The Constitution: Consolidation and Cautious Advance.

The year 2002 has seen plenty of constitutional developments and proposals for reform, notably a white paper on elected regional assemblies and a white paper on House of Lords reform, followed by the establishment of a Joint Parliamentary Committee to consider options on the composition of the upper house. There has also been considerable innovation in the pilots of electronic and all-postal voting in the local elections. However, as so often since 1997, many have been disappointed with the content of reform proposals and the piecemeal approach the government has continued to take. Although this article is retrospective, much of the last year has been spent looking forwards. Freedom of Information is moving up the agenda of public bodies as the full commencement date of 2005 approaches, while the devolved institutions are looking towards their second elections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]