ABSTRACT
There can be little doubt that the rise of regionalist or micro-nationalist movements throughout Western Europe has been one of the most significant developments in the European political scene in the past 30 years. These organisations have played a significant role in the development of regional government. Although persuasive arguments existed for the establishment of regional government, as outlined in Chapter 2, it was the perceived threat of regionalist movements to the existing political orders that persuaded centralised nation-state regimes to move down the regional road (Smith, 1985, p 48). In extreme cases, regional political parties became so powerful that regional devolution was inevitable; the question was only how it should be achieved and the form it should take. In other cases the regional movements have been less successful and their impact more subtle.
