Table Of ContentGoverning Scotland
Also by James Mitchell
CONSERVATIVES AND THE UNION
STRATEGIES FOR SELF-GOVERNMENT
SCOTLAND DECIDES (co-author)
POLITICS AND PUBLIC POLICY IN SCOTLAND (co-author)
Governing Scotland
The Invention of Administrative
Devolution
James Mitchell
Department of Government
University of Strathclyde, Glasgow
UK
© James Mitchell 2003
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2003 978-0-333-74323-2
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ISBN 978-1-349-41012-5 ISBN 978-0-230-80004-5 (eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9780230800045
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Mitchell,James,1960–
Governing Scotland:the invention of administrative devolution/
James Mitchell.
p.cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-349-41012-5
1.Great Britain.Scottish Office– History.2.Decentralization in
government – Scotland – History.3.Scotland – politics and government –
19th century.4.Scotland – Politics and government–20th century.I.Title
JN1231.M58 2003
320.9411—dc21 2003045686
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 04 03
This book is dedicated to my Aunt Margaret Boath, Margaret
and Sarah Paterson and to my late Uncle Alex
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Contents
List of Tables viii
Preface ix
1. Introduction 1
2. The Origins of the Scottish Central Administration 11
3. Settling Down to Business 29
4. Educational Administration 50
5. Administering Agriculture, Health and the Highlands
and Islands 74
6. MacDonnell, the Boards and the 1928 Act 92
7. The Reorganisation Debate and Gilmour 117
8. The Origins and Development of the Goschen formula 149
9. Scottish Office Ministers 182
10. Conclusion 207
Notes 216
Bibliography 246
Index 254
vii
List of Tables
4.1 Meetings of the Committee of the Privy Council on
Education in Scotland 51
4.2 Numbers and ranks of SED Staff based in Edinburgh,
1908 and 1912 69
5.1 Comparison of Scottish and English/Welsh rates 77
7.1 Edinburgh offices, addresses and staff, 1923 125
8.1 Population of United Kingdom by constituent nation 152
8.2 Goschen losses, 1892–94 156
8.3 Goschen loss/gain, 1894–96 156
8.4 Local taxation (Scotland) Account, Financial Year
ending 31 March 1901 160
8.5 Comparison of grants for Scottish and English and
Welsh Education, 1901–02 165
8.6 Comparison of figures used by Mr D.M. Wilson at Oban
EIS Congress on 18, April 1911 with those of
Accountant’s Report for 1908–09. Selective Examples
from table 167
8.7 Percentage which receipts from Exchequer bear to
total in various years, prepared by SED including
Local Taxation monies, 11 April 1923 171
8.8 Percentage which receipts from Exchequer bear to
total in various years, prepared by SED excluding
Local Taxation monies, 11 April 1923 171
8.9 Expenditure per head of population from public funds
using 1921 census 172
8.10 Note Marked ‘confidential’ initialled R.T.H. (Hawkins),
23/3/26 173
8.11 Statement of services in Scotland to which the
Goschen formula applies with expenditure on those
services in the financial years, 1930–34 179
9.1 Background, incumbencies and future offices of
Scottish Secretaries, 1885–1939 184
viii
Preface
In 1980, in a bibliographical essay, it was noted that though the Scottish
Office was the ‘most influential institution in Scotland’ it was ‘among
the least analysed’.1This is remarkable not least because it was the focus
of much political activity in Scotland. There have been two books on the
history of the Scottish Office. The first was published in 1957 as part of
a series on Whitehall Departments and written by Sir David Milne, then
Scottish Office Permanent Secretary.2 The other was written by John
Gibson, a retired Scottish Office civil servant who had been commis-
sioned to write it in celebration of the Office’s centenary.3Despite peren-
nial debates on Scotland’s constitutional status there was little academic
consideration of this key institution despite the fact that its importance
was recognised in a number of works.
For those interested in the subject, there are a number of interesting
works. William Smith’s The Secretary for Scotland, published in 1885, was
guide to the legislation with a useful introductory essay providing back-
ground to the Office’s establishment. John Percival Day’s Public
Administration in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, published in
1918, is probably the best work on not only the public administration of
the Highlands and Islands but on Scotland published up to that point in
time and, indeed, for many years after. It details the structure of govern-
ment, its functions and finances. Works cited in the bibliography by
Grierson, Jeffrey, Laird, Peck and Rose are uncritical for the most part
and written from the inside but helpful. The work of Ian Levitt, notably
his collections of National Archives of Scotland papers is underutilised
by historians. He appears to have looked at many of the public papers
that I have used in this book.
Twenty years ago, I was fortunate to receive a Fullerton, Moir and
Gray scholarship from the University of Aberdeen to allow me complete
a D.Phil. at Nuffield College, Oxford. I chose to study the early history
of the Scottish Office. Having completed the thesis I moved on to other
matters only returning to this study many years later. I was grateful to
receive the support of the Leverhulme Trust under its Nations and
Regions programme which allowed me to do work on territorial public
finance. Chapter 8 is the outcome of that work.
Many individuals helped in the production of this book, some
directly, others indirectly. Few of those who were key to the events that
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