Book reviews

The governance of Scotland:

A Saltire Guide

The book opens with a foreword by Canon Kenyon Wright who chaired the Executive Committee of the Scottish Constitutional Convention, the body which developed the blueprint for the Scottish devolution settlement. There follows a brief introductory chapter which sets out the background to devolution in Scotland. The remainder of the book is divided into three parts:

• Westminster and Whitehall
• Europe (by which is meant the European Union)
• Scotland

The author recognises that the ordering of the three parts might be a little controversial in a book on the governance of Scotland and comments that as the pattern and practice of devolution matures, the order may need adjustment in future editions.

Part 1 opens with an outline of elections to the Westminster Parliament followed by a sixteen-page list of the constituencies and Members of Parliament. Parliamentary procedures in general are dealt with, along with a section on the procedural changes made, in the light of devolution, to Scottish Question Time and to the now almost defunct Scottish Grand, Select and Standing Committees. The legislative processes for the various types of Bill which come before the UK Parliament are described as are financial procedures. The chapter on the Government of the UK consists mainly of lists of Cabinet Ministers, Cabinet Committees and the names, ranks and responsibilities of the current ministers of each government department. There is, however, a short, but useful section on the role of the Scotland Office, the Secretary of State for Scotland and the Advocate General.

Part 2 covers quite succinctly the institutions of the European Union, European (Community) Legislation and European Policy. The section on the European Parliament includes an alphabetical list of MEPs. Somewhat strangely this list includes neither the region for which each MEP was elected nor the UK political party which each represents, but only the European political grouping to which the MEP belongs. Thus, for example, Neil MacCormick, who is a SNP member for the region of Scotland, is listed as a member of the Greens/European Free Alliance. The chapter on European (Community) legislation touches briefly on the primacy of EC law and its impact on the legislative supremacy of the UK Parliament, while the chapter on European Policy discusses, inter alia enlargement of the Union, Agenda 2000 and the position of Scotland in Europe.

Part 3 is, not surprisingly, the largest of the three parts. There is fairly detailed coverage of the system used to elect the Scottish Parliament along with the usual list of MSPs, their constituencies and regions. The institutions and officers of the Parliament are covered briefly, with an explanation of the roles of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body and the Parliamentary Bureau. The chapter on Scottish Parliamentary procedures draws on the standing orders adopted by the Parliament in December 1999. Other topics covered include privilege and standards of conduct and financial procedures including the tax-varying power of the Parliament. Somewhat surprisingly, there does not appear to be any reference to the fact that the power is unlikely to be used during the first term of the Parliament.

The chapter on the committees of the Scottish Parliament is a little disappointing since it consists of little more than a list of the committees, their members and their remits. These committees have a wider role than committees at Westminster, combining both a part in the legislative process and scrutiny of the Executive. It did not take long for the committees to start flexing their muscles and the chapter would have been enhanced by a discussion of some of their work to date. However, the chapter on Scottish legislation is more satisfactory as it contains some discussion of the difficulty in deciding whether a provision of an Act of the Scottish Parliament “relates to reserved matters” (s.29(3) Scotland Act 1998). One or two of the devolution issues which have already arisen in the Scottish courts are also covered, for example Starrs and Chalmers v PF, Linlithgow.

The account of the Scottish Executive contains some interesting historical material and some comparisons with the UK Government. The concordats with the UK Government are touched on but there is no mention of the coalition agreement between Labour and the Liberal Democrats.

Part 3 concludes with a chapter on Scottish public authorities, devolved, reserved and hybrid (more lists) and a fifty page parliamentary and governance digest which lists the main meetings of the committees and issues discussed from June 1999 to March 2000.

This book is a curate’s egg. As a purely factual account of the governance of Scotland, it is fine as far as it goes. However, no book which claims to cover governance comprehensively should omit local government which delivers most of the services provided by government. In addition, the provision of so many lists means that the book is already out-of-date. The author could not have foreseen the untimely death of Donald Dewar and the election of a new First Minister with the consequent reshuffle of ministerial portfolios but the book would have had a longer shelf-life if there had been fewer individual-specific lists. Nevertheless it will be a useful addition to the growing number of books on Scottish constitutional law.

Jean McFadden

Achieving Best Practice

The author is a lawyer who has worked in private practice and has clearly experienced many of the problems which she highlights in her book. Many of the solutions have been borne out of frustration and the difficulties experienced in changing direction within a firm. Many of the problems will be well known to many partners in legal and other professional partnerships.

Recognising that the busy professional does not have the time nor the inclination to wade through highly technical management

textbooks the author sets out to highlight the main problems which are inherent in all professional partnerships, many of which are all too familiar but which partnerships consistently fail to resolve.

The book presents a model which the author claims will allow such organisations to change and become more successful. The ‘Model for Success’ is based on the concept of a wheel with five segments. The segments encourage organisations to - establish effective management and leadership - use their resources well - become client focused - identify and develop options for the future and lastly to adjust the shape of their organisation to support all of these topics. Each segment of the wheel is developed in more detail within the main chapters of the book and the organisation is encouraged to work through each segment in turn so developing their skills and resource base as they go.

The book is succinct and easy to read with useful checklists and diagnostic questions. The author offers clear direction on how organisations should progress through the segments of the model and each chapter provides a series of key action points which allow the participants to gauge the success or otherwise of their management programme.

The book provides a refreshing change from the familiar theoretical approach to management problems. The success of change within a practice cannot however be guaranteed because it is the partners and staff of the organistions who must be prepared to embrace the solutions set out in the book and to change their attitudes and work practices to make the model work. The book regrettably does not provide a solution for managing those members of the firm who are unwilling to adjust.

As a book which sets out to provide a fresh view of managing change it certainly succeeds and will be a useful addition to any firm’s library, not just to sit on the shelf but to be kept on the desk as a constant barometer for the development and ongoing success of the firm.

Peter D Aiken