Royal Bank of Scotland and a former economic adviser at HM Treasury and the Scottish Office
• David Ulph, Professor and Head of School of Economics and Finance, St Andrews University