| Wales Referendum, 1997 |
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One of the factors that made the referendum controversial was that Wales has a much greater immigrant and transient population than Scotland. A previous referendum on Devolution , held in 1979 , had resulted in a majority against, whereas in Scotland the vote had been in favour. It was generally believed that the Labour government scheduled the referendum as it did because it foresaw the embarrassment of a defeat, and therefore arranged for the Scotland referendum to be held slightly earlier, in the hope that the anticipated result would influence the Welsh result. PARTY SUPPORT Plaid Cymru , Liberal Democrats and the Labour Party campaigned for the 'Yes' vote. The Conservative Party was the only major party to support the 'No' vote. RESULTS The referendum was held on September 18 , 1997 , a week after the Referendum In Scotland . In the end, the result was extremely close, and everything hung on voting figures for the last constituency to be announced, which carried the "Yes" vote. The Electorate were asked to indicate whether: '1. I agree that there should be a Welsh Assembly ; or 2. I do not agree that there should be a Welsh Assembly.' GOVERNMENT RESPONSE In response to the majority voting for Yes, the government passed the Government Of Wales Act 1998 , creating the Welsh Assembly . SEE ALSO |