Abstract
In mid-December 2000 both T h e Hera ld and T h e Sco t sman published prominently two separate reviews of this book by John Rcid, then Secretary of State for Scotland. He was pleased with it, as 'a balanced and intelligent overview of the devolutionary process'. This is an opinion with which I agree, but Reid then proceeded to give the impression that the book was an enthusiastic endorsement of Labour policies and practice. He quoted only one sentence: 'It is an extraordinary achievement to transform a highly centralised unitary state into a devolved and quasi-federal system of government in the space of only three years.' This sentence does occur, in Robert Hazell's Introduction on page 3; but the rest of the book is highly critical of Labour's performance on all levels. Perhaps Reid thought that he did not need to read beyond the Introduction because, as he said in one of the reviews, he is an insider who knows it all already. Alternatively, he was deliberately misrepresenting the general thrust of (he book.
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