Robert E. Bohrer II and Glen S. Krutz, "The Devolved Party Systems of the United Kingdom: Sub-national Variations from the National Model," Party Politics, 11 (November, 2005), 654-673.

First Paragraph:
The end of the twentieth century marked a shift in the political structure of the United Kingdom (UK). In the summer of 1999, the Scottish Parliament convened for the first time in nearly 300 years, while similar institutions opened in Wales and Northern Ireland. While emanating from Westminster, the devolved institutions varied a great deal from both the British model of parliament as well as from one another, though all three continued to remain subject, to varying extents, to the functioning of the British system. The advent of sub-national government in the UK offers numerous opportunities for studying the effects of varying types of institutions, the expansion of issue agendas and the dynamics of multi-level governance. In this article, we compare and contrast the emerging party systems of the devolved environments with those at the national level, with an eye toward shedding light on the factors that influence the number of parties in a system and the effects of the party system on the cabinet level. While these systems are not 'new' in the sense of newly democratized countries, they offer insight into the effects of a new context and rules in an existing democracy.

Figures and Tables:
Table 1. Comparing disproportionality in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland under first-past-the-post Westminster elections and devolved assemblies
Table 2. Party system characteristics in the United Kingdom: devolved versus UK elections
Table 2. Party system characteristics in the United Kingdom: devolved versus UK elections
Table 4. Comparing party system characteristics in Northern Ireland, 1992-2001
Table 5. Comparing party system characteristics in Scotland, 1992-2001
Table 6. Comparing party system characteristics in Wales, 1992-2001
Table 7. Survey results of MSPs and AMs on the effects of devolution on tension in party
Table 8. Survey results of MSPs and AMs on the effects of devolution on tension in party - by party

Next to Last Paragraph:
Based on the initial elections under devolution, several important patterns emerge with regard to the party systems in the devolved settings. First, the implementation of PR has led to larger party systems in the devolved institutions, both at the elective and parliamentary levels. While some of the differences between national and sub-national party systems may be due to the change in venue and different cleavage structures (e.g. the emergence of strong nationalist parties in both Scotland and Wales), there is a distinct, independent effect of the electoral rules. Additionally, the center-periphery cleavage has emerged in the devolved settings as more relevant than at the UK level. Even in Northern Ireland, where the republican-unionist divide already dominated, the cleavage has added importance as the pro- and antiagreement issues have divided parties in the system. Finally, the different contexts and electoral rules at the sub-national level have resulted in more complex, multiparty environments. Government formation diverges in all three devolved settings from the British norm of single-party majority government..