ABSTRACT
This chapter reflects on the experience of devolution in Scotland since 1999, with a specific focus on the development of sport. The chapter is divided into two sections, covering events on either side of the election of a Scottish Parliament in May 1999. Devolution is intended to provide Scottish solutions to Scottish problems, and, it is claimed, the creation of a Scottish Parliament brings to bear a more informed judgement on purely Scottish issues. The evidence is that devolution has not produced a noticeably distinctive version of sport in Scotland. The Scottish government is becoming more interventionist in sports policy, but there is a remaining gap between local and national strategies for sport. None of the three administrations elected since 1999 has made the kind of investment in school sport that has driven up standards and performance in England. To that extent it appears that divergence in policies is not benefiting sport in Scotland.
