1997 Scottish Devolution Referendum

In 1997 there was a referendum to see if power should be devolved and a Scottish Parliament created. The Scottish public were asked to vote on two statements:

• "I agree/do not agree that there should be a Scottish Parliament as proposed by the Government?".
• "I agree/do not agree that a Scottish Parliament should have tax-varying powers"

Nationally, Scots voted 74% 'agree' to the first question, and 63% 'agree' to the second. In Shetland, these figures were 62% and 52% respectively. For the both questions, Shetland had the 5th highest 'disagree' vote of all counties in Scotland.

Shetland Result

I agree/do not agree that there should be a Scottish Parliament as proposed by the Government?

Turnout: 8,705 (37.6%)

Option	Votes	Percentage?	Result?
Agree	5,430	62%
Do Not Agree	3,275	38%

I agree/do not agree that a Scottish Parliament should have tax-varying powers

Votes: 8,676

Option	Votes	Percentage?	Result?
Agree	4,478	52%
Do Not Agree	4,198	48%

See Also

• 1997 Scottish Devolution Referendum