Reserved and devolved powers

Study note

Powers in the UK are split between the UK government and the devolved governments. Some powers are kept by the UK government for the whole country, and these are known as reserved matters. They cover big national issues such as defence, foreign affairs, immigration and taxation policy, which are handled centrally for the entire UK rather than nation by nation.

Other powers have been devolved, which means handed to the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland governments to decide for themselves. Devolved areas include everyday services such as health and education, and things like rubbish collection are run locally too. For the test, the simple test is to ask whether something is a national matter like defence or a local service like health: defence, foreign affairs and immigration are reserved to the UK, while health and education are devolved.

Memory tip: Reserved to the UK: defence, foreign affairs, immigration. Devolved: health, education.