There has not been a 'government of England' since 1707 when the
Kingdom of England ceased to exist as a
sovereign state, as it merged with the
Kingdom of Scotland to form the
Kingdom of Great Britain, although both kingdoms had been ruled by a single monarch since 1603 under
James I of England. Prior to the
Acts of Union 1707, England was ruled by a
monarch and the
Parliament of England.
In
1284,
Wales was joined to
England under the
Statute of Rhuddlan. The
Laws in Wales Acts 1535-1542 formed a single legal system for
England and Wales.
The
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, which itself replaced the Kingdom of Great Britain following a later merger with the
Kingdom of Ireland in
1801, has undergone a series of dramatic innovations in the manner in which its
constituent countries are governed, with
devolved parliaments, assemblies and
governments in
Scotland,
Wales and
Northern Ireland.
England remains under the full jurisdiction, on all matters, of the
Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and
Her Majesty's Government of the United Kingdom which has led to demands for the
West Lothian question to be answered. Attempts at devolution to the
English regions have been unsuccessful so far. However a series of unelected
regional assemblies have been elected in addition to the creation of
Regional Government Offices. The incumbent government has no plans at present to devolve power to England as a
constituent country as has happened in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Both proponents of English devolution and those opposed to devolution produce figures to make their case.
One part of England,
Greater London, has a degree of devolved power (although weaker than that of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) with power vested in an elected
London Mayor, currently
Ken Livingstone and the
London Assembly. Greater London is, however, a unique region of England, being almost entirely made up of a single city -
London.
The country is officially divided into the following in terms of governance.
★ The 9 English
regions,
★ The modern day
local authority areas,
★ The geographical/ceremonial
counties of England.
See also
★
Politics of England
★
West Lothian question
★
Devolved English parliament
★
List of Parliaments of England
★
Campaign for an English Parliament
:]