| Intergovernmental relations in the United Kingdom | |
| Abbreviation: | IGR[1] |
| Predecessor: | Joint Ministerial Committee |
| Formation: | (as JMC)[2] 2022 (as Three Tier System) |
| Founders: | --> |
| Defunct: | --> |
| Type: | Intergovernmental organisation |
| Area Served: | or |
| Region: | --> |
| Product: | --> |
| Method: | --> |
| Field: | --> |
| Languages: | --> |
| Owners: | --> |
| Main Organ: | Prime Minister and Heads of Devolved Governments Council |
| Website: | GOV.UK (Cabinet Office): Intergovernmental Relations |
| Former Name: | --> |
In the United Kingdom, intergovernmental relations are the coordination and engagement between the central UK Government and the devolved Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive.[3] The Prime Minister and Heads of Devolved Governments Council is where the heads of these administrations meet.[4]
There is also a portfolio-specific Interministerial Standing Committee (IMSC) and interministerial groups (IMG) affiliated to the IMSC. These were established in 2022 following a series of reviews.[1] [5] From 1999–2022, their predecessor the Joint Ministerial Committee (JMC), established by memorandums of understanding, served a similar purpose.
Intergovernmental relations were previously governed by the Joint Ministerial Committee.[6] On 20 January 2020, the Constitution Committee within the House of Lords published a report outlining how the UK Government could improve intergovernmental relations.[7] In 2022, the UK Government and devolved governments came to an agreement on the intergovernmental relations in the UK.[8] [9]
The Prime Minister and Heads of Devolved Governments Council (“the council”) consists of the UK prime minister and the heads of the UK‘s three national devolved governments. The council is responsible for:
| Prime Minister and Heads of Devolved Governments Council | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Representing | Council Position | |
| Keir Starmer |  United Kingdom | Chair | |
| John Swinney | Member | ||
| Eluned Morgan, Baroness Morgan of Ely | Member | ||
| Michelle O'Neill Emma Little-Pengelly | Northern Ireland | Member | |
Prime Minister and Heads of Devolved Governments Council
The Interministerial Standing Committee is led by the Minister for Intergovernmental Relations and is responsible for discussing areas of cooperation that cannot be discussed at the Portfolio Committee, the committee will have representatives from central government and the three devolved nations and aim to meet monthly.[11]
There are currently two active intergovernmental committees.[12]
| No | Name of Interministerial Standing Committee | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Interministerial | |
| 2. | Finance |
There are currently 7 active intergovernmental groups[12]
| 1. | Business and Industry | |
| 2. | Education | |
| 3. | UK•EU Relations | |
| 4. | Elections and Registration | |
| 5. | Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs | |
| 6. | Housing, Communities, and Local Government | |
| 7. | COP26 |
There are six different mechanisms involved in intergovernmental relations in order to avoid disputes between the UK Government and the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive.[13] Whilst the Scottish Government and Welsh Government welcomed the changes to intergovernmental relations within the United Kingdom which were implemented in 2022, both governments were critical regarding the UK Government's "attitude towards engagement with the devolved administrations at times".[14]
The review into intergovernmental relations concluded that the governments of the United Kingdom, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland were “committed to promoting collaboration and the avoidance of disagreements". In any instance that a dispute between any government arises, the IGR Secretariat may have that matter referred to them by the government or governments involved.[15]
The IGR Council is the final arbiter in any disputes.[16]
The Council of the Nations and Regions is a body that was established by Prime Minister Keir Starmer on 8 July 2024 and brings together the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Minister of Scotland, First Minister of Wales, First and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, Mayor of London and the mayors of combined authorities in England.[17]
The JMC was created in 1999 by Tony Blair's Labour government, and sought to act as a focus for the coordination of the relationships between these administrations. The terms of reference for the JMC were:[18]
Before it was replaced, the membership of the JMC Plenary (JMC(P)) was:
The following may also attend sessions of the JMC:
Since its creation in 1999, there had been several different JMC meeting formats.[2] Since 2010, there have been four types: plenary, Europe, domestic and European negotiations (created following the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum[20] [21]).
The JMC Plenary meetings were intended to occur at least once every year. However, no plenary meetings were held between 2002 and 2008.[2] This was primarily because the UK, Scotland, and Wales governments were all controlled by the Labour Party, and as such ministers from the central and devolved governments could quickly and easily use informal links to coordinate policy.[22] However, following the Scottish National Party's victory at the 2007 Scottish Parliament election this was no longer the case. So JMC Plenary meetings were re-established, though on an ad hoc basis.[2]
Under proposals outlined by Theresa May in October 2016, the JMC Plenary was to meet on a definite annual basis and would have rotated between London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast. It would have also published an annual report on its work and hoped to foster greater formal and informal links between ministers from each (devolved) government.[23] [24] However, these proposals were vetoed by Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness.[23]
The last JMC Plenary was convened by Theresa May on 19 December 2018, even though soon after he became Prime Minister in July 2019, Boris Johnson announced his intention to hold a JMC Plenary meeting as soon as possible.[25]