Constitution Committee report on the governance of the union

Approximate read time: 12 minutes

The House of Lords is scheduled to debate the following committee report on 28 April 2025:

• House of Lords Constitution Committee, ‘Governance of the union: Consultation, cooperation and legislative consent’, 27 September 2024, HL Paper 13 of session 2024–25

1.   Background to the committee’s inquiry

The House of Lords Constitution Committee examined intergovernmental relations arrangements between the UK government and the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in a report published in January 2022.^[1] The report identified a deterioration in relationships between the UK and devolved governments, which the committee attributed to a “perceived lack of cooperation and respect in intergovernmental relations and insufficient commitment to the process of consultation and engagement between the governments of the UK”.^[2] Among a range of recommendations concerning the union in its report, the committee called for measures to increase confidence in the Sewel convention. This is the convention that the UK Parliament does not normally legislate in areas of devolved competence without consent from the relevant devolved legislature.

The UK and devolved governments also jointly implemented new structures for intergovernmental relations from January 2022 following a joint review.^[3]

In February 2024 the Constitution Committee launched an inquiry to re-examine relations between the UK government and the devolved administrations in the context of both its own earlier report and the new intergovernmental relations structures in place since early 2022. In a call for evidence issued to mark the new inquiry’s launch, the committee confirmed it would focus on examining:^[4]

• cooperation via the intergovernmental relations arrangements in place since January 2022
• consultation by the UK government with the devolved administrations
• respect for the Sewel convention

The committee held six oral evidence sessions between February and May 2024.^[5] Witnesses included academics, ministers in the previous Conservative government, and representatives from the Welsh government. The committee also made available 13 written evidence submissions, including from academics; committees in the Scottish Parliament, Senedd Cymru and Northern Ireland Assembly; and representatives of the UK government, Scottish government, Welsh government and Northern Ireland executive.^[6]

2.   What did the committee’s report say?

The Constitution Committee published its report on 27 September 2024.^[7] The report contained 27 conclusions and 20 recommendations.

The committee summarised the report’s key findings as follows:

• The UK government is more powerful than the devolved governments and, by its nature as the government for the entire UK, possesses information about policy choices that may impact on the devolved nations. The UK government should take account of the impact its decisions may have throughout the UK and demonstrate goodwill in its interaction with the devolved governments, including by sharing information in good faith.
• To improve collaboration and cooperation between the nations of the UK, a new principle of positive engagement should be included among the principles for intergovernmental relations. This should include a requirement that the UK government and the devolved governments engage on legislative proposals that impact upon one another’s areas of legislative competence. It should also include a requirement that a decision by a devolved legislature to withhold consent to a bill be preconditioned by meaningful engagement on the part of the devolved government with the UK government.
• The new intergovernmental relations structures have the potential to remedy criticisms levelled at the previous intergovernmental structures by creating a more regular, transparent and formal system of intergovernmental working. However, in order to realise the new structures’ full potential, the government must fully embed them into the day-to-day business of government and the devolved governments must demonstrate their commitment to engaging with the new structures.
• The new government should ensure that every department has a properly equipped team—and a ministerial lead—with the knowledge and skills necessary to address, anticipate and engage with devolution matters as they arise, providing an identified point of contact for the devolved administrations.
• With the reestablishment of the devolved institutions in Northern Ireland, the new government should mobilise every effort to finalise and fully implement all 32 common frameworks agreed between the UK government and the devolved governments.
• The new government should commit to respecting the Sewel convention, namely by proceeding in accordance with the principle that the UK Parliament will not normally legislate with regard to devolved matters except with the agreement of the devolved legislature.
• The devolution guidance notes should be updated as a matter of priority. They do not take account of significant developments such as the return of powers following the UK’s departure from the European Union and the development of common frameworks, or the introduction of new intergovernmental relations structures in January 2022. This should be completed alongside long overdue updates to the ‘Cabinet manual’.
• The new government should develop a clear set of criteria regarding the appropriate use of delegated powers in areas of devolved competence. These criteria should be set out in guidance provided to the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel, which should be published.
• The UK government should note the time required to consider adequately the increased number of legislative consent motions which are now being put before the devolved legislatures and should take account of the devolved legislatures’ timetables to help ensure in as far as possible that sufficient time for scrutiny is available.^[8]

The committee also said it intended to return to examining the “efficacy of the intergovernmental relations arrangements and the operation of the Sewel convention again in the near future”.^[9] In the meantime, it urged the government to review these matters “over the coming year”. It added this review should be undertaken with a “view to implementing the recommendations in our report” and invited the government to “provide an update to the committee on progress made by the end of September 2025”.

3.   What was the government’s response to the report?

The committee published the government’s response on 29 November 2024.^[10] The government prefaced its response to the individual recommendations with the following statement:

The report highlights the importance of upholding and working within the intergovernmental structures set up in the 2022 ‘Review of intergovernmental relations’ and underlines the importance of effective collaboration and respect between the UK government and devolved governments. The government shares the committee’s view as to the importance of a strong relationship between the UK government and devolved governments. We are committed to resetting the relationship with devolved governments in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland to deliver for the people in all nations of the United Kingdom.

The government’s view is that whilst the formal structures are important because they create guaranteed occasions for interaction and dialogue, so too is the tone of the relationship. This will often be set informally and through everyday contact. If everyone is trying to make the relationship work, this makes an enormous difference whatever formal structures are in place.^[11]

The response further highlighted that the government had established the Council of the Nations and Regions following an earlier manifesto commitment. The council’s terms of reference, published following its inaugural meeting in October 2024, confirmed the council’s membership as including the prime minister, first ministers of Scotland and Wales, and first minister and deputy first minister of Northern Ireland, in addition to the mayor of London and mayors of combined authorities and combined county authorities in England.^[12] The council also includes the deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, given her ministerial responsibilities for local government and devolution in England, and the chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Pat McFadden, as minister for intergovernmental relations. The response added that the council’s inaugural meeting had been preceded by bilateral meetings between Sir Keir Starmer and each of the heads of the devolved governments, and a multilateral meeting between the same individuals and Mr McFadden. It further said the UK government was “committed to sustained and substantial engagement with devolved governments at different tiers—including at the prime ministerial level—and the intergovernmental principles that underpin this engagement”.

The government’s response to the key findings noted above was as follows:

• Goodwill, attitudes and culture: The government agreed with the committee’s conclusions regarding the importance of goodwill for effective intergovernmental relations. It said UK government officials and ministers had engaged with their devolved government counterparts ahead of the King’s Speech to “build a shared understanding of legislative priorities”. It added this engagement had continued as bills have been introduced to Parliament, and highlighted cooperation with the Scottish government on establishing GB Energy, the Welsh government on a jointly launched independent commission into the water sector and with the Northern Ireland executive on city deals as examples of collaboration on policy matters.
• A principle of positive engagement: The government said positive engagement was “embedded” in its approach to intergovernmental relations and that a manifesto commitment to “reset the relationship” with the devolved governments was being delivered through positive engagement and collaboration. On legislative cooperation, the government said it recognised the “importance of timely and positive engagement” and agreed this was a “vital component in ensuring legislation can be made which works effectively across the UK”. It added such cooperation was “particularly crucial, as the committee has noted, in relation to the Sewel convention and when the legislative consent process is engaged”.
• Effectiveness of the new intergovernmental relations structures: The government said it was “committed to fully embedding intergovernmental structures” and welcomed the committee’s conclusions on the importance of doing so. It also said it was “for all governments to agree when to meet, and for each government to decide who is most appropriate to attend meetings to enable proper outcomes”.
• Role of the civil service: The government said every UK government department should have a senior responsible officer and non-executive director with responsibilities for devolution matters. In addition, it said most departments also have a devolution team embedded within their structures. It added these devolution coordinators “can provide more detailed advice on how devolution affects a UK government department’s work”.
• Common frameworks: The government said the majority of common frameworks were “provisionally operational, and we are working closely with all four governments to progress them to full implementation”. It added that ministerial oversight of the common frameworks programme was “returning to the Cabinet Office under the chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster as minister for intergovernmental relations”.
• Sewel convention: The government said it agreed with the committee’s view on the convention’s importance. It added it had committed to working on a new memorandum of understanding on legislation to demonstrate its commitment to the convention. It said this would “establish a mutual baseline for engagement, and the importance of good policy outcomes, as the main objective of legislation UK-wide”.
• Updating the devolution guidance notes: The government did not explicitly undertake to update the guidance notes but said they should be read as “part of a wide spectrum of guidance and publications on intergovernmental working”.
• Secondary legislation: The government said it noted the committee’s recommendations on developing criteria and publishing guidance on the use of delegated powers in devolved areas, and on engagement with the devolved governments on the use of these powers. It said it would consider this as part of its work on engagement with the devolved governments on legislation.
• Devolved legislatures’ scrutiny function: The government said it agreed that early engagement with the devolved governments was “crucial for enabling subsequent timely engagement with the devolved legislatures, to allow adequate time for their important scrutiny function”. It added: “Every effort is made to ensure adequate time for this” and the proposed memorandum of understanding would “help ensure this is always the case”.

Baroness Drake (Labour), then chair of the Constitution Committee, wrote to Mr McFadden to seek additional information on 29 January 2025.^[13] Among a range of questions, she asked whether:

• he would commit to updating the devolution guidance notes
• he intended to update the intergovernmental relations principles to include the suggested “new principle of positive engagement”
• the suggested memorandum of understanding with the devolved administrations on legislation would be accompanied by a review into the operation of the 2022 intergovernmental relations structures
• it would also include guidance or requirements concerning other recommendations in the report
• the government could provide a timetable for the “finalising and fully implementing” all 32 common frameworks

The committee published Mr McFadden’s response on 31 March 2025.^[14] Addressing his letter to Lord Strathclyde (Conservative), the committee’s chair since 30 January 2025, Mr McFadden said:

• the government did not have any immediate plans to review the devolution guidance notes, given they were supplemented by additional guidance, publication and training
• it was not for the government to reopen the jointly agreed 2022 review of intergovernmental relations to add a “new principle of positive engagement”, given they were jointly agreed between the UK and devolved governments
• work was underway to deliver the memorandum of understanding on legislation, which the government hoped would be agreed and published “later this year”
• the government did not intend to review the operations of intergovernmental relations structures introduced in 2022, as these were “functioning well and have withstood changes across all governments, especially in the last year”
• the Interministerial Standing Committee had set an ambition to finalise the common frameworks programme by the end of 2025

4.   Read more

• House of Lords Constitution Committee, ‘Governance of the union: Consultation, cooperation and legislative consent’, 27 September 2024, HL Paper 13 of session 2024–25; and ‘Respect and cooperation: Building a stronger union for the 21st century’, 20 January 2022, HL Paper 142 of session 2021–22
• HM Government, ‘Intergovernmental relations’, updated 25 March 2025
• House of Lords Library, ‘King’s Speech 2024: Devolved affairs’, 11 July 2024; ‘Strengthening the UK union’, 7 March 2024; and ‘Intergovernmental relations within the UK’, 10 January 2024
• House of Commons Library, ‘Intergovernmental relations in the United Kingdom’, 17 November 2023; and ‘Council of the Nations and Regions’, 12 September 2024

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Cover image from Wikimedia.