Editing United Kingdom (section)

===Devolution===
{{Main|Devolution in the United Kingdom}}
{{see|Devolved, reserved and excepted matters}}
[[File:Council of Nations and Regions (54059219744) (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Prime Minister Starmer meets with the first ministers of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales during the [[Council of Nations and Regions]] summit.]]

In the United Kingdom a process of devolution has transferred various powers from the [[Government of the United Kingdom|UK Government]] to three of the four UK countries—Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales—as well as to the regions of England, which since 1999 have their own governments and parliaments which control various devolved matters.<ref name=":13">{{Cite web |title=Devolution of powers to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland |url=https://www.gov.uk/devolution-of-powers-to-scotland-wales-and-northern-ireland#devolved-administrations |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130718065448/https://www.gov.uk/devolution-of-powers-to-scotland-wales-and-northern-ireland#devolved-administrations |archive-date=18 July 2013 |access-date=17 April 2013 |publisher=United Kingdom Government |quote=In a similar way to how the government is formed from members from the two Houses of Parliament, members of the devolved legislatures nominate ministers from amongst themselves to comprise executives, known as the devolved administrations...}}; {{Cite web |title=Country Overviews: United Kingdom |url=http://www.transport-research.info/web/countryprofiles/uk.cfm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100404062853/http://www.transport-research.info/web/countryprofiles/uk.cfm |archive-date=4 April 2010 |access-date=28 March 2010 |url-status=usurped |publisher=Transport Research Knowledge Centre}}</ref> These powers vary and have been moved to the [[Scottish Government]], the [[Welsh Government]], the [[Northern Ireland Executive]] and in England, the [[Greater London Authority]], [[Combined authorities and combined county authorities|Combined Authorities]] and [[Combined authorities and combined county authorities|Combined County Authorities]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Le Sueur |first1=Andrew |last2=Sunkin |first2=Maurice |last3=Murkens |first3=Jo Eric Khushal |title=Public Law: Text, Cases, and Materials |year=2023 |edition=5th |isbn=978-0-19-287061-2 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=147 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6sLDEAAAQBAJ&dq=Le+sueur+Public+Law%C2%A0fifth+edition&pg=PR3 |access-date=13 April 2024 |archive-date=2 October 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241002213048/https://books.google.com/books?id=6sLDEAAAQBAJ&dq=Le+sueur+Public+Law%C2%A0fifth+edition&pg=PR3#v=onepage&q=Le%20sueur%20Public%20Law%C2%A0fifth%20edition&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> Amongst the devolved parliaments across the United Kingdom, the [[Scottish Parliament]] has the most extensive responsibilities for [[Devolved, reserved and excepted matters|devolved powers]], and has been described as "one of the most powerful devolved parliaments in the world".<ref>{{cite web |title=The progress of devolution - Erskine May - UK Parliament |url=https://erskinemay.parliament.uk/section/4537/the-progress-of-devolution |website=erskinemay.parliament.uk |access-date=1 March 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=David Mundell speech: 20 years of Scottish devolution |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/david-mundell-speech-20-years-of-scottish-devolution |website=GOV.UK |access-date=1 March 2025}}</ref>

The UK has an [[uncodified constitution]] and constitutional matters are not amongst the powers that have been devolved. Under the doctrine of [[Parliamentary sovereignty in the United Kingdom|parliamentary sovereignty]], the UK Parliament could, in theory, therefore, abolish the Scottish Parliament, Senedd or Northern Ireland Assembly.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Burrows |first=N. |year=1999 |title=Unfinished Business: The Scotland Act 1998 |journal=The Modern Law Review |volume=62 |issue=2 |pages=241–260 [p. 249] |doi=10.1111/1468-2230.00203 |quote=The UK Parliament is sovereign and the Scottish Parliament is subordinate. The White Paper had indicated that this was to be the approach taken in the legislation. The Scottish Parliament is not to be seen as a reflection of the settled will of the people of Scotland or of popular sovereignty but as a reflection of its subordination to a higher legal authority. Following the logic of this argument, the power of the Scottish Parliament to legislate can be withdrawn or overridden...}}; {{Cite journal |last=Elliot |first=M. |year=2004 |title=United Kingdom: Parliamentary sovereignty under pressure |journal=International Journal of Constitutional Law |volume=2 |issue=3 |pages=545–627, 553–554 |doi=10.1093/icon/2.3.545 |quote=Notwithstanding substantial differences among the schemes, an important common factor is that the UK Parliament has not renounced legislative sovereignty in relation to the three nations concerned. For example, the Scottish Parliament is empowered to enact primary legislation on all matters, save those in relation to which competence is explicitly denied&nbsp;... but this power to legislate on what may be termed "devolved matters" is concurrent with the Westminster Parliament's general power to legislate for Scotland on any matter at all, including devolved matters&nbsp;... In theory, therefore, Westminster may legislate on Scottish devolved matters whenever it chooses... |doi-access=free}}</ref> Though in the [[Scotland Act 2016]] and the [[Wales Act 2017]] it states that the Scottish Government and the Welsh Government "are a permanent part of the United Kingdom's constitutional arrangements".<ref>{{cite web |title=Scotland Act 2016 |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2016/11/part/1/crossheading/the-scottish-parliament-and-the-scottish-government#:~:text=(1)The%20Scottish%20Parliament%20and,the%20United%20Kingdom's%20constitutional%20arrangements. |website=Gov.uk |access-date=28 June 2024 |archive-date=28 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628211304/https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2016/11/part/1/crossheading/the-scottish-parliament-and-the-scottish-government#:~:text=(1)The%20Scottish%20Parliament%20and,the%20United%20Kingdom's%20constitutional%20arrangements. |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Wales Act 2017 |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2017/4/section/1/enacted |access-date=13 July 2024 |archive-date=2 October 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241002212916/https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2017/4/section/1/enacted |url-status=live }}</ref>

In practice, it would be politically difficult for the UK Parliament to abolish devolution to the Scottish Parliament and the Senedd, because these institutions were created by referenda.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Gamble |first=A. |year=2006 |title=The Constitutional Revolution in the United Kingdom |journal=Publius |volume=36 |issue=1 |pages=19–35 [p. 29] |doi=10.1093/publius/pjj011 |quote=The British parliament has the power to abolish the Scottish parliament and the Welsh assembly by a simple majority vote in both houses, but since both were sanctioned by referenda, it would be politically difficult to abolish them without the sanction of a further vote by the people. In this way, several of the constitutional measures introduced by the Blair government appear to be entrenched and not subject to a simple exercise of parliamentary sovereignty at Westminster.}}</ref> The political constraints placed upon the UK Parliament's power to interfere with devolution in Northern Ireland are greater still, because devolution in Northern Ireland rests upon an international agreement with the [[Government of Ireland]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Meehan |first=E. |year=1999 |title=The Belfast Agreement – Its Distinctiveness and Points of Cross-Fertilization in the UK's Devolution Programme |journal=Parliamentary Affairs |volume=52 |issue=1 |pages=19–31 [p. 23] |doi=10.1093/pa/52.1.19 |quote=[T]he distinctive involvement of two governments in the Northern Irish problem means that Northern Ireland's new arrangements rest upon an intergovernmental agreement. If this can be equated with a treaty, it could be argued that the forthcoming distribution of power between Westminster and Belfast has similarities with divisions specified in the written constitutions of federal states...Although the Agreement makes the general proviso that Westminster's 'powers to make legislation for Northern Ireland' remains 'unaffected', without an explicit categorical reference to reserved matters, it may be more difficult than in Scotland or Wales for devolved powers to be repatriated. The retraction of devolved powers would not merely entail consultation in Northern Ireland backed implicitly by the absolute power of parliamentary sovereignty but also the renegotiation of an intergovernmental agreement.|doi-access=free }}</ref> The UK Parliament restricts the three devolved parliaments' legislative powers in economic policy matters through an act passed in 2020.<ref name=UKIM />

==== England ====
Unlike Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, England does not have a separate devolved government or national parliament,<ref>{{cite web |title=English devolution |url=https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/english-devolution#:~:text=After%201997%20Labour%20governments%20devolved,assembly%20were%20created%20in%202000. |publisher=Institute for Government |access-date=30 August 2024 |date=21 June 2024 |archive-date=30 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240830150949/https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/english-devolution#:~:text=After%201997%20Labour%20governments%20devolved,assembly%20were%20created%20in%202000. |url-status=live }}</ref> rather a process of devolution of powers from the central government to local authorities has taken place, first in 1998.<ref>{{cite web |title= Devolution explained |url= https://www.local.gov.uk/topics/devolution/devolution-hub/devolution-explained |publisher= Local Government Association |access-date= 30 August 2024 |archive-date= 30 August 2024 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240830152450/https://www.local.gov.uk/topics/devolution/devolution-hub/devolution-explained |url-status= live }}</ref> The [[Greater London Authority]] (GLA) was set up following a [[1998 Greater London Authority referendum|referendum in 1998]]. Colloquially known as City Hall, it is the devolved regional government body for Greater London. It consists of two political branches: an [[Mayor of London|Executive Mayor]] and the [[London Assembly]], which serves as a check and balance on the Mayor.

A [[Combined authorities and combined county authorities|Combined Authority]] (CA) is a type of local government institution introduced in England outside Greater London by the [[Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009]]. CAs allow a group of local authorities to pool appropriate responsibility and receive certain devolved functions from central government in order to deliver transport and economic policy more effectively over a wider area.<ref>{{Cite web |date= 6 March 2023 |title= English devolution |url= https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/english-devolution |access-date= 4 February 2024 |publisher= Institute for Government |archive-date= 2 October 2024 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20241002212917/https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/english-devolution |url-status= live }}</ref>

A [[Combined authorities and combined county authorities|Combined County Authority]] (CCA) is a similar type of local-government institution introduced in England outside Greater London by the [[Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023]], but may only be formed by upper-tier authorities: [[county council]]s and [[Unitary authority|unitary authorities]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=6 April 2023 |title=Combined County Authorities – key differences to Combined Authorities |url=https://www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk/governance/314-governance-a-risk-articles/53464-combined-county-authorities-key-differences-to-combined-authorities |access-date=4 February 2024 |website=Local Government Lawyer |archive-date=4 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240204170903/https://www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk/governance/314-governance-a-risk-articles/53464-combined-county-authorities-key-differences-to-combined-authorities |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Scotland ====
{{main|Responsibilities of the Scottish Government}}
[[File:First Minister meets Prime Minister (53840421342).jpg|thumb|Prime Minister Keir Starmer meets with [[First Minister of Scotland]] [[John Swinney]], the head of the [[Scottish Government]], at [[Bute House]], Edinburgh.]]
Since 1999, Scotland has had a devolved national government and parliament with wide-ranging powers over any matter that has not been specifically [[Reserved and excepted matters|reserved]] to the UK Parliament.<ref>{{cite web |title=Devolved and Reserved Powers |url=https://www.parliament.scot/about/how-parliament-works/devolved-and-reserved-powers |website=parliament.scot |access-date=11 April 2024 |archive-date=20 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230920053732/https://www.parliament.scot/about/how-parliament-works/devolved-and-reserved-powers |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=8 April 1999 |title=Scotland's Parliament&nbsp;– powers and structures |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/events/scotland_99/the_scottish_parliament/310036.stm |access-date=21 October 2008 |archive-date=18 February 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070218234816/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/events/scotland_99/the_scottish_parliament/310036.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> Scotland has the most devolved powers of any of the three devolved parliaments in the United Kingdom, with full legislative control over [[Education in Scotland|education]], [[Scots law|law and order]], [[Economy of Scotland|the economy]], [[Health in Scotland|healthcare]], [[Elections in Scotland|elections]], [[Crown Estate Scotland|the crown estate]], the [[Planning system in Scotland|planning system]] and [[Housing in Scotland|housing]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Devolved and Reserved Matters - Visit & Learn Scottish Parliament |url=http://www.parliament.scot/visitandlearn/Education/18642.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170722092046/http://www.parliament.scot/visitandlearn/Education/18642.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-date=22 July 2017 |access-date=1 March 2025 |date=22 July 2017}}</ref> Additional powers were transferred to the Scottish Parliament as a result of both the [[Scotland Act 2012]] and [[Scotland Act 2016]], such as [[Taxation in Scotland|some taxation powers]], including full control of [[Income tax in Scotland|Income Tax]] on income earned through employment, [[Land and Buildings Transaction Tax]], [[Scottish Landfill Tax|Landfill Tax]], Aggregates Levy, [[Air Departure Tax]] and [[Revenue Scotland]], as well as aspects of the [[Energy in Scotland|energy network]], including [[Renewable energy in Scotland|renewable energy]], energy efficiency and onshore [[Oil industry in Scotland|oil and gas licensing]].<ref name="Devolved Matters in Scotland">{{cite web| url=https://www.gov.scot/about/what-the-government-does/| title=What the Scottish Government does| publisher=Scottish Government| access-date=8 August 2019| archive-date=8 July 2019| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190708045359/https://www.gov.scot/about/what-the-government-does/| url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Devolved and Reserved Powers |url=https://www.parliament.scot/about/how-parliament-works/devolved-and-reserved-powers |website=Parliament.scot |publisher=Scottish Parliament |access-date=28 December 2023}}</ref> Their power over economic issues is significantly constrained by an [[United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020|act of the UK parliament]] passed in 2020.{{refn|name=UKIM|Attributed to multiple sources:<ref name="Keating21">{{Cite journal |last=Keating |first=Michael |date=2 February 2021 |title=Taking back control? Brexit and the territorial constitution of the United Kingdom |journal=[[Journal of European Public Policy]] |location=Abingdon |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |volume=28 |issue=4 |pages=6–7 |doi=10.1080/13501763.2021.1876156 |quote=The UK Internal Market Act gives ministers sweeping powers to enforce mutual recognition and non-discrimination across the four jurisdictions. Existing differences and some social and health matters are exempted but these are much less extensive than the exemptions permitted under the EU Internal Market provisions. Only after an amendment in the House of Lords, the Bill was amended to provide a weak and non-binding consent mechanism for amendments (equivalent to the Sewel Convention) to the list of exemptions. The result is that, while the devolved governments retain regulatory competences, these are undermined by the fact that goods and services originating in, or imported into, England can be marketed anywhere. |hdl-access=free |hdl=1814/70296 |s2cid=234066376}}</ref><ref name="KenMcEw21">{{Cite journal |last1=Kenny |first1=Michael |author-link=Michael Kenny (political scientist) |last2=McEwen |first2=Nicola |author-link2=Nicola McEwen |date=1 March 2021 |title=Intergovernmental Relations and the Crisis of the Union |journal=Political Insight |publisher=[[SAGE Publishing]] |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=12–15 |doi=10.1177/20419058211000996 |quote=That phase of joint working was significantly damaged by the UK Internal Market Act, pushed through by the Johnson government in December 2020...the Act diminishes the authority of the devolved institutions, and was vehemently opposed by them. |doi-access=free |s2cid=232050477}}</ref><ref name="WolffeDevol">{{Cite journal |last=Wolffe |first=W James |author-link=James Wolffe |date=7 April 2021 |title=Devolution and the Statute Book |url=https://academic.oup.com/slr/advance-article/doi/10.1093/slr/hmab003/6213886 |journal=[[Statute Law Review]] |location=Oxford |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |doi=10.1093/slr/hmab003 |access-date=18 April 2021 |quote=the Internal Market Bill—a Bill that contains provisions which, if enacted, would significantly constrain, both legally and as a matter of practicality, the exercise by the devolved legislatures of their legislative competence; provisions that would be significantly more restrictive of the powers of the Scottish Parliament than either EU law or Articles 4 and 6 of the Acts of the Union...The UK Parliament passed the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 and the Internal Market Act 2020 notwithstanding that, in each case, all three of the devolved legislatures had withheld consent. |archive-date=21 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210421145355/https://academic.oup.com/slr/advance-article/doi/10.1093/slr/hmab003/6213886 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Wincott21">{{Cite journal |last1=Wincott |first1=Daniel |author-link=Daniel Wincott |last2=Murray |first2=C. R. G. |last3=Davies |first3=Gregory |date=17 May 2021 |title=The Anglo-British imaginary and the rebuilding of the UK's territorial constitution after Brexit: unitary state or union state? |journal=Territory, Politics, Governance |location=Abingdon/Brighton |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]]; [[Regional Studies Association]] |volume=10 |issue=5 |pages=696–713 |doi=10.1080/21622671.2021.1921613 |quote=Taken as a whole, the Internal Market Act imposes greater restrictions upon the competences of the devolved institutions than the provisions of the EU Single Market which it replaced, in spite of pledges to use common frameworks to address these issues. [[David Hope, Baron Hope of Craighead|Lord Hope]], responsible for many of the leading judgments relating to the first two decades of devolution, regarded the legislation's terms as deliberately confrontational: 'this Parliament can do what it likes, but a different approach is essential if the union is to hold together'. |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name="DouganMcEwen20">{{Cite report |url=https://www.centreonconstitutionalchange.ac.uk/publications/uk-and-internal-market-devolution-and-union |title=UK and the Internal Market, Devolution and the Union |last1=Dougan |first1=Michael |last2=Hayward |first2=Katy |date=2020 |publisher=[[University of Edinburgh]]; [[University of Aberdeen]] |pages=2–3 |last3=Hunt |first3=Jo |last4=McEwen |first4=Nicola |last5=McHarg |first5=Aileen |last6=Wincott |first6=Daniel |author-link=Michael Dougan |author-link2=Katy Hayward |access-date=16 October 2020 |author-link4=Nicola McEwen |author-link6=Daniel Wincott |department=Centre on Constitutional Change |archive-date=18 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201018185830/https://www.centreonconstitutionalchange.ac.uk/publications/uk-and-internal-market-devolution-and-union |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Dougan20Brief">{{Cite report |url=https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/media/livacuk/law/2-research/eull/UKIM,Briefing,Paper,-,Prof,Michael,Dougan,15,September,2020.pdf |title=Briefing Paper. United Kingdom Internal Market Bill: Implications for Devolution |last=Dougan |first=Michael |date=2020 |publisher=[[University of Liverpool]] |location=Liverpool |pages=4–5 |author-link=Michael Dougan |access-date=15 October 2020 |archive-date=26 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026161836/https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/media/livacuk/law/2-research/eull/UKIM,Briefing,Paper,-,Prof,Michael,Dougan,15,September,2020.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=DouHu22>{{cite journal|last1=Dougan|first1=Michael|last2=Hunt|first2=Jo|last3=McEwen|first3=Nicola|last4=McHarg|first4=Aileen|author-link1=Michael Dougan|author-link3=Nicola McEwen|title=Sleeping with an Elephant: Devolution and the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020|journal=[[Law Quarterly Review]]|date=2022|url=https://dro.dur.ac.uk/35167/|location=London|publisher=[[Sweet & Maxwell]]|ssrn=4018581|via=[[Durham University|Durham Research Online]]|access-date=4 March 2022|quote=The Act has restrictive – and potentially damaging – consequences for the regulatory capacity of the devolved legislatures...This was not the first time since the Brexit referendum that the Convention had been set aside, but it was especially notable given that the primary purpose of the legislation was to constrain the capacity of the devolved institutions to use their regulatory autonomy...in practice, it constrains the ability of the devolved institutions to make effective regulatory choices for their territories in ways that do not apply to the choices made by the UK government and parliament for the English market.|issn=0023-933X|archive-date=2 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220802185022/https://dro.dur.ac.uk/35167/|url-status=live}}</ref>}}

The [[Scottish Government]] is a [[Scottish National Party]] minority government,<ref>{{cite web |title=Humza Yousaf's precarious position puts the SNP – and Scotland – at a crossroads |url=https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/humza-yousaf-snp-scotland-crossroads |website=Institute for Government |access-date=26 April 2024 |date=26 April 2024 |archive-date=26 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240426221203/https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/humza-yousaf-snp-scotland-crossroads |url-status=live }}</ref> led by [[First Minister of Scotland|First Minister]] [[John Swinney]], leader of the Scottish National Party. In 2014, the [[2014 Scottish independence referendum|Scottish independence referendum]] was held, with 55.3% voting against independence from the United Kingdom and 44.7% voting in favour, resulting in Scotland staying within the United Kingdom. [[Local government in Scotland]] is divided into [[subdivisions of Scotland|32 council areas]] with a wide variation in size and population. Local councils are made up of elected councillors, of whom there are 1,223.<ref name="auto1"/>

The Scottish Parliament is separate from the Scottish Government. It is made up of 129 elected [[Members of the Scottish Parliament]] (MSPs). It is the law-making body of Scotland, and thus it scrutinises the work of the incumbent Scottish Government and considers any piece of proposed legislation through parliamentary debates, committees and parliamentary questions.<ref>{{cite web |title=What the Scottish Government does |url=https://www.gov.scot/about/what-the-government-does/ |website=gov.scot |access-date=11 April 2024 |archive-date=8 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190708045359/https://www.gov.scot/about/what-the-government-does/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Wales ====
Since 1999, Wales has had a devolved national government and legislature, known as the Senedd. Elections to the Senedd use the [[additional member system]]. It has more limited powers than those devolved to Scotland.<ref>{{Cite news |date=9 April 1999 |title=Structure and powers of the Assembly |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/events/wales_99/the_welsh_assembly/309033.stm |access-date=21 October 2008 |archive-date=7 February 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040207162926/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/events/wales_99/the_welsh_assembly/309033.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> The Senedd can legislate on any matter not specifically reserved to the UK Parliament by [[Acts of Senedd Cymru]]. The [[Welsh Government]] is [[Welsh Labour|Labour]], led by [[First Minister of Wales|First Minister]] [[Eluned Morgan]], who has been the First Minister since 2024. [[Local government in Wales]] consists of 22 unitary authorities, each led by a leader and cabinet elected by the council itself.

==== Northern Ireland ====
The devolved form of government in Northern Ireland is based on the 1998 [[Good Friday Agreement]], which brought to an end a 30-year period of [[Unionism in Ireland|unionist]]-[[Irish nationalism|nationalist]] communal conflict known as [[The Troubles]]. The Agreement was [[1998 Northern Ireland Good Friday Agreement referendum|confirmed by referendum]] and implemented later that year. It established [[power sharing]] arrangements for a devolved government and legislature, referred to as the Executive and Assembly respectively.<ref>{{cite web|title= Good Friday Agreement: What is it?|url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-61968177|website= BBC News|date= 3 April 2023|access-date= 11 April 2024|archive-date= 15 May 2024|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240515131233/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-61968177|url-status= live}}</ref> Elections to the Assembly use the [[single transferable vote]] system. The Executive and Assembly have powers similar to those devolved to Scotland.<ref>{{Cite web |date=8 May 2019 |title=Devolution of powers to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland |url=https://www.gov.uk/guidance/devolution-of-powers-to-scotland-wales-and-northern-ireland |access-date=11 June 2024 |website=GOV.UK |archive-date=7 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307093336/https://www.gov.uk/guidance/devolution-of-powers-to-scotland-wales-and-northern-ireland |url-status=live }}</ref> The Executive is led by a [[diarchy]] representing [[Designated Unionist|unionist]] and [[Designated Nationalist|nationalist]] members of the Assembly.<ref name="northernireland1">{{Cite web |date=25 September 2015 |title=Your Executive |url=https://www.northernireland.gov.uk/topics/your-executive |publisher=Northern Ireland Executive |access-date=14 August 2016 |archive-date=21 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160821135048/https://www.northernireland.gov.uk/topics/your-executive |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[First Minister and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland]] are the joint heads of government of Northern Ireland.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Stormont: Why were NI leaders given unequal job titles? |work=BBC News |date=15 May 2022 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-61393736 | access-date=2 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240202190001/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-61393736 |archive-date=2 February 2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Northern Ireland Executive: Ministerial Code |date=28 September 2015 |url=https://www.northernireland.gov.uk/topics/your-executive/ministerial-code | access-date=2 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240202191115/https://www.northernireland.gov.uk/topics/your-executive/ministerial-code |archive-date=2 February 2024}}</ref> [[Local government in Northern Ireland]] since 2015 has been divided between 11 councils with limited responsibilities.<ref name="Devenport" />