Scottish and Welsh first ministers tell Burnham local devolution is for their own parliaments

The first ministers of Scotland and Wales, John Swinney and Rhun ap Iorwerth, told UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham after talks in Glasgow that decisions on local devolution belong solely to their own parliaments. The meeting covered localised employment and reindustrialisation powers. Burnham wants the English model of regional government extended across the UK, and Downing Street described the discussions as constructive.

Friction before the summit

Before the meeting, Defence Secretary Wes Streeting criticised Swinney's government in an interview with BBC Scotland. He argued that for the Scottish government devolution is often about moving power from Westminster to Holyrood, and that the question is whether more should also pass from Holyrood to local government. One Scottish official characterised such remarks as "lecturing us on devolution".

Northern Ireland's first minister, Michelle O'Neill, did not attend after a political row between Sinn Féin and the DUP. Burnham called her absence "disappointing".

Positions of the leaders

Burnham said he hoped all four UK nations could move at the same pace, particularly on measures in Wednesday's budget giving mayors in England more powers over tax revenues. He said he did not want Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland left behind.

Ap Iorwerth said he had pressed Burnham to give his government more powers, and repeated that further devolution within Wales is a matter for the Senedd, the Welsh parliament, and only the Senedd. Swinney said he would work constructively, adding that Burnham had assured him he would not bypass the Scottish parliament.

Tensions nonetheless remain. Shortly before the summit, ap Iorwerth said Burnham's first budget, which the Welsh government says amounts to a real-terms funding cut, showed the prime minister was "not serious about Wales". Plaid Cymru, which won May's Senedd elections, has formally asked Burnham to give Wales the same devolved powers as Scotland.

Separately, Lee Waters, a former Welsh Labour minister, told the Guardian that an English-style mayoral model should not be imposed on Wales. He said English regions typically cover 1.5 to 3 million people, while Welsh regions are much less dense.