Democracy in Scotland: Exploring the Features, Devolution, and Representation, Exercises of Nursing

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Features of a Democratic Society - Right to vote /Peaceful protest /Freedom of Speech Devolution - the transfer of powers and responsibilities from the federal government to the states Examples of devolved powers - Health / Education Devolved Power - Health Example - In 2017 the Scottish government introduced a law which banned smoking in cars when there is an under-18 in the vehicle to try and improve bad health due to passive smoking. Devolved Power - Education Example - In Scotland pupils sits National 5 and Highers whereas in England they sit GSCEs and A-levels. College/university education is also free in Scotland for up to 5 years whereas in the rest of the UK it is not. Reserved Powers - Powers that the UK government have retained. Examples of Reserved Powers - Constitutional Matters / Defense

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Reserved Powers - Defense Example - The UK government has power over the size and location of Scottish forces and in 2013 Leuchars air base was reduced in size and changed to an army base under the direction of the UK government.. Reserved Powers - Constitutional Matters Example - If Scotland was to become independent from the UK it would affect the other three countries so Scotland must get permission first from the UK to hold a referendum first as independence is a constitutional matter. First Minister - Leader of the Scottish Government Role of the first minister - Represent Scotland Abroad /leads the Scottish Government Powers of the First Minister - Collective Responsibility Over Members Of Her Party/ Appoints Cabinet Secretaries and Government Ministers Represent Scotland Abroad - Role of the FM. The First Minister is Scotland's most senior ambassador and will try to promote Scotland's interests in other countries.

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For example, in April 2018, the First Minister visited China to promote Scottish business, industry and tourism. Leads the Scottish Government - Role of the FM- she is responsible for running the country including areas such as health and education. She will also set out what the priorities of the Scottish government are and respond to events as they happen. For example, Nicola Sturgeon has made it clear that it is a priority of the Scottish government to aim to reduce petrol usage by 2032. Collective Responsibility Over Members Of Her Party - Power of the FM. This means that Nicola Sturgeon can appoint a 'party whip' whose job it is to persuade other members of the party to agree with the viewpoint of the First Minister so they are all on the same page with key policies and views. For example, during the EU referendum campaign in 2015, Nicola Sturgeon stated that her party would never do anything to keep the Conservatives in power. Appoints Cabinet Secretaries and Government Ministers - Power of the FM. This means she can appoint people into certain governmental positions who she thinks will do the best job and who she likes and has similar beliefs/viewpoints as. For example, in 2016 John Swinney was appointed as Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills.

Scotland exam

Rights and Responsibilities - Things we are entitled to /things we should do. Right to Vote - over the age of 18 in all elections, 16 in Scottish elections. E.g. 2016 SP election. Right to Stand as a Candidate in an election - If you are over the age of 18. Kaukab Stewart put herself forward to become an MSP for Glasgow Kelvin constituency. (First female BAME MSP) Right to Protest - show an objection to something that has been said or done. E.g. Ocotber 2018, teacher pay protest George Square / Cop26 Protests Voting Responsibility - Ensure you use your vote in order to gain appropriate representation. Candidate Responsibility - To allow others to exercise their rights and accept the result of the election. Protest responsibility - To protest peacefully.

Scotland exam

How people can participate - Vote / Stand as a candidate / join a political party Participation - Join a Political Party - This means that if a person has certain political, social or economic beliefs that are reflected in a political party's manifesto, then they might want to become a member of that party in order to help campaign for those beliefs. For example, after the SNP MPs walked out of Westminster over a Brexit row in June 2018, the SNP membership went up by 5,000. Participation - Vote in Elections - This is when you elect a representative to make decisions on your behalf at local and national level. For example, in 2016 Scottish citizens had the opportunity to vote in the Scottish Parliament election which returned a minority SNP government Participation -Standing as a Candidate - This means that if a person feels strongly enough about achieving political change for the people in their local area or constituency then they can choose to stand as a candidate in an election for people to possibly vote them into power. For example, Kaukab Stewart put herself forward to become an MSP for Glasgow Kelvin constituency.

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Role of the Media - To inform the public / To Scrutinise the Government and Hold Politicians to Account Role of Media - inform public - TV, radio and other media platforms will write news stories about party news, developments, manifestos and campaign events in order to keep the public informed prior to the election. For example, the BBC and STV showed the Scottish Leaders' Debates on television before the election to help voters decide who to vote for. Role of Media - To Scrutinise the Government and Hold Politicians to Account - Journalists will interview and ask questions of politicians in the media about their policies. Sometimes it can get very awkward and sometimes it can affect a party's image if they don't answer well. For example, in the lead up to the Scottish Independence Referendum in 2014, Alex Salmond came under fire many times for not being able to come up with a 'Plan B' for the economy. Ways media can influence - Online petitions / Newspaper coverage / TV

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Influence - online petitions - If the petition can attract a significant amount of signatures and show public support then the government may feel compelled to act in the interests of the public. Influence - newspaper coverage - Newspapers have a wide public readership. Newspapers are free to print whatever stories they want. (Bias!) For example, on the run up to the 2014 Independence referendum, newspapers were predicting a Yes vote and this led the No campaign parties to pledge the VOW to allow and agree with the Scottish government to give greater powers to Scotland. Pressure Groups - An organised group that does not put up candidates for election, but seeks to influence government policy or legislation. Eg. CND Influence - Pressure Groups - Why Join? - Passionate about a cause. To gain media attention for an issue A way of trying to influence politicians between elections.

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Influence - Pressure Groups Rights and Responsibilities - the right to protest (although must inform the police beforehand of plans to do so) - Responsibility to be peaceful. Right to express opinions - including disagreeing with the government. Responsibility to accept that other people may disagree with them. Right to contact politicians. Responsibility to speak reasonably to politicians and cannot threaten or attack them Influence - Pressure Groups - Methods - Protest /Lobbying MSPs/ Petitions Influence - Pressure Groups - Methods - Protesting - Can be effective as they can be very eye-catching to the public and attract media attention, both of which is good for spreading the cause of the pressure group and increasing awareness of the issue. For example, in 2016 supporters of Scottish independence including members of 'Yes Scotland' group demonstrated in George Square, Glasgow, but they needed the permission of Glasgow council and police before the event could go ahead Influence - Pressure Groups - Methods - Lobbying MSPs - This means meeting with MSPs, using social media, letter writing, protests and any other means to get

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politicians to listen to a group and discuss an issue to consider changing the law on the matter. For example, the Scottish Council for Single Homeless lobbies parliamentary civil servants directly and takes part in committee meetings to work towards a long term policy on homelessness. Influence - Pressure Groups - Methods - Petitions - Collecting signatures as many people possible to show policymakers how people feel about a particular issue. For example, in Scotland, you only need one signature to introduce a petition Role of MSPs in Constituency - Hold surgeries Answer emails, letter, phone calls Fact finding missions Attends meetings Works with the media Role of MSPs in Parliament - Debates Voting Committees

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Members Bills First Ministers Question Representation Women - Only 45% of the MSPs in the Scottish parliament are women whereas women make up 51% of the Scottish population, showing that women are under-represented. Only ever been 2 female PMs. For example, in May 2018 a Holyrood survey showed that one third of female staff in the Scottish parliament reported they had been victims of sexual harassment and 45% said it was by an MSP. Representation - Ethnic Minorities (1) - Fewer ethnic minority candidates are selected at party level to stand as candidates in constituencies. For example, there are only 6 BAME MSPs in the Scottish parliement, 4 of which were elected via the list vote Representation - Ethnic Minorities (2) - Few political role models to follow. This is because the Scottish Parliament is predominantly white. For example, as of the 2021 Scottish Parliament election, there are only 6 ethnic minorities.

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Representation - Ethnic Minorities (3) - Less likely to stay on at school or go onto university Representation - Committees - Cross-party groups of MSPs who meet to scrutinise the work of the government, conduct inquiries and examine legislation Representation - Committees - Examine Bills - Examine the bills very closely, regardless of who started them. They do this by going through each line of the bill, gathering evidence from experts and also the public. For example, the committee system has heard many important issues in its time and held joint meetings with the Scottish Youth Parliament to hear issues affecting young people. Representation - Committees - Inquiries - Carry out investigations into issues in order to determine the best outcome for the Scottish people. They have the ability to bring about changes to existing policies or laws. For example, in 2017, the Social Security committee conducted an enquiry into the significant issues with the introduction of universal credits.

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Representation - Committees - investigate views on important issues - Find out the Scottish public's opinions on important matters. They can gather evidence on matters from experts or 'witnesses' even through means like video-conferencing. For example, the Scottish Parliament set up the 'COVID-19 Recovery Committee' in June 2021 to consider how Scotland can recover from the pandemic Voting Systems-AMS Advantages (1) - Voters get two votes and therefore more choice Voters are given two ballot papers, one lets voters pick a candidate from a political party to represent their constituency. The second choice voters have is to pick a political party to represent their region. Voting Systems-AMS Advantages (2) - Wider Representation Not all voters in Scotland support the established parties; the regional list section allows many smaller parties to gain representation. For example, in 2021 there were 7 Green MSPs elected. And between 1999 and 2016 there have been MSPs from; Scottish socialist party, Green party, Scottish senior citizens party. Voting Systems-AMS Advantages (3) - Coalition and Minority Governments

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This means parties need to work together and more views are heard as two or more parties work to share power. For example, in 2021the SNP government was 1 seat short of a majority so entered a deal with the Greens. Voting Systems-AMS - Disadvantages (1) - Coalitions This is because nobody votes for a coalition, they are decided after the election taking away the decision from the people. For example, the SNP have a deal with the Greens. This gives the smaller party ( MSPs) more influence than parties with more seats. Voting Systems-AMS - Disadvantages (2) - Confusing Some claim that AMS is difficult to understand due to having two votes and multiple MSPS. For example a complex formula is used to allocate seats and each person has 8 MSPs. Therefore, some voters do not know who to approach when they have an Participation - Campaigning - Canvassing / Publishing a manifesto

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Participation - Campaigning - Canvassing - Going round the doors to identify your support and encourage people to go out and vote. For example, when campaigning for the 2016 Scottish Parliament election the Scottish Green Party had canvassers in every region in Scotland. Participation - Campaigning -Manifestos - This is a party's vision/ plans of what they would do if the were elected into power. Many policies will remain the same but up-to-date manifestos will include new "flagship" policies and inform potential voters about the party's vision for the country. For example, in 2021 the SNP manifesto pledged "Universal free school meals for all primary pupils, with free breakfast and lunch for all classes, all year round." Participation - Campaigning - Use of Social Media - Allows parties to reach a large number of voters. Most parties now have social media pages. For example, the SNP have over 150,000 followers on twitter. Participation - Campaigning - Funding - The more funding a party has the bigger and more sophisticated a campaign they can run.

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Participation - Campaigning - Party Membership - If there are a lot of party members it is likely that the party will be successful. This is because the party members will vote for that party and try to persuade others to as well. For example membership of the SNP has increased in recent years, rising from 25,000 to 100,000.