ABSTRACT
Since coming to office, New Labour’s devolution and régionalisation programme has led to a fundamental reshaping of UK territorial politics, public policy and administration. This chapter considers the changing relationships between various parts of the UK and between Whitehall and the English regions, and the implications for emerging regional development structures in England. It is clear that the economic, political and administrative forces that led to the return of the regional and devolution agenda are deep-seated and their persistence may well lead to pressures for further changes. In this dynamic, the English regions are in a pivotal and evolving situation. The failure of the Callaghan administration to fully recognise concerns about the impact of devolution on the North East and other parts of England led to parliamentary opposition and the wrecking of the Devolution Bill, and ultimately set in train events leading to the fall of the government in 1979 (Bogdanor, 1999). This time around it is important that as the devolution project unfolds it is viewed in its totality, taking into account the complex interactions between different parts of the UK.
