Prime Minister Andy Burnham has insisted he supports "solidarity between the nations of the UK" as he again rejected the SNP's repeated calls for an IndyRef2.
Speaking ahead of the Labour Party conference in Liverpool, Burnham said today it was important "not to focus on something that would be a matter of huge division". He told STV News: "I don't support separation. Let me be absolutely plain about that."
Manifesto commitment and recent remarks
Burnham has previously insisted he would stick by his party's 2024 manifesto commitment which opposed Scottish independence and the staging of a second referendum. But he injected fresh wind into the SNP's sails earlier this month when he compared the process to obtaining another referendum in Scotland to that of Northern Ireland.
In comments made in the Commons, the PM said suggested the rules governing the timing of an IndyRef2 should be "exactly the same" as those for an Irish border poll. The remarks were immediately seized on by the SNP, with John Swinney writing to Burnham to demand a legal mechanism for an IndyRef2 be agreed as a matter of urgency.
Definition of a generation and public opinion
Pressed if Scots had the right to hold an IndyRef2 in the future, Burnham said today: "They have that right. But it was determined, the future was determined, I would say for a generation." Asked to define a generation, the PM continued: "It's about where people are, isn't it? And things haven't changed, as far as I can see. There is no clear consensus, and so the important thing is not to focus on something that would be a matter of huge division. Because there is no clear consensus, the right thing to do is to focus on the cost of living."
Asked if the Scottish public's view changed, and if there was a democratic path to another referendum, Burnham added: "The point I'm making is I support solidarity between the nations of the UK. I don't support separation. Let me be absolutely plain about that. I think Britain works better together. I don't think it would be good for people in the north of England. We felt that at the time of the Scottish referendum. I'm going to be plain with you, that is my view, I don't think now is the time for another referendum, and I don't think public opinion supports it, as there is no clear consensus."
Invitation to Swinney and Northern Ireland comparison
Burnham also revealed he had invited Swinney to attend a meeting of the National Economic Council at No 10 North to discuss how the UK Government could "help with further devolution... particularly down to the city level".
Burnham was asked earlier this month at PMQs about the position of Northern Ireland. Under the Good Friday Agreement, a border poll can be triggered if the Secretary of State believes a majority of people would vote for Irish unification. SNP MP Chris Law said voters in Scotland should have the "equal right to choose their own future" as those in the province.
Burnham responded: "I would say exactly the same situation in Scotland. I am not aware that there is a majority of public support for another referendum and until that changes there won’t be one." Swinney later said the PM's comments amounted to "a long-overdue acceptance of the reality that the people of Scotland will decide their own future, not the UK Government".
