From social inclusion to solidarity: anti-poverty strategies under devolution

We have a proud tradition in Scotland of working to tackle social division.... We have a body of people … who are committed to creating a fairer society in Scotland. And in the not too distant future we will have a Scottish Parliament, which will give us the opportunity to develop Scottish solutions to Scottish needs, and to bring the arm of government closer to the needs of the people. Devolution matters. It will let us take the decisions that matter here in Scotland. It is an end in itself: but it is a means to other ends, and none more important than the creation of a socially cohesive Scotland. (Donald Dewar, Secretary of State for Scotland, 17 October 1997)

Reducing poverty and enhancing social inclusion were regarded as priorities for the devolved Scottish administrations even before the Scottish Parliament was reconstituted in 1999 (Parry, 1997). It was also anticipated that devolution throughout the UK would create ‘policy laboratories’ and enable the different UK nations to develop strategies that addressed their particular circumstances or expressed their distinctive political cultures (Jeffrey, 2004). The devolution settlement granted Scotland ‘one of the widest ranges of competences of any devolved or federated government in Europe’ (Keating, 2005). It conferred control over health, social services, education and training, local government, housing, environmental quality and regeneration to the Scottish Parliament. Significantly, these devolved powers did not include control over the key policy levers in relation to poverty and social exclusion. The most important policy areas for tackling poverty were reserved to the UK government: the Treasury retained control over tax credits and most areas of taxation, while the Department for Work and Pensions remained responsible for social security benefits.