From the SNP on the 30th June 2026:

Two years ago, Labour stood on the steps of Downing Street promising a new era of “change”. Fast forward to today, and the reality for families across Scotland is ongoing chaos: a soaring cost of living, rising unemployment, and a broken Brexit Britain that looks indistinguishable from the Tory austerity that preceded it.

Now, with a new Westminster leadership race underway, frontrunner Andy Burnham has taken to the stage to pitch yet another “radical restructuring” of the UK through his brand of “Manchester-ism”.

But beneath the shiny rhetoric of a “Number 10 North” and shifting power out of Whitehall lies an all-too-familiar reality – top-down, England-centric empty promises that ignore Scotland’s democratically elected government and actively threaten our local services.

As SNP Westminster Leader Dave Doogan MP put it:

“Andy Burnham is making the same empty promises, while keeping all of Westminster’s most damaging policies – Brexit, austerity cuts and Tory spending rules. The SNP has been calling for meaningful devolution for years but there is nothing of substance for Scotland in these proposals.”

For decades, Scotland has been subjected to a cyclical pattern of panicky, last-minute vows from Westminster politicians whenever the prospect of real self-determination looks likely.

Full text at: https://www.snp.org/why-burnhams-devolution-promises-offer-nothing-new-for-scotland/

If you wanted to hear what John Swinney actually said, you’ll need the above link.