Devolution

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On the day covered, BBC ONE West and BBC NEWS reported on a speech by Andy Burnham in Motherwell, Lanarkshire, about devolving more powers within Scotland. BBC ONE West said Burnham wanted local communities in Scotland to have more powers, arguing that Scotland is the most devolved nation in the UK but one of the most centralised in Europe, and that too much power given to Holyrood by Westminster was being hoarded in Edinburgh. It reported that he wanted more powers devolved away from the Scottish Parliament to Scottish regions, and that he linked powerful city regions to jobs and economic growth. BBC NEWS carried an extended excerpt of the speech, in which Burnham said he wanted to push power out of Number 10 to local people, to 'rewire the state' so it works across the UK, and to give more power to people and places everywhere. BBC NEWS also reported that in the speech he described himself as prime minister, cited a 2023 visit to Easterhouse and a 'live well model' in Greater Manchester, and referred to deindustrialisation and the former Ravenscraig steelworks in Motherwell. BBC ONE West reported that SNP politicians at their conference in Aberdeen were willing to engage, citing the Prime Minister's willingness to hand over employment support powers as part of a deal, and that the First Minister had sent a letter to the Prime Minister on Monday about devolution. It also reported that the Conservative leader criticised the discussion as a waste of time and political diversion, and that Burnham said another independence referendum is off limits. BBC ONE West said Burnham promised further discussions when he meets First Ministers from across the UK later this month.

Key Claims by Channel

Friday 31 July 2026

Claim
Widely reported · 4 or more of 5 channels
Prime Minister Burnham announced that mayors will be allowed to retain a share of income tax and business rates revenues.		Reported by BBC Two		Reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
Reported by a few · 2–3 channels
The government has not provided exact details of how much cash will be devolved to mayors.		Not reported by BBC Two	Not reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV	Reported by Sky News
The government says more details will be provided alongside the autumn budget.	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Reported by Channel 4	Reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
The first budget will be on October 28.	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
Conservative mayor Ben Houchen wants to give cash back to taxpayers rather than reinvest it.		Not reported by BBC Two	Reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
Cornwall risks being locked out of opportunities because it does not have a mayor.	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Not reported by Channel 4	Reported by ITV	Reported by Sky News
There is a risk that wealthier areas could pull further ahead under fiscal devolution.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by BBC Two		Reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
Only on one channel
The plan has been criticized by Reform and Tory mayors.	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Not reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
Ben Houchen said the plan could be seen as a tax grab from Westminster.	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Not reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV
The Greater Manchester mayoral by-election used a supplementary voting system and no candidate received more than 50% of first-preference votes.	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
The plan does not solve the projected 7 billion pound funding gap for local councils over the next three years.	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
The Prime Minister said the plans were not about allowing mayors to become mini-chancellors.	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Not reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
Only half of the English population is currently represented by a mayor.	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Not reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV
The plan is described as the biggest shift of power out of Whitehall and Westminster into all places across the UK.	Reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Not reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
The policy is part of a pattern of transferring power from Westminster.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by BBC Two	Not reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News
Burnham is making good on his promise to devolve power.	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two	Not reported by Channel 4	Not reported by ITV
No new money is being provided; tax revenue retained will replace central government grants.	Not reported by BBC One	Not reported by BBC Two		Not reported by ITV	Not reported by Sky News

Monday 14 September 2026

Claim
Reported by all 2 channels
Leaders of the main political parties in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland met in Cardiff.	Reported by BBC One	Reported by Sky News
The leaders said Westminster's time is coming to an end.	Reported by BBC One	Reported by Sky News
Only on one channel
The leaders signed a memorandum of understanding covering the economy, energy and international cooperation.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by Sky News
It was the first time Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all had nationalist leaders.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by Sky News
The leaders referenced Andy Burnham's push for devolution.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by Sky News
The leaders said Brexit has damaged their economies.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by Sky News
Donald Trump backed Irish unity at the weekend, which pushed the issue up the agenda.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by Sky News
Sinn Fein wants a referendum on Irish unity by 2030.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by Sky News
The DUP was not represented at the meeting.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by Sky News
The leaders appeared in their roles as party leaders rather than first ministers.	Not reported by BBC One	Reported by Sky News

Friday 16 October 2026

Claim
Reported by all 2 channels
Andy Burnham gave a speech in Motherwell, Lanarkshire, proposing more devolution of powers to local communities and regions in Scotland.	Reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One
Only on one channel
Andy Burnham said Scotland is the most devolved nation in the UK but one of the most centralised in Europe.	Not reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One
Andy Burnham argued that powerful city regions can help create jobs and economic growth.	Not reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One
SNP politicians at their Aberdeen conference were open to talks because the Prime Minister is willing to hand over employment support powers as part of any deal.	Not reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One
The First Minister sent a letter to the Prime Minister about devolution on Monday, and the Prime Minister appeared supportive of the seventh item on that list.	Not reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One
Andy Burnham said another independence referendum is off limits, while the SNP is not giving up its campaign for independence.	Not reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One
The Conservative leader accused her rivals of political diversion and said discussion of Holyrood powers, constitutional settlements, another referendum and more councils is a waste of time, adding that they have the powers they need.	Not reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One
Andy Burnham promised to discuss devolution further when he meets First Ministers from across the UK later this month.	Not reported by BBC News	Reported by BBC One
Andy Burnham said he left Westminster in 2017 to become the first mayor of Greater Manchester and returned to change old ways, and said that was why he was prime minister.	Reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One
Andy Burnham said he wants good growth in every postcode and more power for people and places everywhere.	Reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One
Andy Burnham cited an August 2023 visit to Easterhouse with violence reduction units and said he used the lessons to pioneer a live well model in Greater Manchester based on trusting local communities and moving away from top-down tick box systems.	Reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One
Andy Burnham said he was determined to shift power from Number 10 to local people and to restructure the state so it works across the UK.	Reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One
Andy Burnham referred to deindustrialisation and the former Ravenscraig steelworks in Motherwell, saying young people had been let down by political choices made far away.	Reported by BBC News	Not reported by BBC One

This is a cross-channel consensus summary, not an objective account. Consensus can be uniformly wrong, or omit what only one channel covered.