Scotland's Parliament gets political muscle

Bute House: Scotland's answer to Downing Street

Thursday 1 July sees not only the formal opening of the Scottish Parliament, but the transfer of devolved powers from London to Edinburgh.

The switch will give the Scottish Executive its promised legislative muscle, which could in time be used in political punch-ups with Westminster.

For example, the Scottish Parliament could decide to drop the beef-on-the-bone ban whilst it continues to be enforced in England and Wales.

Student tuition fees, an area of intense controversy in Scotland, may be abolished but retained elsewhere in the UK.

Powers transfer

Areas of responsibility such as agriculture, education, health and housing, will be formally adopted by the executive in the shape of Donald Dewar's "Cabinet".

But strategic policy areas like defence and social security will remain within Westminster's remit. (See full table below).

John Reid: Scotland's man in London

Thursday also signals a significant change in the role of the Secretary of State for Scotland, a position now filled by Dr John Reid.

He will continue to represent Scotland within Tony Blair's Cabinet, but his relationship with First Minister Donald Dewar will be the subject of an evolutionary process.

Dr Reid said recently: "This is uncharted territory. By definition, that means nobody has a route map and in all probability there will be a few landmines hidden along the way."

The MP for Hamilton North and Bellshill has admitted that post 1 July, his Scottish Office team of three ministers will shrink.

'Regional' minister

In the long-term, even his post could be swallowed up with the creation of a minister for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in the London Cabinet.

Until then though, Dr Reid is adamant that his mandate derives from the Scottish people.

"They have consistently made plain that they want to be part of the United Kingdom," he pointed out.

"It's my job to make sure their views are taken into account when it comes to decisions taken by the British Parliament."

Donald Dewar: Assuming full powers

The Scottish Parliament will have about £14bn to spend annually, money granted to it by Westminster. In addition, it will be able to increase or decrease its overall budget by varying the basic rate of income tax for residents of Scotland by up to three pence.

The level to which any bickering reaches will depend largely on who is in control of the Scottish Parliament and who is running Westminster.

If one party runs both, the likelihood is that the staking out of political boundaries will be relatively amicable (on the surface at least).

Bute House in Edinburgh was until shortly after the 6 May election the official residence of the Secretary of State for Scotland.

It is now the equivalent of 10 Downing Street in Scotland - home of the Scottish Executive and from Thursday, Mr Dewar's official residence.

That leaves Dr Reid seeking an alternative.

Some political observers have said Glasgow should share in the devolution cake and Dr Reid should look there for his new home.

		The Scottish Parliament Powers				Westminster's retained powers
		Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Economic development Education Environment Food standards Health Home Affairs Law - Courts, Police, Fire Services Local government Sport and the Arts Transport Training Tourism Research and statistics Social work				Abortion Broadcasting policy Civil service Common markets for UK goods and services Constitution Electricity, coal, oil, gas, nuclear energy Defence and national security Drug policy Employment Foreign policy and relations with Europe Most aspects of transport safety and regulation National lottery Protection of borders Social security Stability of UK's fiscal, economic and monetary system